Rating: 
Summary: The whole is better than the sum of it's parts.
Review: I read this book last month and initially was glad when I finished it. I did not like Alice, did not like her husband and felt that there were many important flaws and inconsistencies. For example, no matter how innocent Alice appeared in terms of her part in Lizzy's drowning, she was guilty of neglect. She was responsible for three young children in her home and should not have left them alone without at least locking a screen door. As a school nurse, she allowed herself to slap a child rather than discuss her concerns about this child and his effect on her with appropriate school personnel or her best friend, a family therapist. I also could not sympathize with the portrayal of anger (or lack thereof) which Theresa displayed toward Alice. Although Alice did not intentionally drown Lizzy, she was neglegent. It is difficult for me to understand Theresa's remarkable ability to put all this aside and be helpful and nurturing toward Alice and her family. How emotionally healthy can one be! But the most glaring inconsistency for me was the differnce between Alice's mundane and seemingly insensitive day to day life and her extremely lyrical and poetic inner life. She was filled with sophisticated literary references, sensitive visions of her past and insightful analyses of present relationships. Overall, however, I can appreciate these flaws and inconsistencies in the context of the book: a book about how extraordinary things can happen to ordinary people. Ordinary people are flawed and don't always make good decisions. The consequences can transport them into a frightening world where they can choose to be helpless and powerless, or like Alice, can reclaim her life.
Rating: 
Summary: nurses are not always such losers
Review: i'm halfway through howard's solliloquy and find myself wondering "where is this book going?" and so turned to read other's reviews to get grounded again. it seems that the author has deliberately chosen the most pitiful and unfortunate persons and events to "happen" to this seriously inept couple. as a professional nurse, i am offended that the occupation of this main character who is sarcastic, self-centered, unable to communicate with those around her, and who doesn't know how to fight for her own life, is a practicing nurse. has the author had a bad experience with a nurse? alice is a great "victim". but, portrayed as a nurse, alice is an insult to the profession and a character i find very difficult to take seriously. i too need to review the steps to cpr periodically-in 20 years of nursing i have had to perform it only once. i too have been enraged by neglectful parents and have disliked certain clients. i too have felt the guilt that comes when a patient or loved one dies. but slapping a client is unexcusable no matter how angry i have become. the nursing profession has worked hard to incorporate science, math, research, ethics, personal health,and interpersonal communication skills into basic nursing practice that to have one of our own be characterized with such blatant dysfunction is discouraging and even demoralizing.i truly hope that readers can see beyond alice to know that nurses, even those (if not especially those) who work in schools, are truly educated and competent practioners, not deeply depressed women whose general lives are merely reactions of negative emotion. alice was depressed long before the drowning-she wouldn't have become so immersed in memorabalia forgetting she had 4 children under the age of 5 in her care had she been well. i don't have much hope for the book to improve; everyone i've spoken to that has read it says "it's really sad" or "you won't like it because you are a nurse" or "it's really dark". i'm afraid i'm in agreement with them.
Rating: 
Summary: Save your tears for the human beings this woman damages!
Review: I am fascinated by maps. I love studying them. That was the compelling reason that drew me to this book when I first saw it on the new book shelf at my library. It's rare for me not to finish a book, and I did finish this one. However, I found this book to be one of the most manipulative reads I have ever encountered. As a teacher and parent, and, above all, a former child myself, I found the main character to be one of the most menacing individuals written about. Why? Because she was entrusted with the safety and well-being of not only her friend's children but also her own. When an adult has children in their care, the number one priority is to keep them safe from harm. She should have taken that child with her upstair, and she should have had latches on the door to keep all of the children from leaving the house. Since she had problems with her emotions, which many people have at one time or another, she should have done something about it. Yes, it's hard to move to another environment, and I know that from experience, but she could have done things to make her life more enjoyable without spending a cent. I cannot feel sorry for this woman, and I resent the author for trying to manipulate me into doing so. I feel sorry for the people she permanently hurt: a child, who's life she took; the child's parents, who will never recover completely; and the members of her own family. The only powerful thing I see in this story is deserved shame.
Rating:
Summary: Well-Written, but flawed
Review: The book was well-written, but I thought it had more than its share of flaws. I felt the shifting point-of-view did not add much to the novel, Howard's section was flat. The prison sequences did not ring true to me, that whole part of the experience could have been left out. Also, bringing in a "surprise" witness at the end to win the case was a cheap trick. It felt like a made-for-television courtroom drama at that point. I guess, in summary, the book starts strong, but weakens at it goes along. A good read, but could have been better.
Rating:
Summary: Depressing But Good
Review: Wow. I will have to agree with other reviewers in saying that this is a very depressing book and I had to force myself to finish it. However, by the end I realized that is was superbly written and worth it. I recommend this book with a caution that it grips you and drags you down and then back up again. What a ride!
Rating:
Summary: And I thought the kids on Party of Five had problems!
Review: If you don't mind being depressed then this is the book for you! Is it well written? Yes. Is it interesting? yes. Are the characters interesting? yes. But, I can't say that this is an enjoyable read.
Rating:
Summary: Depressing
Review: I can honestly say that this book was one of the most depressing books I have ever read. I picked it up last September in a bookstore at the beach; long before Oprah announced it as a club selection. However, it is in keeping with most of Oprah's picks-deep, dark, disturbing. I would not recommend this book and haven't to any of my friends. I had to force myself to finish it; just hoping it would get better-it didn't.
Rating: 
Summary: A Map of the World
Review: I found A Map of the World to be intrigueing and compelling. Jane Hamilton has made the reader see the lives of Howard and Alice in their own eyes. Not only are you living their lives, but you feel what they feel. It was an excellent book with a good moral and excellent values for life.
Rating:
Summary: Powerful and Heartbreaking
Review: I read this book ages ago and really thought that others were missing the boat on not knowing about it. Then it was chosen as an "Oprah Book Club" book and I was thrilled that others would be able to read and enjoy this emotionally charged novel about SO many different things. It's a difficult read and sometimes get a bit slow, but deep down it's full of the "good stuff." You have deep emotional attatchment to these characters and really want to know what's going to happen to them. You won't be able to rest until you finish the last page.
Rating:
Summary: Slow, slow, slow
Review: I was anxiouse to start this book because of the great review. I struggled to stay with it, not really caring one way or the other what happened to the characters. If it wasn't the only book I brought with me on vacation, I may never have finished it at all.
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