Rating: 
Summary: A terrific book!
Review: This is a really great book. It encourages kids to not be afraid of letting people get to know them even if they think others will laugh, and it does it so well! They storyline is really cute--what kid wouldn't like the idea of being rainbow striped? I enjoyed the book and the illustrations are wonderful.
Rating: 
Summary: the worst bestseller you'll ever read
Review: I can't begin to describe how much I hated this book! The language was "pretty", but I had to force myself to finish it. A boring mess of a book. The characters were unrealistic. The plot threads were all over the place; some were dropped abruptly never to reappear. What a waste of time. After I finished it I gave this one away to a friend who's loved all the Oprah's book club selections & needed something to read on a long plane trip. Even she hated it - she left it in an airport half finished.
Rating:
Summary: can't rate it...cuz I can't even read it!
Review: I'm not actually done reading the book, & it upsets me. I find myself struggling to read a single page! After I force myself to read 5 pages, I have to put the book down...then force myself to pick it up again 2 days later. I'll be finished this book in a year, IF I EVEN BOTHER FINISHING IT!I just can't get interested in this novel! I'm sure Hamilton is an excellent writer, but she just doesn't have what it takes to entertain me.
Rating:
Summary: This is an Oprah choice?
Review: This was one of the worst books that I have ever read. How did it come to be on Oprah's list. Does she actually read any of the books on her list? If I could have selected less than 1 star I would have.
Rating:
Summary: A Map of the World
Review: Next time, I'll be more careful. The author missed the mark when writer's protagonist claims to be a "licenced practitioner nurse". There is no such credential. "Practical", "vocational", maybe but not "practitioner" as a credential. Alice's most acute problem: no judgment. Bad read. Bad, bad, bad.
Rating: 
Summary: The reviews are much better then the book will ever be
Review: The reviews good and bad piqued my interest enough to make me pick up the book and finish it. I like so many of the reviewers found this a boring and painfully slow read. I put it down and had no plans of finishing this story, for this reader it was going nowhere. After the reading the reviews I realized that I needed to see beyond my reality and finish the book. My life as a fast paced, esteem filled mother of six children in a blended complex family in urban America could read about dear Alice who is everything that I am not. I like most people read for passion and good prose and for reasoned perspectives. As families and individuals think and rethink our existence Alice and Howard may just be the real Americans. Scared, and boring and lacking the ability to define a passion beyond grinding routine. So I will again pick up this book - grit my teeth and learn something about how the other half lives in America. I will then appreciate more a good read having done what the Alice and Howard's do stay with a boring grind just for the purpose of staying with it.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't Hold My Attention
Review: This book has beautiful descriptions, I often rate a book based on how well it allows me to paint a picture mentally, and I could do it with this novel -- to a point. After a while, all of the story lines got mixed up and I went cross-eyed. I finished it out of necessity, not desire.
Rating:
Summary: I finally couldn't put a book down!
Review: I have just returned from vacation and had the time to read this book. Jane Hamilton is such a wonderful writer and the subject matter was "tough" but so realistic. This family went through so much as the wife and mother struggled with so many deep and depressing problems. My friend told me she was depressed for months after reading this book. I did not feel that way. The story was captivating and I couldn't wait to find out the outcome. I've been struggling with books for many months, and I finally found one that I couldn't put down. It's amazing to me that the reviews range from one end of the spectrum to the other. I think this was a "fine read".
Rating:
Summary: Blech!
Review: What a mess! This is one of the worst books I've read in a while. I was irritated by almost all the characters - the wife who couldn't tell her husband she was having a crisis, the husband who was too obtuse to determine his wife was breaking down, the friend who came thisclose to betrayal with the husband - I could go on and on. This is one time when I'll bet the movie will be better than the book. This book was a boring, meandering mess. I wouldn't even suggest borrowing it from the library, let alone buying it, as I did.
Rating:
Summary: Depressing book
Review: I wanted to read the book, even purchased it after it became an "Oprah" pick. I was very disappointed in it. I did read it all, kept hoping it would get better! I didn't like the characters. Actually I thought the book just drug along. I wouldn't reccomend it to anyone.
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