Rating: 
Summary: A Guest Not so Distinguished As You Might Think.
Review: I found this book quite disappointing. It is about an elderly woman named Lily Maynard and her family. Or what is left of it. She is a divorced mother of three children, technically, although one has sort of disappeared (and the more you read the more you think you might have done the same). Miller highlights Lily's shining moments as an author and the fame and popularity her talents have found. Her son, Alan, takes her in temporarily until there is room for her at the nursing home. She is somewhat unbearable, although, that was not the real problem with this novel. For some reason, unlike Miller's other works, it was just really super boring. I kept reminding myself not to walk away without finishing it. Without at least giving it that much of a chance. At the end, instead of feeling like it was a good book after all, I was just glad I had finished it. Not the worst but certainly not the best.
Rating:
Summary: The Distinguished Guest is a disappointment by Laura @ HHS
Review: I found this book to be boring and hard to get into. It is about an elderly woman, named Lily Maynard who moves in with her son Alan, while waiting to get into a retirement home. Lily is a divorced mother of three, who became a famous writer at the age of seventy-two. Alan is not happy about her coming to stay with him because she is a difficult woman, and he is also blames her for some things that happened during his childhood.Lily can be difficult with her high class attitude, but she can not help that she has Parkinson's disease. This disease is effecting her physically and mentally. She is unable to do her writing anymore, which makes her very upset. This book does explain how terrible Parkinson's disease is, and it really shows the effects on people. Lily went from a woman who people admired, wanted to interview, and couldn't wait for her next work to come out, to becoming a woman who could no longer take care of herself, and could not concentrate anymore. Another thing this book does well is explaining the characters. It really goes in depth of were the characters came from and what they are feeling. The Distinguished Guest did have its good points, but over all I thought it was boring.
Rating: 
Summary: A very thoughtful book
Review: I just finished the book a few hours ago and feel compelled to comment on Sue Miller's masterful writing about a person suffering from Parkinson's Disease. My dad died last September, having suffered with the disease for many years. I only wish that I had read the book while my dad was still alive. I would have spoken to him differently. (His last four years were spent in a nursing home.) Although I had read about the disease in medical books, etc., Sue Miller, in her book, gave me a much better handle of how the disease affects one suffering with it.
Rating:
Summary: Thank you Sue Miller for another great book.
Review: I really enjoyed this book. I think Sue Miller is a brilliant writer. I just love her style. This book moved me. It's a story that showed some realities of life. As always with Sue Miller books I feel very close to the characters.
Rating:
Summary: Thank you Sue Miller for another great book.
Review: I really enjoyed this book. I think Sue Miller is a brilliant writer. I just love her style. This book moved me. It's a story that showed some realities of life. As always with Sue Miller books I feel very close to the characters.
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Summary: This novel hit home with me
Review: I was impressed by the intelligence, depth, and power of this novel. Sue Miller has succeeded here in spinning a tale that makes *real* many issues that I have struggled with personally, including dealing with an aging parent, the raw edges that inevitably surround familial relationships, the doubts that so many of us develop in midlife about ourselves, our successes and failures, and on and on. So many times as I read this book I found myself marvelling at how Wilson had captured a thought or a feeling I had experienced myself--and had thought, naively,was uniquely my own. Then there is the fine portrayal of Lily, the fiercely independent, articulate, interpersonally cold yet socially idealistic writer who struggles with her declining physical and mental capacities from Parkinson's disease. The way that Miller approaches and analyzes Lily's past and her own ruminations about the past is nothing short of masterful. Complementing the author's incisive depiction of the complex matrix of bonds and divisions that comprise an extended family, she offers insights into some of the most divisive and vexing political/social issues of our time, including the historical struggle of white Americans of good conscience to try to find a way to act rightly with respect to race relations. She never preaches, and never really takes sides when presenting this aspect of her story--but she demonstrates that she truly *understands* the various experiences, perspectives, and viewpoints that have emerged in response to this most contentious of issues. This book impressed me tremendously. I have no idea whether this is because in some objective way, Sue Miller has created here a triumphant work of literature; conversely, it may just be a matter of this being the right book at the right time for me personally. Ultimately, I guess it doesn't matter.
Rating: 
Summary: An interesting resting point on the road to self-discovery.
Review: Just finished this book about an hour ago and am still sorting out my impressions. Throughout my reading my 11 year old son would pass by and ask me "What's it about?" My answer? "Well, it's about a family. (Sort of.)" "Do you like it, Mom?" "I think so. (Sort of.)"
The Distinguished Guest is the kind of book that you have to reserve opinions about until the final page is turned. It's about a family. (Sort of.) But, more importantly it's about ourselves. About our own relationships. With our families. With our friends. With our world. With our past. With ourselves. The characters, through their thoughts, their conflicts, their hopes and their pain are guides for us on our own road towards self-discovery. Like it or not, Ms. Miller hands us the keys to a vehicle of introspection. All you need to add is a full tank of emotional fuel.
Rating: 
Summary: A Strong Character Study
Review: Sue Miller is a powerful writer, and although this isn't her most stimulating novel it still has enough to recommend it. Lily Maynard finds celebrity in her 70's as she writes her memoirs. She and her former husband Paul ran a church that was heavily involved in the early civil rights movement, and it was this involvement that ended their marriage. Lily enjoys her late-in-life fame, but now Parkinson's Disease is forcing her into a retirement home, and as she waits for a unit to become available she moves in with her son Alan and his French wife Gaby. Lily's relationship with Alan has always been strained, as Alan has 'issues' with his strong-willed mother. These issues come to the forefront as they live together, and as Lily begins to deteriorate. Added to the mix is a writer doing an article about Lily, who brings up issues long-buried and best forgotten. The novel is a strong character study of these characters: Lily, Alan and his wife and sons, and the lonely free-lance writer. Secrets, (none too shocking) are eventually revealed and issues resolved, but don't expect much in the way of plot or action. Just enjoy Miller's skill at creating these characters and bringing them to life.
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Summary: The Distinguished Guest is a disappointment by Laura @ HHS
Review: Sue Miller's novel is captivating. I read it in one night because it was so good I couldn't put it down and go to sleep. I literally stayed up all night with this novel. The characters, Lily and her son in particular, are well drawn. The relationships are interesting. Miller really made me think with this book. I have read a few of her novels, and this is by far the best.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding!
Review: Sue Miller's novel is captivating. I read it in one night because it was so good I couldn't put it down and go to sleep. I literally stayed up all night with this novel. The characters, Lily and her son in particular, are well drawn. The relationships are interesting. Miller really made me think with this book. I have read a few of her novels, and this is by far the best.
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