Rating: 
Summary: To Want for a Handyman...
Review: This story is the narrative version of James Taylor's oldie, "I'm Your Handyman", where Mr. Fix-It tackles more than leaky faucets. In Carolyn See's work, he handles household disasters on a human scale, dealing with the philosophical bricks and (often crumbling) emotional mortar that holds his clients together, while he tries to design and construct his own artistic castle and learns how to look beyond its walls.I will admit to being initially discouraged while wading through the story's beginning, which involves a student fellow applying to the Guggeinheim Foundation in the year 2027 for a grant to study his favorite artist, Robert Hampton. I thought I was listening to an art textbook-on-tape but kept going as the bookjacket promised more. Eventually it all made sense when the story "rewinds" to 1996, the year Bob Hampton, artiste-wannabe, goes to Paris in search of his life's direction. After learning that all the ex-patriates he hopes to emulate lived years ago, he returns to L.A., resigning himself to the prospect of attending design school and hoping not to starve for the sake of art. He rents a room in a house inhabited by three other directionless-types and puts up signs around town offering his services as a "handyman". He is hired by a collection of misfits and societal outcasts, through which he experiences an artistic epiphany and finds his own emotional and philosophical foundation. Despite its academic opening, this book is not high-brow. It doesn't call for the reader (or listener) to analyze it like a complex work of art. It is optimistic without being patronizing, albeit realists may judge it naive. But it encourages us all to be handymen, to liberate ourselves from our staid pre-occupations, and to make improvements in the home which is our society - one brick at a time. Simple in structure and lesson, the story leaves one feeling positive and hopeful. Habitat for Humanity anyone?
Rating:
Summary: A good read.
Review: This book won't shake up the world, but I loved it for a good, fun, enjoyable read. Too rare is just a plain ole' lose-yourself for awhile book!
Rating: 
Summary: The all encompassing role of the handyman...
Review: My sister purchased this book for me at a book signing and I liked it so well I am very pleased to have an autographed copy for my library. I think it is a perfect book - the compassion of the main character is wonderful, the scope of his work i.e. fixing all that he can around him, much of which does not require a hammer or a paintbrush, as well as the interwoven artistic references which is after all his real talent and focus - life as art and art reflecting life. The first grant letter at the opening of the book did not make any sense to me until after I read the book and then I went back to reread it - it did daunt me for the first few minutes when I had just opened the book waiting in the airport for a flight home...but then I skipped ahead to the first chapter and was instantly involved. I highly recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: A moving reading experience
Review: As I read this book, I initially found it to be pleasant enough but somehow lightweight and insubstantial. However, it definitely gathered emotional momentum and gravitas as it went along, and by the end, I was really moved by it. It is a love story in the broadest sense, exploring the multitude of ways in which human goodness can enrich interpersonal relationships and provide perhaps the only real hope for happiness. Even those characters who are incapable of basic decency are treated with a measure of compassion by this very generous author. Well worth reading.
Rating:
Summary: I can't wait for the movie
Review: I hear they're going to make a movie from this novel -- and I can see why. It's so visual (the lead character is a painter), so romantic (the handyman is everyone's dream guy) and it's funny. I can't wait to see who they pick to play the handyman. My choice would be Ben Affleck, or even Ben Stiller. But don't wait for the movie! read this one now -- it's such a satisfying read.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I had been waiting to read this book for some time, after a glowing review in the "Los Angeles Times" book review section. I found this book very shallow, such a waste of time! After reading a truly great novel like "White Oleander" then picking up "The Handyman", I felt as if the book was making me brain-dead. I trudged through, however, hoping to find something of substance somewhere...what were the reviewers talking about??!! I enjoyed See's "Dreaming - hard luck and good times in America", but will NOT buy another book of hers - it's all library from here on out. Her track record is too unpredictable.
Rating: 
Summary: Heartwarming but a little simple minded and unbelievable.
Review: I was impressed to see the extremes of opinions about this book. My feelings lie somewhere in between. It's hard not to be warmed by the optomistic tone and satisfied by repeated scenes of the main character cleaning up (literally) the lives of others but beliveable? Hampton is too good to be true, the descriptions of his painting do not ring true to someone who has painted, and the tie-in with the future is too neat and contrived.
Rating:
Summary: VERY POORLY WRITTEN NOVEL
Review: What a disappointment! I read and believed the rave reviews, then I read this novel and felt horribly cheated. See just doesn't know how to effectively tell a dramatic story. The characters are so broad and synthetically drawn that - where's the interest. The ingredients are all here, but the book just caves in like a half-baked cake. In fact, "half-baked" is the adjective that perfectly describes this unfortunate attempt at fiction.
Rating:
Summary: I HAVE A BRAIN AND I LOVED IT!
Review: Maybe this book will only appeal to certain types of readers -- those who care about people, want a little happiness, and hope for moments of true inspiration. I think this also describes Bob, the title handyman in Carolyn See's inspiring and funny novel. I highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: A well written story ; an unusual plot
Review: The Handyman is a very well written book. The story itself is unusual, as is the Bob, the main character, who is indeed a sort of modern day saint. Yes, there are some cliches in the book--ALL those lonely, helpless, lovable women--and the grant applications that frame the tale are a bit too contrived, but this novel made me think about art and creativity, about kindness and our connections with other people, and about beauty or the lack of it in our everyday lives. It is a fun book to read and I enjoyed its positive, uplifting qualities. I was surprised by the suddenness with which Bob decided on his true love and by the rather abrupt ending to the book--was anyone else caught unaware by this?
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