Rating: 
Summary: Hate to kick her when she down...
Review: ...but she does have all that cash from the over-hyped marketing blitz that introduced this book. If the same publicity was enacted for the 100 page output of a one-eyed Rhesus monkey it too would have been a best seller. I don't blame Jane. She's a good writer. Read just one story and see how well it works. Read the whole book and watch it fall apart due to lack of structure. It's her editor who chose to neglect his/her job and focus on an unstopable promo machine. And anyway, aren't any secure, content women writing books? Or is every female english major in America pining for Mr. Right and whining about their weight?
Rating: 
Summary: I loved it!
Review: I laughed, I felt pain. I loved this book. It was a quick read - too quick - I missed it when I was done reading. I loved Jane, as a young teenager and as an adult. Bank had me reading at traffic lights, in the elevator, and every chance I got. I highly recommend!
Rating: 
Summary: Well written, but not really representative
Review: Although I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel and found the style of writing to be quite appealing, I do not believe that the relationships throughout are truly representative of modern strife in search of an acceptable husband. Although I am sure I don't represent all 20-30 something unmarried women, I find it difficult to comprehend some of the scenarios with Jane's dating patterns. For example, I would think most of us would avoid seeing a boozer older than our fathers. Perhaps that is just me. All in all, however, the story was captivating, and I really enjoyed the last section of the book where Jane turns to a how-to book for dating advice.
Rating:
Summary: Episodic tales of a woman's life and loves.
Review: Melissa Bank's book, "The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing" starts promisingly. The first chapter is wry and amusing and I thought that I was in for a real treat. The book seemed to be a tongue-in-cheek look at the life of a modern woman. Unfortunately, Bank chooses to jumble up the plot lines and characters in the different chapters of the book. This is confusing and it left me without a coherent feel for what Bank is trying to say. The narrator, Jane Rosenal, is not even present in one chapter, which is narrated by another woman named Nina. The love affairs recounted in the book are, for the most part, uninteresting and without real insight. There are occasional doses of wit and humor that brighten up the book. However, "The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing" doesn't add up to very much.
Rating:
Summary: another disappointed reader
Review: I too passed up this book many times but finally bought it after being bombarded with displays, magazine reviews, and bestseller lists. It was a quick, summer read but not the charming, witty read I thought it would be. Like others, I was looking forward to enjoying a great book after I read the first chapter, but quickly became bored and disappointed as I read further on. Each of the chapters themselves had cute anecdotes but the book as a whole seemed disjointed. I would recommend it for a light read to pass time but not for someone looking for a satisfying story that leaves you wishing for more.
Rating: 
Summary: something to identify with . . .
Review: After reading and falling in love with Bridget Jones' Diary, I raced to the book store and picked up The Girls' Guide . . . Jane is someone I can truly identify with: dry sense of humor and looking for love in all the wrong places. Melissa Bank lost one star for the nondescriptives of her characters and their surroundings - I couldn't picture them in my head. The author loses another star for the section about Jane's neighbor and family - neat concept, but it never comes full circle with the protagonist. An easy, enjoyable read but not one that you "just can't put down." However, one you must finish to see that you can find real love by tossing "The Rules" out the window and just being yourself.
Rating:
Summary: Depressing and missing a lot of detail
Review: Ugh. That's exactly how I felt after reading this book, which comes across as more of a collection of short stories from parts of one woman's life. The stories are from different parts of this woman's life, but its hard to tell, because there's so many gaps in between the major events in her life, that I actually thought this was about more than one woman. The stories about her life are depressing tid bits, and make her sound like she's continually searching for something in her life, and it comes across as her being desperate. If you enjoy reading about women who are seemingly never happy, then pick this up, you would enjoy it. If you were hoping for a unique and interesting way of telling a life story, you're better off writing your own book.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: After seeing this book prominantly displayed in my local bookstore time after time, I finally bought it. I was excited at first, but my excitement quickly faded as I muddled my way through the book. I kept hoping that the book would get better, but it didn't. I agree with another reviewer that there isn't enough character development here, even with Jane. She comes off very shallow, and she's not someone I would really care to know. Another mysterious section is one of the stories in the middle of the book. The narrator is Nina, not Jane, and it doesn't really fit anywhere in the book, except she is the downstars neighbor of Jane's much older boyfriend. I kept waiting for any of the characters in that section to reappear, but they never do. Something funny does happen in that section, but you never know what the resolution is. The best part of the book is the last section where she tries to live by the oft-mocked Rules. I wish more of the book was like the last section!
Rating:
Summary: Much Better Than Bridget Jones
Review: I didn't expect to like this book because I'm so tired of books by whiney women, so I put off buying it. However, one day at the airport I decided to give it a chance (as I did Bridget Jones months ago, and was hugely disappointed by that one.) The book starts off kind of boring, almost like the writer was trying too hard to come up with witty lines, but as I kept reading I actually began to enjoy the story. The chapter about Nina doesn't really seem to fit in, unless I missed something, because she was the neighbor of Jane's aunt, but it was still a good short story. I loved the last chapter, when she is trying to follow the rules from a dating self help book--absolutely hilarious! The flow of the story gets better as the chapters progress, and the writing seems to improve as well. It definitely isn't the best book I've ever read by any means, but was an okay way to spend the afternoon. This is a really fast read, I finished it in a few hours, but I would recommend reading it--I don't think it's worth the [retail] cost, so if you can get it used on Amazon auctions, that would be a better route.
Rating:
Summary: Not an exciting read...
Review: I read this book one rainy afternoon. I was not that impressed with Girl's Guide...The first story of Jane as a 14 year old was enjoyable and I was excited to see what would happen as she grew up. I thought her relationship with the man twice her age was boring. The middle of the book dragged on and I began to lose interest. I enjoyed "Otherwise Engaged" and "Bridget Jones Diary" more than this and would recommend reading them before picking this up!
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