Rating: 
Summary: A waste of talent and time
Review: We Were the Mulvaneys is perhaps one of the strangest "bad" books that I've ever read. It starts off with a pretty good idea: a typical American family falls apart after the daughter is raped. From there it disintegrates into horribly drawn out descriptions of everything (like directions to the farm, the color of wallpaper,etc ad nauseum) except that which needs desperately to be described - The Characters! If the author had put one-tenth the effort into describing the characters and giving them depth as she did in her long winded descriptions of EVERYTHING else, this would have been a fabulous book. Unfortunately, because we never come to really know the characters, we have no understanding of why they do what they do. Reading about the Mulvaneys is like watching a tank of fish. You can see very clearly, in stunning detail, what they are doing. Still, you haven't got a clue why.Tedious, ridiculous, and time wasting. If Joyce Carol Oates would stop trying to so hard to be a literary giant and just work at being an author with a story to tell, she might have gotten better reviews for this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Stop and Go - Had no Flow
Review: The premise of the story was good: A young man tells the stories and myths of his family. He explores how incidents and skeletons in the closet have an impact on family members and family life. I'd get really into one chapter, then have to force myself to read the next one.
Rating: 
Summary: Long and depressing
Review: Though this book started out OK, somewhere along the line, it seemed to fall apart (right along with the Mulvaney family). The characters, who seemed so real at the beginning, became a bit unbelievable and, in certain cases, downright strange. Though I do believe that a traumatic incident might have the power to shake up a family and even destroy a marriage, I think that the degree of damage done to the Mulvaney family was disproportionate to the trigger -- a date rape that we're not even sure was really a rape. The Mulvaneys are presented as the "typical family", yet, in fact, none of them have very many redeeming characteristics as human beings. Perhaps the most disappointing part of this book, for me, was the end. When everything goes wrong and everything falls apart, can there possibly be a happy ending? Hard to believe, but that's what Oates has given us here. I wouldn't go as far as to recommend that people NOT read this book, but don't expect a literary masterpiece or even a pleasant story.
Rating:
Summary: Good story, but tedious to read...
Review: There is no doubt in my mind that Joyce Carol Oates is a wonderfully gifted writer. However, I don't believe her writing style is for everyone. We Were the Mulvaneys, however evident of Oates's talent, is a tedious, overdescriptive work that takes patience and perseverence to get through. We Were the Mulvaneys is the story of the Mulvaney family in the mid-1970s. They are the more-than-typical family, like the ones on TV who play games together in the living room after dinner. A little on the corny side, but the love they share for each other is obvious in the beginning chapters. Then something happens to one of the family members - a tragedy atrocious and unforgettable - that threatens to tear the Mulvaneys apart. While the story itself was very good, I could not get into the book. I was hoping maybe it would be a late-bloomer, but there was never a point that I reached that inspired me to keep reading. I did finish the novel, but only after a week of exhausting myself. However, there is an audience out there for this book, and my suggestion is this: If you are the type of reader that enjoys a slow pace, highly descriptive writing, wordy sentences and a lack of dialogue, then We Were the Mulvaneys would be an excellent choice. My own personal shortcomings about this book is in no way reflective of the talent or storytelling ability of Joyce Carol Oates. Please read this and see for yourself.
Rating:
Summary: Depressing Book that was too long
Review: I read this with a few friend online. This was on of those books I had tried to read many times before but just could not get into. Finally this time I decided I would finish it. The first party of book is good with all the children and the family, but after what happens the book takes a drastic turn and started to bore me. Then in the middle of the book it picked up for a while with what with the family and where they had gone. The end of the book was sort of what I had predicited would happen. It was good but this is a book I can't see ever reading again or really recommening to anyone unless they like very depressing books. Overall I've tried to read more from this author only to get the same feeling from most of her books.
Rating: 
Summary: A book for anyone
Review: I was completely swept away with this novel. It emphasized the hard work it takes to maintain a loving family and how fragile we all are as people. Along with a family crumbling few heros arise, a young woman whose life is thrown, a young man who watches everything fall and a family outcast who never forgets the important things. WOW... I loved it.
Rating:
Summary: We Were the Mulvaneys
Review: Very depressing book, and I'm not sure why I even continued after "it" the event happens. Even though I'd tell you I didn't like it I read it in just a couple of days. So that must mean it at least kept my attention. The book is thought-provoking and a tragedy that might have been prevented if this family communicated. It's a good lessons learned for families everwhere. It reminded me of my family that has too many secrets. No one is allowed to talk about reality. This book would make a good book club discussion book.
Rating:
Summary: Could of been an excellent story.
Review: When I read the back cover of this book, It sounded like it was going to one I could not put down. While the story line is good, every little detail is described, did I really need directions to the farm?! Also I wish I could have gotten to know the characters better, they were not described very well, except for the father, he seemed to be obsessed with what other people thought about him, and We never really found out why this was. I wish the kids lives were better explained. How deeply hurt and terrorized the daughter was after the crime was committed on her, and more about how the brothers felt. An OK read if you can get by all the fluff.
Rating:
Summary: One of the worst books I have ever read!
Review: I absolutely hated this book! I could not believe that the father in this story completely ruins his entire life and the life of his family just because his daughter got raped. I hated all the wimpy characters in this book also. None of them were believable and they never redeem themselves. I honestly wanted to just put this depressing book down a million times, but once I start something, I finish it. I am so sorry I wasted my precious time on,as another reviewer said, "a total waste of paper." I have enjoyed so many Oprah picks. She really let me down on this one!
Rating:
Summary: Art
Review: I was shocked to see all the negative reviews of this book. But that is what art does: make people react. Ignore the negative reviews and read this book! Expose your brain to something that will make you think and feel. It will enrich your life.
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