Rating: 
Summary: An effective sleeping aid
Review: Every time I tried to read this book, I fell asleep. That's how compelling the plot is. The beginning was promising, but the storyline slid downhill from there. I was very disappointed and surprised that Oprah even recommended such a droll piece of verbiage.
Rating: 
Summary: slow but well written
Review: When I started this book I felt it was extreamly boring and my interest lagged. I put it down for about a month then picked it up again and finished it. It was well written but not very realistic as far as the plot goes. I would not recommend it, but actually finishing the book gives the story closure.
Rating: 
Summary: a great book
Review: I thought this was a great book and couldn't put it down! If I just looked at the title or cover, I wouldn't have read it!
Rating:
Summary: A Map of the World
Review: I have just finished reading this book and I can't believe that I even let myself finish it. The climax of the book, as far as I'm concerned, came at the beginning with Lizzy's death and the whole plot went downhill from there. It dragged on and on like a long lecture and quite frankly nothing of too much importance happened. The whole situation of Alice being arrested for child abuse seemed to come out of nowhere as if the author had completley run out of ideas and was trying to produce 300 more pages in order for her book to be clasified as a novel. Moreover, the characters were the most unrealistic people I had even had the displeasure of meeting; none of them were in any way relatable and I couldn't help but feel sorry for Alice and Howard's two little girls who had to be raised by such flakey and unrealistic parents. I find it shocking that Oprah who normally chooses such well-written novels for her book club would choose such a ... piece of nonsense to draw attention to. I would not recommend this book to anyone and think that Jane Hamilton should be incredibly grateful that Oprah has chosen her book becuase there is no other way that this book would have become a national bestseller. I empathize with anyone else who has had the misfortune to have paid money for this [book]...
Rating: 
Summary: Like a True Story
Review: This book is a lovely novel. You feel as if everything just happend to those people. Jane Hamilton writes it so insightfully with so much details on human nature, events in life you forget it is a fiction. Wonderful reading on those of us who were not exposed to life in a farm and in a little town. Some chapters were boring at times due to their length without much of happening but the others were quite dramatic, specially the part by Howard about his life in the farm while his wife is in jail. This is my best part, how a dad will try to survive with kids without a mother, very naturally written, smoothly flowing story. The best thing I liked overall was how natural the author writes about day to day events. There is no hyperbole, no suprises or grand sensual scenes but full of delicate events as they unfold each. One of the best reading pleasures I have had.
Rating:
Summary: A bit of a disappointment...
Review: The good news is that about halfway through, The Map of the World becomes a page turner. You want to find out what is going to happen. It's kind of like gossiping about the neighbors or reading the tabloids. You know that something is wrong, but you're not really sure about all the details. The bad news about this novel is that all the characters are just so ordinary. Even the extraordinary circumstances in which they find themselves (a toddler drowning and child sex abuse charges) don't serve to bring out anything exceptional in these characters. At the end of this book, I felt that Jane Hamilton had played with her readers by basing her story on such sensational and emotion-filled events. Usually an author uses events like these to bring out the best or worst in her characters. In this case, nothing changes. The Goodhearts (can you believe this name?), are just as ordinary at the end of the book as they were at the beginning. While Hamilton tries to make them seem extraordinary because they are latter day hippies in the middle of suburbia, she does not succeed. The horrible events, not the characters or plot, carry this story. The ending of the book is predictable and not terribly interesting.
Rating: 
Summary: this book grabs you
Review: I found myself tearing through this book. The story is so real that you can't understand how things are happening and, at the same time, you know why. The characters are so vivid that you will share in both their joys and sorrows.
Rating:
Summary: Gripping story of human character
Review: I found "Map of the World" in a second hand bookstore. As an admitted book addict, I "adopt" unknown writers from reading the promotional reviews on covers or from a paragraph of the first page. Hamilton succeeds in the novelist's challenge to capture the reader's interest in the first page, the first paragraph, the first sentence. I couldn't put the book down and read it over one weekend. This is not a novel for the feeble of heart as it deals with the most difficult of human emotions -- of personal guilt and regret, of character and friendship - in short of the wide range of human relationship. Hamilton's characters are real - and the reader can sympathize and empathize and feel their tribulations. The story ends on a hopeful note, but in touch with reality.. and that is what life is so often about. Highly recommended for readers who enjoy solid literature. I haven't seen the movie yet in which Sigourney Weaver plays the lead, but I am sure that the book and movie will be good matching experiences..
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't even finish it!
Review: "A Map....." was sooooo boring I had to stop in the middle due to lack of interest! Very uncommon for me to do, I usually give it my best shot to finish it. This, however, was not the case with this book! Alice was a freak and her husband Howard was a negligent parent. I may pick this book up in years to come but I seriously doubt it! I have read a lot of books in my time and this has to be one of the worst!
Rating:
Summary: Map of the World
Review: A Map of the World, by Jane Hamilton was an excellent book with vivid detail and extreme emotion. I would give this book five stars. It captured me, intrigued me, and helped me feel as though I had known these people all my life. The first reason that I give this book five stars is that the author paints an amazing picture of a person stricken with a nervous breakdown. Just before accusations begin coming forth about Alice's sexual abuse cases, she was watching her neighbor's little girl, Lizzy. Alice went upstairs to find her bathing suit to go to the family pond, and while she is doing that, Lizzy heads down to the pond and drowns. The beginning of the story is grief stricken and very emotional. Alice, eventually has a nervous breakdown because she blames herself for the death of her best friend's child. The author captures her grief, terror and astonishment at the event surrounding Lizzy's death that you feel as though it was a part of you also. I thought the author did a wonderful job of creating a very real experience for the reader. The main character, Alice, is falsely accused of sexual abuse. She lives with her husband and their two small children on a farm in a little town. Their family has no way to pay the bail to get her out of jail until her trial, so she has to remain imprisoned until the trial. The story alternates from her husband's point of view, and Alice's perception of the action. It creates a vibrant image of the entire family's perspective by examining all positions. You feel as if you get to know the whole family, not only Alice. The last reason that I enjoyed the book so much is because of all the action involved. It doesn't seem as though there would be all that much action, but there is! Alice describes many scenes from her days in the county jail, and even gets into quite a brawl with one of her cellmates. At home, Howard continues to try to run the farm by himself, but is failing. He decides to sell the farm and release Alice from jail. The whole time the author is building up to a breaking point, not only in Alice's case, but also the relationship between Howard and Alice. Again, the author touched me in her masterful writing and way with words. It is an incredible read, and I encourage you to try it.
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