Coming Back to Me : A Novel

Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful Book
Review: Caroline Leavitt has succeeded in creating a magical journey from the inside out in this book about taking leave from home and coming back. The characters are well rounded and the story is well told. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys stories that resonate with warmth, intelligence and courage. Leavitt is a skilled and brilliant writer.

Rating:
Summary: Heartfelt, engaging
Review: I loved this book, and found myself completely engaged in the drama of the characters: their imtimate family, their wider family, their neighborhood, their work. The pebble in the pond rippled through so many layers of their lives. I was moved by the simplicity of their story and tragedy, and by the constancy of love that saw them through.

Rating:
Summary: ah, these characters...
Review: What a lovely book...with characters so wrenchingly real they are difficult to shake well after the book is done. Leavitt writes so smartly and compassionately about what happens when we are stretched to our limits, and beyond. The lesson is palpable: what lasts is love.

Rating:
Summary: i loved this book
Review: I just finished reading this book an hour ago. I had to write in to Amazon. The characters are so REAL and it shows a relationship between two sisters /and husband and wife/ and newborn. It is incredibly sad and funny and was very moving. I originally read about this book in The Boston Globe. This writer is gifted. You really care about the people you are reading abt. I was sad to finish.BUY THIS BOOK..a great read..

Rating:
Summary: An absorbing story with characters that seem real
Review: Caroline Leavitt has truly touched a chord with me in writing this book. You truly feel you are living in her world while reading this book. Everything from her romance, marriage, new neighborhood, birth of son and subsequent medical trauma. Molly's experiences in the hospital are very true to life, ask anyone who has spent time in a coma and in the ICU. The ripple effect of Molly's illness spreads further than her immediate family as evidenced by the arrival of her sister and what that impact has not only with our heroine but the local neighborhood. Thank you for a good read.

Rating:
Summary: a reader from n.j.
Review: rarely have i enjoyed a novel this fully; I read it in one sitting because i just could not STOP. Leavitt knows how to listen to what's going on and she has a kind and optimistic heart. what a pleasure in a time of so much angst and anomie.

Rating:
Summary: Unbelievably terrific
Review: "WOW. I stayed up all night. My own family has had their own share of financial/health problems--something I thought Leavitt expertly captured. The characters were so alive and the story went right to my heart."

Rating:
Summary: Extremely disappointing
Review: Although this book has a good premise, it does not live up to its potential. Only the main character, Gary, is a complete person. The plot is thick, plodding through arcane medical conditions and definitions and tangential descriptions. Most disappointing, though, was the neat and tidy final section. If these characters had faced a situation this difficult, they could not possibly resolve all of their issues within days of each other. (And, to end with a nitpick, the large financial problem is completely glossed over, after having been a major plot point throughout the work.) This was sad, dull, and unsatisfying.

Rating:
Summary: Real People
Review: If you are interested in a beautifully written novel whose characters ring true as they struggle with the meaning of relationships, family, and community, you will not be disappointed. A young father has to cope with caring for his newborn son while his wife is in a coma for months suffering from a rare blood disease. Part of what makes this novel so gripping is knowing that the author, Caroline Leavitt, was herself in a coma for an extended period of time following the birth of her son.

Rating:
Summary: To Heck with the Housework....an awesome summer read
Review: Rarely to authors delve below the surface of human emotion. I felt Caroline Leavitt did an excellent job of drawing rich characters in an interesting situation. I was so sorry when the book was over because Molly, Gary, and Suzanne captured my heart and interest.