Good in Bed

Rating:
Summary: Loving A Spineless Man. . .
Review: WOW! Three cheers and a chocolate cupcake for Jennifer Weiner. She has just been added to my list of modern day heroes.  It's rare that I can actually walk away from a book cheering as I have for Jennifer Weiner's character of Cannie Shapiro and her multiplying friends and family. At the same time, I have to admit to feeling the extreme emotions of resentment, hope, intense dislike, compassion, humor, depression and contented love. By the end of this novel I wasn't sure if I needed the asprin because I was crying over the sappy parts or wanted to strangle the jerk of Cannie's boyfriend, Bruce, for make her sad and upset. This novel weaves through every emotion any one can ever have in any family be it step, dysfunctional, divorced, alternative, religious and or other combinations thereof. You simply cannot walk away without feeling SOMETHING STRONG for one or all of the characters.

Bruce, the spineless ex-boyfriend, starts it all by writing a column saying how it "takes courage to love a larger woman" in this world. He makes this and following columns out to look as if HE is the intellectual, understanding and sensitive man. Yet he is far from that. To every supposed smart, reasonable and believeable remark he prints, we the reader see through Cannie's eyes that he is the exact opposite as he actions prove. Trouble is, Cannie, at this point in time, wonders if she is wrong to "want a break" from this man. Even after such remarks as this. Admittedly, I had trouble understanding the reason a woman, even a larger woman, feels she needs to accept a man who doesn't like her dog, smokes dope, refuses to wear a condom, has all his needs taken care of by his family, and has a panic attack over a Kibble Bit. No matter if we are Minor Pudgettes or Major Chubbettes, we deserve respect and friendship from a man in the very least.

Enter Dr. K at the Weight clinic. From the very first this guys shows signs of being a true man and real friend. You absolutely have to read the rest of the book to find out the ending!!!

Another friend, Maxi, the movie star, turns a special bond into a ray of hope for Cannie. These two get to discover what girls need to do to survive the brutal world of men, movies and makeup! 

Samatha is her very best friend, but I admit to nearly losing respect for her when she found Cannie was going to have a baby. That one unforgiveable line of "you will ruin your life if you have a baby". Additionally throwing in how hard it will be to meet men, etc., etc. Luckily she redeemed herself because NO WOMAN needs the complication of a man who doesn't want children in his life.

Bringing us back to the Big B.,...not just Bruce! He even turned his last article into a self-righteous bit about being scared to find out Cannie was pregnant with his child. Even the new girlfriend throws a real twist into this story. I, too, won't ever feel anything but disgust for this man and his new girlfriend!

Most of the time we watch Cannie travel these changes of trying to figure out the families dynamics (i.e., father left, mother becomes lesbian, lesbian partner has "boundary problems" and is rather blunt about heteros being "breeders", sister is rather colorful in her endeavors to try anything and everything and brother is simply surviving) as well as working through co-workers' wacky traits, other men with "dating" problems, and a psychiatrist with "attention" problems and really bad advice.

What I love the most about Cannie is that she IS such a strong person. Despite feelings of inadequacy, sorrow, loneliness and she manages to tap into people who are bright, intelligent and supportive. And when her baby arrives, a miracle occurs. Not just the birth of a new child, but people coming together. Despite many differences and disappointments faced by Cannie, her new daughter helps her focus on all that she already has around her as well as those willing to share in her happiness to LIVE. And as for the spineless B. . . .well, you are going to have to read the conclusion to the story because it is the very best of justice served. Cannie moves on with such grace, style and acceptance, it truly made me look into my own life for such strength of character.

So for those us Queen Size Women out there and to our Kings who treat us with the utmost of respect, loyalty, love and friendship, and others who simply know how to love, this is a book looking to the rebirth of the soul, acceptance of the body, contentment of the mind and peace of heart we all can find within ourselves!

Rating:
Summary: Unique, Fresh and Hilarious
Review: "Good In Bed" by Jennifer Weiner is a WONDERFUL tale of surpassing warmth and love. Cannie is an unlikely heroine and I loved her strength and spirit. She is forced to revaluate her entire life, make changes and stand up for herself when the world is constantly making her question everything she has believed in. I think that you can relate to Cannie in so many ways that no matter what your issues may be - you can see yourself in this tale. I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to everyone!

Rating:
Summary: I thought I had heard ALL the names for "that" body part...
Review: but I guess there were some things my football player ex-boyfriend chose not to share with me. This book was hilarious, truthful, touching with enough fantasy in it to make it a good escape. If you like to laugh out loud and stay up late reading, this is perfect for that. There is something in it for everyone, and I was surprised my how many of these characters are people that I "recognized" from my own life. I can't wait to share this book with my girlfriends and get them laughing.

Rating:
Summary: Jennifer Weiner has something to say -
Review: Definitely an author I will watch - for her first book, this was a fun read - perfect for the lounge chaise on the beach. I loved Canny - this is real life.

Rating:
Summary: Surprisingly fresh
Review: I have to admit-- I'm almost tired of the books out there about young women who are overweight and miserable, then starve themselves and finally feel good about themselves. I thought this would be one of those books. I was prepared to hate it. But I was happily mistaken.

Yes, Cannie is overweight and in her late 20s. But while she experiences those self-doubts and insecurites that all of us in our 20s experience, Cannie doesn't find solace in a crash diet. She doesn't go running back to that old boyfriend, Bruce, though she does waver a bit. She finds the strength in herself to leave him out of her life (as a boyfriend)forever, even when she discovers that she's pregnant with his child. She decides to raise the child on her own, and doesn't lament about it.

Cannie does find true love in the end, but the reader isn't left feeling that Cannie NEEDS a man in her life because of a sort of dependence, like most characters in other books. Cannie can certainly take care of herself and her child. But Cannie does find love, and I was so happy for her. Everything came together in the end for her. She is one of those characters I will miss greatly.

Thank you so much, Ms. Weiner, for writing a novel with such an admirable character that we twenty-somethings can relate to. I look forward to your next novel.

Rating:
Summary: Very cute book!
Review: I really enjoyed this novel. Aside from the minor complaint that it was slow in a few places, and the author skipped back and forth in time in a way that was occasionally confusing, the story was very cute. The heroine, Cannie, was both real and likeable, and I was rooting for her the entire way through. It was a great book to curl up with on a cold afternoon! If you like books like Bridget Jones Diary and My Life on a Plate you'll really like this one.

Rating:
Summary: A fun fairy-tale
Review: Though some of the events of this book get a little unrealistic and wacky, this is a great book for anyone who has ever felt not quite good enough. The heroine's struggles with her weight and self-image will ring true to most women. It's a nice wish-fulfillment fantasy book to read on the beach.

Rating:
Summary: is good in bed really a good read????
Review: the amazon.com reviews of this book were so high that i struggled to not feel disappointed reading this book. i will admit if you can get through the first 2/3 rds, it has some rewarding moments. the story is half-fantasy, half-reality, but more fantasy. i wished it would have been one or the other. the book is based on the main character Cannie's ex-boyfriends column . Neither one really get delved into. It's only in the last third did I really have any compassion for her, but when those moments arrive they hit like a truck. The book is lengthy and I felt that there were areas of the story that weren't developed fully, but to mention them would give the whole story away. It's an easy read and you will laugh out loud a number of times, just don't expect a perfect story or how to learn to be good in bed.

Rating:
Summary: Great debut novel that makes for a nice change of pace
Review: Read and loved GOOD IN BED, Jennifer Weiner's debut novel about a woman who must endure the fact that her ex-boyfriend is writing about their sex life in a national magazine . . . and from that point in time, things are never the same for Cannie Shapiro--a heroine I won't soon forget . . . I really cared for her, as well as for her dog, friends (with the exception of Bruce, the guy who wrote bout her) and family . . . it was as if I really got to know them, along with their good and bad points . . . if you're tired of Grisham-type mysteries and looking for nice change of pace, this is the book for you!

Some of the writing was heartbreaking . . . at other times, I was
laughing out loud . . . there were many memorable passages; among them:
"This is the meanest thing anyone's ever done to me," I said, through my tear-clogged throat. "I want you to know that." But even as the words were leaving my mouth, I knew it wasn't true. In the grand, historical scheme of things, my father leaving us was doubtlessly worse. Which is one of the many things that sucked about my father--he forever robbed me of the possibility of telling another man, This is the worst thing that's ever happened to me, and meaning it.

"And those scales were never right," said Lily, to a chorus of enthusiastic un-huhs! The size six behind the desk was looking worried. Fat lady insurrection! I grinned, imagining us surging down the hall, a righteous, stretch-pant-wearing army, tipping over the scales, toppling the blood pressure machine, tearing the height-weight charts off the walls and making all the skinny clinicians eat them, while we feasted on bagels and fat-free cream cheese.

I wish that I could say that, in the years since Tanya and her loom and her pain and her posters moved in, that things have gotten easier. The fact is, they haven't. Tanya has the people skills of plant life. It's like a special kind of tone-deafness, only instead of not hearing the music, she's deaf to nuances, to subtleties, to euphemisms, small talk, and white lies. Ask her how she's doing, and you'll get a full and lengthy explication of her latest work/health crisis, complete with an invitation to look at her latest surgical scar. Tell her that you liked whatever she cooked (and Lord knows you'll be lying), and she'll regale you with endless recipes, each with a story behind it ("My mother cooked this for me, I remember, the night after she came home from the hospital. . . .").

Rating:
Summary: You'll laugh... you'll cry. Mostly, you'll laugh!
Review: What do you do when you're humiliated by your ex boyfriend in a national magazine, and if that's not enough, you find you have some very tough life decisions to make soon afterward? "Good in Bed" is the story of a pivotal couple of years in Cannie Shapiro's life, and it's an absolute riot. Cannie is hilarious, and Jennifer Weiner writes her so well!

There's a large cast of characters in this novel: Cannie's family, friends, their friends, her ex, her ex's family, other people at the fat class, etc. All are described very wittily through Cannie's sharp lens. It's not the least heavy-handed; the story moves right along. It is very easy to sink into this novel and not come out till you've gobbled every word. And why not? It's very funny stuff... and a poignant story of self-discovery, too. No sap. No garbage. Just a very good read that leaves you smiling.