Rating: 
Summary: This one will remain with you long after reading.
Review: A powerful story about the seemingly happy Jensen family - Rachel, an art restorer, Ned, an artist who put his dreams on hold to become a teacher to support his family, and Katie, their much-loved daughter. All is well until Rachel becomes pregnant at the age of 39 and Katie's jealousy erupts out-of-control. She becomes sullen and withdrawn and over the course of the book, two of her unthinking acts of attention getting will shatter their family.Rachel's pure love for her children, no matter what, will touch a chord with any mother and her longing for her dissolving marriage will break your heart. Her 'I don't care' attitude with the other mothers who shun her because of her family's problems is easily seen through and will make you want to reach out and be her friend. I read this book in one day - a huge accomplishment with two little ones of my own to care for - but I cared so much about the characters and what happened to them that I grabbed every moment I could to read.
Rating: 
Summary: Not enough family history
Review: Although this book kept my attention, I was waiting for more of a BAM of a climax. I found the characters predictable and unoriginal: the daughter of a high-falutin' mother marries someone who doesn't meet up with her mother's expectations and finds disappointment in both of them; the artist husband trapped in an uncreative, unfulfilling job; the country club neighbors Rachel, the main character, just doesn't fit in with (although she was raised the same way as they were); and the self-made wealthy in-laws whom the Jensen family resents but still accepts money from to pay for their kids' educations and treatment. Have these people heard of public schools? Have they ever considered maybe moving away if they really want to be independent of the elder Jensens and Rachel's mom?
I think Shapiro wants us to feel for Rachel and her situation, but it's hard for me to believe that she and her family are just scraping by when they live in a tony suburb, both she and her husband come from upper-class families and they have basically had it good till their daughter turns Sybil.
I really didn't garner much sympathy for Rachel even though, again, Shapiro wants us to. Poor Rachel having to grow up in a beautiful apartment directly across from Central Park and never being allowed to walk to the park! Poor Rachel and hubby having to move into a huge, Victorian house in and upper-class suburb because living in the city is just too darn expensive! Sorry, I just didn't feel the compassion.
I think the book would have been more effective if Shapiro dwelled more on the daughter's transformation and the family history/genetics that may have attributed to the girl's change in behavior. Just briefly is it mentioned that a couple male relatives--Rachel's father and grandfather--had depression and that Rachel's mother has a borderline personality disorder, although Rachel makes her mother out to be evil. Why should we feel compassion for Rachel's situation and Kate's illness when Rachel herself doesn't have much compassion or understanding for her own mother's? I guess the family is a fairly decent portrayal of today's self-involved generation, although I don't think Shapiro meant for them to be painted in that light.
Rating: 
Summary: A family unravelling
Review: At first glance this quick read appears to be about a seemingly average, happy family that is quickly about to descend into the depths of despair. Rachel and Ned lead an ordinary life in a small New England town. A happy family of three, their teenage daughter Kate, a source of pride and joy. Then inexplicably their daughter's behavior begins to change from normal to highly disturbed, especially after Kate learns of her mother's pregnancy. A series of events causes the family's world to come crashing down around them with drastic consequences for all. While much of the story rang true, especially the parts about trying to carry on a normal life while your world is in chaos; many things in this novel just did not add up for me. Given the highly irrational and destructive behavior of their daughter the author must be saying one of two things: you can do everything right with your child and they can end up with severe mental illness (ie schizophrenia),or this child is seriously troubled for some tangible reason. The problem with this story is you never know which direction the author is trying to steer you. There is nothing in the plot to lead you to believe that these were less than stellar parents, yet their seemingly normal daughter turns in to a near sociopath over night, what gives? I would have preferred more insight into Rachel's highly dysfunctional relationship with her own obviously disturbed mother, as well as a clearer rationale for Kate's behavior. 3.5 stars.
Rating:
Summary: An AMAZING book
Review: Dani Shapiro has written an amazing book and I could not put it down. On Friday, a friend gave FAMILY HISTORY to me and I read over the weekend. The book details a family in desperate pain...one that is torn apart and yet finds their way back to each other. I identified with Rachel as this hip mom who loves her husband and children. Her disdain for as her hubby who leaves his aspirations and future as a painter to go work for his parents selling real estate ... Her confusion as her beloved daughter scorns her every advance ... Her desire to let the outside world float by as she stays in bed under the covers -- well, I am sure most of us have felt these feelings, even if only for a fleeting moment. Oh, and the way Rachel deals with her mom! The book made me appreciate my life. I loved it and recommend it highly. It is beautifully written, captivating and intensely moving. In my busy world I have time for little reading. So often I start a book and never finish it. Most fiction seems dull when contrasted with my own life. I only wish there were more books like Family History. I enjoyed it and am now going to try another of the author's books.
Rating:
Summary: Wrenching domestic drama.
Review: Dani Shapiro's novel, "Family History" is a painful look at the disintegration of a once close-knit family. Ned and Rachel Jensen are a happily married couple who live in a suburb not far from Boston. Ned, who had once hoped to be a working artist, is a popular high school teacher and Rachel is a devoted mother and part-time art restorer. Their daughter, Kate, is bright, athletic, and beautiful.
Everything changes when Kate turns thirteen and comes home from camp with a sullen, distant, and rebellious attitude. She begins to show signs of emotional disturbance, and as time goes on, her condition deteriorates. After Rachel learns that she is pregnant, she desperately hopes that their lives will once again be happy and serene. Her hopes are dashed when tragedy strikes and threatens to rip the Jensens apart forever.
Dani Shapiro has an intimate writing style that draws the reader into these troubled lives. We feel Rachel's panic as she sees all that she values slipping away from her. Ned is a caring husband and father who has given up his dream to be an artist in order to support the wife and child he adores. He is shocked when he realizes that his sacrifices may all have been in vain. Kate is a lost soul whose sensitivity and hurt overwhelm her and warp her judgment. There are some nicely depicted supporting players in this novel, as well, most notably Rachel's mother, a self-absorbed harridan named Phyllis who is hypercritical and cold towards Rachel.
What keeps "Family History" from being just another overwrought soap opera? Shapiro fleshes out her characters thoroughly and she injects elements of hope and compassion into her story that keep the book from sinking under the weight of unrelieved gloom. She poignantly shows that when two people truly love one another, they never stop trying to fix what seems to have been irrevocably broken. "Family History" teeters on the edge of melodrama, but it is saved by Shapiro's moving and compassionate depiction of a family ravaged by life.
Rating:
Summary: Gripping!
Review: Family History
Dana Shapiro
5 stars
This was a remarkable story about a loving family until tragedy, guilt and a lie send them spiraling down. Shapiro has weaved a gripping story full of human emotions. I read this in one day.
Dawnny
Rating:
Summary: A family falling apart
Review: FAMILY HISTORY by Dani Shapiro FAMILY HISTORY is a story of a woman's struggle to keep her family together and herself sane after a series of events threatens to hurt her marriage and tear it apart. Rachel Jensen at one point in her life was able to say that she had the perfect life. She was not financially rich by any means, but she could vouch that her family was a happy one, and her marriage was solid and full of love and laughter. There wasn't anything she felt she lacked monetarily, and this was important to her, since throughout their marriage they had to prove to their parents that they could indeed make it financially on the type of dreams they were shooting for. She knew she was the envy of others, and would never have thought that this world that she was familiar with was about to come crashing down around her. The book opens to a scene with Rachel sitting alone in her bedroom, wallowing in self-pity as she watches old home movies of her husband and her daughter Kate laughing and smiling. It is a movie of happier times, before the baby was born, and before their daughter Kate started to change right before their eyes. The reader knows immediately that there is something terribly wrong, as she is sitting in her bedroom alone in the dark. Her husband no longer lives with her, and their daughter has not lived with them in quite a while. All that is left in her life is baby Josh, and he is far too young to comprehend that anything is wrong with their family.
The destructive events that occur that destroy the harmony of the family are centered on Kate, who by this time is a young teenager going through a lot of extreme emotional and behavioral changes. Rachel is told that this is just a phase all teenagers go through, and Rachel believes it for a while, but when Kate's behavior becomes so hard to manage, Rachel is not sure what to think anymore. The book is told in parallel - we see flashbacks of her courtship with her husband Ned and their early years together in New York. At the same time we are back in the present day, where Ned and Rachel are worrying about the future of their daughter Kate, who is in an institution for troubled young adults. I felt this method of story-telling helped keep the action moving, and kept my interest in the characters alive as I got to know them starting from their younger years together and through their current messed up lives. The climax of events leads to a horrible accident that could have been prevented, and that event in turn leads to yet another horrible incident that causes the break up of the family. It is a living nightmare that they are going through, and no one knows if there is any relief in sight. FAMILY HISTORY by Dani Shapiro is a book that was so intense that it was probably the fastest read I've had in a long time. It's one of those books that you can't put down. I want to compare this book to Elizabeth Berg's best novels, which often center on strong women or women who are trying to find themselves and make new lives for themselves. In FAMILY HISTORY, we have a woman that thought her love was strong enough to deal with any obstacle, but finds her love is tested because of a child that is ill. I'm giving this an enthusiastic thumbs up, and am willing to read any other book that has been penned by Dani Shapiro.
Rating:
Summary: Family History
Review: Family History dives into the struggles of marriage, family and careers. As one reads each page, you can only hopeand you hang on to Rachel's thoughts and dreams as they are your own hopes and dreams.This book dives into contemporary issues with such clarity and force, the reader can somehow relate to Rachel and Ned. Family History is a novel beautifully written with real emotion and uncertainty surrounding every page.
Rating:
Summary: A fine read.
Review: Family History is a dark but not hopeless novel about the unravelling of a family who could have had it all. The story has been written before, but Family History still seems fresh. There is much angst but there is a sliver of light that keeps the reader from drowning. A tightly woven novel, sparse, but insightful. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Family History: A Stunner
Review: Family History is a moving, literate and compelling book about a family- one which could be yours or mine because we are all captive to the vagaries of life. Not one of us is promised joy, happiness, lack of travail or good luck. This is a story about a family which from the outside should be the envy of the community. They have beauty, intelligence and each other and yet that may not be enough to save them. Shapiro takes us inside the soul of the Jensen family and keeps us guessing about what has gone so terribly wrong to such good people. Why is their world spiraling out of control?
Shapiro is a gifted and insightful writer. She makes us care about people who are not always likeable. If you don't recognize yourself within this family -- you haven't been paying attention to your life.
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