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Women's Fiction
Girls' Poker Night

Girls' Poker Night

List Price: $23.95
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 2 stars
Summary: A Skit Collection
Review: Another one of the books with loved it-hated it reviews. I've tried to read it three times, but I just can't seem to get going. The continual headers every two-three paragraphs are like tiresome stop signs-- they distract, interrupt, and ruin any sense of continuity. Annoying, and meaningless! Either this book has ADD, or the author is so used to writing brief TV skits that writing an entire flowing, cohesive chapter proved to be too much-- and pointing out that fact every two paragrpahs with a new little header is a turn off. It's a library book, so I may give it another try in a few months.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Unique....in a delightful way!
Review: Expecting to read a book based completely around the dialogue of women at their weekly poker game, I was surprised to find Ruby Capote's first-person account of her life experiences as she moves to a new city and begins another chapter of her life. The poker game actually plays a small role in the story which is based mostly around Ruby's relationships with co-workers and friends, as well as her loves, losses, changes, dreams and goals.

Witty and cleverly penned, I enjoyed Jill A. Davis' writing style and found four quotes to add to my on-going list. Ruby is a real character, one we can all relate to in one way or another. I recommend that you give this book a try and enter the world of Ruby, Danielle, Jenn, Skorka, Michael, Doug, Ella and The Cadaver. I'm glad I did....

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Odds are good: You¿ll like this book
Review: I laughed out loud while reading this 227-page "novel of high stakes." It's a quick, light look into the slightly neurotic (not so much that it repels you) world of Ruby Capote and her voyage towards self-discovery. The road/story begins in Boston and ends up in an ongoing poker game in New York City where Ruby learns how NOT to bluff her way out of her relationships. The relationships she includes are with some wacky girlfriends, a shrink (er, I mean therapist) and a boyfriend or two. Since we're opposite a shrink as often as we're seated at a card table, we also learn about Mom, Dad and brother, too. Many of us who like this genre-these stories of single gals in the city (many of whom, like Ruby, happen to be writers)-find these tales blend together and become the same story over and over. This is NOT the case with Girls' Poker Night. Davis's voice is unique, unquestionably funny and well worth the four hours it takes to read. Thanks for putting it out there and I look forward to future work by this gifted writer.

Submitted by the author of I'm Living Your Dream Life

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One of the BEST
Review: I loved this book the minute I read the review. Once I started it I could not put it down and finished it in one day. The Characters and story line kept me wanting more. I can not wait to read the next book by Jill Davis. She is begining to become my favorite Authors. READ IT NOW!


Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A great and funny read
Review: I picked this book up because I heard that the author was a former writer for David Letterman and I lucked out since it turned out to be a winner. I was sucked in by the first paragraph and read straight thru to the end. It's the story of a young woman (Ruby) who settles for a relationship just to be in one and never reaches out for what she really wants because her fear of failure is overwhelming. But then she decides to take a chance - you know the one, where one minor decision ends up effecting your entire life - and that's when the story really takes off. Ruby's narration of her life is hilarious and entertaining. I loved Ruby's circle of friends (hence the name "Girl's Poker Night"), her co-workers and love interest. The author has the gift of bringing written characters to life. Although there are more than a few laughs found in this story, there is also a very serious underlying theme dealing with her father and subsequent issues with relating to men or people in general for that matter. The author blends the light and heavy issues perfectly. I have my fingers crossed that there will be lots more from this writer and hope I won't have too long to wait until the next one.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Hum Drum
Review: Jill Davis's book is a modern marvel--fiction that resonates reality, characters that could be people you know, dialogue you only wish you could've said. This book is more than "chick-lit", it's real lit. It has become one of my favorites, and not just because i've read it four or five times and it always feels refreshing. I haven't written a review since high school, but it's worth regressing for a book like this.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Go Girls'!
Review: Ruby, a humor columnist, begins by recounting her desertion of her Boston boyfriend Doug, a nice-enough guy who collects bread bag twists. "...one time we were playing Frisbee and this dog came over and looked as if he was going to bite my face off if I didn't give him the Frisbee --- and Doug rescued me. I thought, yeah, maybe we could get married. But how many dogs do you meet like that?"

So she sends a bunch of her newspaper columns to a New York editor and lands a job at The New York ...

Ms. Davis used to write for David Letterman, and it shows. The book consists of short pieces, with titles like "A Bad Case of Dumb-Ass," clever riffs about childhood memories interspersed with current plot lines about Michael and accounts of Ruby's sessions with her crafty therapist Ella. The vignettes are off-the-wall, subtle, funny and bittersweet. The spare style works especially well for the more painful revelations that begin in the middle of the book. Because Ruby really does want to grow up. But to do so she has to confront her pain over the loss of her father, first by divorce, then by car accident (that some say was suicide). After all that she's lost, she has to learn to choose risk.

In the end, GIRLS' POKER NIGHT is more than just funny. It's also very moving. Ruby achieves a true transformation, ... By the time she goes to see Randy, a chubby, gay, Jewish psychic who's been with his boyfriend for 32 years, you'll find yourself agreeing with her. "The world is sweet, kinda whether you like it or not."

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Not worth the gamble
Review: This is a journal/diary, right? It has to be, otherwise the choppy sentences, awful grammar and pointless meanderings of the narrator are just bad writing. The story doesn't flow - mainly because it isn't written in prose, but as a series of diary entries that jump from one subject to the next, and from past to present. The narrator, Ruby Capote, isn't very interesting and neither are her friends. This `poker night' doesn't take place all that often in the book - generally, the entries are about Ruby and her feelings on her life in general. I didn't `feel' anything for Ruby because she didn't `feel' anything for herself - she isn't a very pro-active character and just accepts life as it comes. A non-risk taker as she points out. This was a pretty fast read, but I still feel it was wasted time.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: So bad it was sad.
Review: This is one of the worst books I've ever wasted time reading. Actually I picked it up at Walmart for under $4 and I can certainly see why it was so cheap. Basically there is no depth to the story and the meager attempt at developing the main character took too long and delivered too little. Basically the book is the disconnected rambling of an insecure, inferiority-complex blighted young girl -- chasing after her boss; boring!!!. A constant stream of sarcasm born out of insecurity and the lack of anything valuable to say, the book just seems to go on but say nothing. I think this got published because of the author's experience working on the Dave Letterman show -- her sarcasm comes off better out of his mouth than it does on the pages of her higly self-absorbed book. If you are over 17 skip this one - the word "mundane" would be too complimentary for it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great read
Review: This was a smart, well-written story that kept my attention from the first page.


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