Rating: 
Summary: Dealing with the Past...
Review: Playwright Jennifer Ward has been living in the shadow of her older sister, Diana, for many years. Even after Diana's suicide, Jennifer can't shake the demons of Diana's tortured bipolar existence. She writes a cathartic play about sisters, which Off-Off-Broadway director Peter Heller decides to produce. From the start, there is an attraction between Peter and Jennifer. As they audition actresses the chemistry ignites.The small production is thrilled to land Kelly Cavanna as one of the leads. She is dynamic and beautiful--everything Jennifer saw in Diana but does not see in herself. Kelly and Jennifer become friends, albeit reluctantly on Jennifer's part because she cannot see why Kelly would want to be friends with her. The relationship between Peter and Jennifer grows, but will Jennifer allow it to happen without pushing him away? Does Peter really want Jennifer or is he more interested in Kelly? I was impressed by THOUGHTS WHILE HAVING SEX. It is far from the fluffy chick lit I was expecting. The characters, especially Jennifer, go through growth and transformation. Jennifer starts as extremely insecure, and gradually, through the help of others, begins to see herself as strong and worthwhile. There is actually very little sex mentioned. Most of the thoughts deal with Jennifer's inability to let herself go, to lose control enough to develop a fulfilling relationship. THOUGHTS WHILE HAVING SEX, for all of its contemplation, is not dark and depressing. It is funny and moving while staying true to the drama of Jennifer's life and dealing with her past. I love the ending and the way things wrap up--I won't give away any more. Pick up THOUGHTS WHILE HAVING SEX and you won't be disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: Clever plot doesn't quite hold up the book
Review: Sexually curious playwright Jennifer uses her script as an excellent device for playing out her fantasties...however, the fantasies I mean are the unfinished confrontations between the dead sister. And her curiosity isn't satisfied to this reader's satisfaction. Jennifer's play focuses on her competitive-but-never-quite-measuring-up-relationship with her now-dead sister, and she finds herself in a similar relationship with Kelly, the lead actress of the show. A love triangle involving the producer is inevitable - who will end up with him? The plot is clever, and the play is an excellent device for revealing character and allowing the character to play out her fantasties. Jennifer has the wishy washy voice imparted by new authors, something the editor should have cut to the quick. As an exploration of sibling rivalry, suicide, competition among women, and the process of scripting to opening night, this is a great story, but wondering about unexperienced sex for pages is not particularly sexy. The denoument fails to deliver, and in the only other scene, that might be considered sexual, Kelly comes on to Jennifer, something we are almost expecting that would add a delicious shock to the tale... but since Jennifer is really innocent and practically taken advantage of, it is hardly a turn on. The scene flats flat when instead of going with the flow, she calls a halt to the activity.
Purchase for the humorous qualities, rather than the erotic potential.
Rating:
Summary: Clever plot doesn't quite hold up the book
Review: Sexually curious playwright Jennifer uses her script as an excellent device for playing out her fantasties...however, the fantasies I mean are the unfinished confrontations between the dead sister. And her curiosity isn't satisfied to this reader's satisfaction. Jennifer's play focuses on her competitive-but-never-quite-measuring-up-relationship with her now-dead sister, and she finds herself in a similar relationship with Kelly, the lead actress of the show. A love triangle involving the producer is inevitable - who will end up with him? The plot is clever, and the play is an excellent device for revealing character and allowing the character to play out her fantasties. Jennifer has the wishy washy voice imparted by new authors, something the editor should have cut to the quick. As an exploration of sibling rivalry, suicide, competition among women, and the process of scripting to opening night, this is a great story, but wondering about unexperienced sex for pages is not particularly sexy. The denoument fails to deliver, and in the only other scene, that might be considered sexual, Kelly comes on to Jennifer, something we are almost expecting that would add a delicious shock to the tale... but since Jennifer is really innocent and practically taken advantage of, it is hardly a turn on. The scene flats flat when instead of going with the flow, she calls a halt to the activity.
Purchase for the humorous qualities, rather than the erotic potential.
Rating: 
Summary: thoughts on love
Review: Sisters! Even in death Jennifer is haunted by her sister, or more accurately, Jennifer haunts herself, and her life won't be normal until the ghosts are gone. A charming look at how we are formed through the relationships we have, or don't have, with family. The New York Theater world is the stage for this lovely psychological romp.
Rating:
Summary: thoughts on love
Review: Sisters! Even in death Jennifer is haunted by her sister, or more accurately, Jennifer haunts herself, and her life won't be normal until the ghosts are gone. A charming look at how we are formed through the relationships we have, or don't have, with family. The New York Theater world is the stage for this lovely psychological romp.
Rating:
Summary: A PHENOMENAL BOOK
Review: Stephanie Lehmann's book is the best fiction I've read in years. It is fun, funny, moving, and entertained me so much that I could not stop reading until the book was over. Now I am reading it again-it's that good. Her writing is simple and direct-I felt like I was right THERE. She is really an amazing writer. I recommend this book to EVERYONE, especially to those who know the theatre scene in New York. It's a wise story, written from the heart, and you really get to know the protagonist and love her. Please buy this book-it is wonderful.
Rating:
Summary: Don't Judge This Book By It's Cover!!
Review: Stephanie Lehmann's book may look, at first sight, like a fluffy modern-day book with hardly any substance-- true, the book's pink and green cutsey cover and the back description seem sort of shallow in the beginning-- BUT DO NOT BE MISLED AND DO NOT BE FOOLED OUT OF READING THIS BOOK! Because, Lehmann's book is not only terrific, witty, and exciting, but it is a must-read, can't-put-it-down type of book! The book has so MUCH meaning and substance and is definitely a book that reads quickly and feels real. If you happen to be at the bookstore, or shopping at Amazon.com, or anywhere where you see Lehmann's book, buy it now! Because she has the perfect knack for discussing important subject manner (greiving and loss, jealousy, sexuality, depression, family matters, etc.) using a common language to which any reader can relate. This book is neither fluffy nor are its words esoteric-- this book rather is a great one. The struggles of the central characters, the flaws of those same characters, and their successes are sometimes bittersweet, sometimes heartfelt, and sometimes joyous and/or funny-- no matter what, though, their endeavors are fun to read about. Do not mistake this book for a petty, sex novel-- it is at least a 1000 times more than that in its depth and meaning. Just read it, TEST OUT THE WATERS!
Rating:
Summary: More Than Just Funny
Review: This book is wonderful, mostly because the heroine is so well written. Her angst about sex and relationships is hilarious and very true to life. At one point I was laughing so hard I was weeping. The plot revolves around the staging of the heroine's slightly auto-biographical play, which anyone who has ever been remotely involved with theater will find very amusing. What sets this book apart from the herd, though, is that the heroine undergoes some serious self-discovery. This isn't just full of the usual chick-lit patter. There's more depth here than you might expect.
Rating:
Summary: review
Review: This funny and quirky book is set in the East Village and Hell's Kitchen in New York City and offers a wry glimpse into an Off-Off-Broadway production -- where dreams and roaches vie for a place on stage. Its playwright-narrator writes original plays that parallel and frankly recount her own experiences, though she has a hard time biting hold of life, and getting her plays produced. But she struggles on, exploring sex, love, and especially ambition, and how to square it with the desires of the divas around her -- especially one from her past (a neurotic sister whose flamboyant urgency is only slightly lessened by the fact of being dead) and one in her present (a greedily hard-driving leading lady who plays the sister in her play). Warm, funny, and occasionally heart-wrenching, this is a wonderful read and I highly recommend.
Rating:
Summary: charming and literate
Review: This is a delightful book, entertaining, funny and at the same time touching. It is well-written. The central character is an endearing woman who is struggling with issues that we can all identify with. And the descriptions of the struggle to mount an off-off Broadway play with zero money are hilarious.
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