Charms for the Easy Life

Rating:
Summary: Charm that Equals Strength!
Review: Where is Oprah?! This needs to be on her list ASAP! Three strong women, all varied in their personalities, likes, dislikes, but living their lives as they see fit, not as society dictates. They showed us we can be women unto ourselves, doing whatever comes from the heart,not defining our lives by our relationships with or without men, but with ourselves, strong and determined. I loved it! MORE, MORE, MORE!

Rating:
Summary: Great
Review: Charms of the Easy Life was an eventful filled book that left me wanting to know what happened afterwards, How Sophia and Richard went on with their lives, and if Margaret ever goes to college and what happens with she and Tom. Not only does this book excite you with backwood practice of medicine but it also intrests the minds on if the medicine would actually work. It is the story of three women, defied by men but encouraged each other to continue life and live it to the fullest. It is worth reading and passing on to a friend

Rating:
Summary: Fun and funny......Brain candy
Review: This is one of my all-time favorite books. A friend who read it described it as "brain candy." The characters have so many strengths and faults that I couldn't help but identify with each one of them.

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Summary: STRUGGLE OF WOMEN
Review: I was disappointed in this book. I am searching for a book that is equally as awesome as 'A Virtuous Woman', but it looks like Kaye Gibbons isn't going to give it to us. In this book the women are survivors because they have to be. I was disappointed in the cold, compassionless character of Charlie Kate. Her character shined through her words and actions: beneath that arrogant surface lay a very insecure, unsatisfied, unfulfilled, and angry person. I can understand why she didn't have a man: who would want her? Her hatred of men, I think, was more of a jealousy. She had no compassion, so she tried to make up for it in her 'intelligence' and 'literacy'. She tried to hide behind those midwife skills. Although the book was long, it was shallow and I expected a deeper plot.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful and full.
Review: Just a wonderful, full book. She found such an interesting voice and maintained it the whole way. I just fell in love with this book. A story of three generations of women during WWII.

Rating:
Summary: Brighten a wintry afternoon!
Review: I have wearied, in recent years, of reading novels by authors whose characters are interesting only by virtue of their being from the South, and whose plots depend on rural Southern details and the characters' Southern eccentricities. I feel this is a cheap ploy, so I wasn't particularly interested in picking up Gibbons' book, Charms for the Easy Life. But I'm glad I did! OK, the novel benefits from its "Southerness", but I got the sense that such a skilled writer as Gibbons could make proper Bostonians glow in realism. This book is not only a delightful read, but it also touches on the not-so-easy relationships between mothers and daughters, and the equally difficult relationships between women and men. Gibbons also exhibits a detailed (but not obvious) research of the Depression Era, and, on top of it, she makes a sturdy comment about the value of non-traditional medicine. My only complaint is about the book's resolution, which came too quickly and tidily for me. Although I read it in one afternoon, the characters have stuck to my ribs and, the more I think about the book, the more its layers are revealed to me.

Rating:
Summary: I disagree with the Kirkus Review (there's a surprise)
Review: I read the reviews of this book because I wanted to see what other Amazon-ians thought of one my all-time favorites. I now want to jump up and down on my monitor after the Kirkus review. Boo. Hiss. The review criticizes the book mostly for it's Southern storytelling influence and values, and as someone who read it while temporarily living in the deep South, I have to say that those elements made it all the more special. As a "Transplanted Yankee" I not only learned about the South from this book but it make me appreciate the sense of family that is so abundant there. This book moves through generations of women gifted with honorable traits and as a reader I related to a bit of each of them. That, to me, is the mark of an excellent story. _Charms for the Easy Life_ is one of the best books you will ever read. I promise. When Oprah selected Gibbons books as her book club selections, I was ticked, but disappointed that this wasn't one of them. This book will lighten your day and paste a grin on your face that will last for days. I highly recommend it...especially for the wintery dark days coming up. This will light a candle in your soul that will warm you for years on end.

Rating:
Summary: This is one of the best books I have ever read!
Review: As a librarian, I am always looking for books that appeal to a variety of our clients, as well as, a book that I will enjoy. This book is absolutely wonderful! It moved me by the strength of Charlie Kate and weaving of the tale of war, romance and a coming of age for Margaret. I have read this book 3 times within the last 4 years and the ending always moves me to tears. This is a fabulous book.

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Summary: The best feel-good look at life I've read!
Review: I couldn't help comparing this novel to The Book of Ruth. Like Ruth, it is an intriguing look at the life of a girl growing up, and the influence of family members on this growth. But, unlike Ruth, this book is positive. This book is uplifting. This book is a joy to read. This book is about intelligence, wit and love. This is a book I'd like to write! Pick this one up-then pass it along

Rating:
Summary: This book is a TREAT!
Review: It has been a few years since I read Charms for the Easy Life, but when I saw there were no reviews I had to leave one. The main characters in this book are three generations of Southern women. They are strong-willed, very intelligent women and they will make you laugh and cry. Writing this review makes me want to go find the book and re-read it