Rating: 
Summary: WOW!!!
Review: THIS BOOK IS AWESOME. FOUR FRIENDS FROM YOUTH TO ADULTHOOD. THEIR LAUGHTER AND TEARS. THEIR LOVE AND THEIR HATE. FATE AND CIRCUMSTANCE. THIS BOOK WAS VERY MOVING AND SAD AT TIMES. HAVE THE KLEENEX HANDY. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
Rating: 
Summary: A very good book!!
Review: Joy Fielding always writes about women's issues very well and this book is no exception. I look forward to Ms. Fielding's novels and are never disappointed. This paticular story centers around four women who are best friends and go through many difficult times together. Parts of this book are so real that as the reader, I found myself throwing the book down in disgust and then picking it up later because I couldn't get these women out of my mind, I had to find out what was going to happen next. One of Ms. Fielding's strength as a writer is her ability to create such believable, real characters. I was glad I took this book on vacation with me because I had plenty of time to devote to reading it and I wasn't the least bit disappointed.
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Summary: Great Story That I Didn't Expect
Review: I picked this book up and thought it was the typical 'woman's', romance, trauma oriented novel. I thought it would be a diversion for me until I found a more 'substantial' novel. Well fast forward one day and I couldn't put this book down. It was realistic, entrancing, fulfilling and heart-wrenching. I will be reading another Joy Fielding novel poste haste!
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Summary: I Loved this Book-It Was True to Life!
Review: This is the first I've read of Joy Fieldings work, and I loved the book. It tells the story of the lives of four women who were the best of friends, and of the unfortunate events that happened in their lives. Chris, Barbara, and Susan shared everything and faced the challenges of life and love head-on. Now, one sits alone to ponder the strange twists of fate and circumstance. Dreams turned to nightmares and these friendships were gradually destroyed. A very eventful book. It was very realistic in what happens in the world of women today.
Rating:
Summary: Absorbing, engrossing, engaging, and real where it counts
Review: The first thing to say about Grand Avenue is that it is a completely absorbing read. I picked this book up without knowing anything more than what was printed on the back cover and ended up burning through it in a weekend, not just neglecting what I ought to have been doing instead but forgetting about it entirely. The book's prime strength is in its characterizations - the author gives her readers a look at the world through each of her main characters' eyes, moving back and forth seamlessly from one interior monologue to another. Fielding effortlessly captures the women's joys and hurts, and is especially good at communicating the self-doubt that even the most outwardly confident people have -- those times when, whether you make a decision deliberately or are forced into a course of action, you have to keep asking yourself, did I do the right thing? The four friends from Grand Avenue face a myriad of life's crises, from the mundane to the headline-grabbing, and Fielding takes the reader along for the ride through every emotion the women experience. The story is not without its flaws. The relationship between Susan's two daughters is inexplicable, and even if a main theme of the book is that we can never wholly know why people do what they do, I needed something, some hint, some indication of why they act the way they do towards each other. A much bigger problem is the characterization of Chris's family life. Chris's reactions are very well fleshed-out, but Chris's children do not act in a way that is at all in line with their situation. Their hostility is one-dimensional, which makes their story feel a bit contrived and less convincing than it otherwise could have been. Nevertheless, Fielding is an excellent storyteller, and even got me with the sentimental closing scene. I rolled my eyes at the admonition quoted from a review on the inside cover to "keep a family-sized box of Kleenex handy in preparation for the tearjerking finale", but even though that's a bit of an over-statment, I have to confess that for someone who has only cried over a book once in my life, I actually felt a lump in my throat as I read. If you're looking for an honest, engrossing story about true human beings who will linger in your mind long after you finish, look no further (though beware you may lose track of time and space as you read!) Don't read it as a suspense novel or waiting for that surprise twist the other reviewers here mention. The twist is there, but it's really not the most imporant part of the book. Read it for the story it tells about friendship and everyday human frailties and successes. Grand Avenue may have a weak point here and there, but it's real where it counts.
Rating:
Summary: I would have rated it higher, except it was fairly dark...
Review: This is the story of four friends that meet as young mothers in a park in Cincinnati. Vicki, Chris, Barbara, and Susan all have young daughters and live on Grand Avenue, hence the name of the book. They become closer with time, and help each other through various trials and tribulations. This book is definitely not for the faint of heart - it starts off pleasantly enough, but the subject matter gets dark fairly quickly. I had to put it away several times because it was a little too depressing to take in all at once, and might not have finished it if I had had something else to read. I loved Fielding's book "The First Time", and because of that and the great reviews for this one, thought I would like it just as much. I will definitely find out more about the next book of hers that I pick up before I read it. Not to say that this was a 'bad' book by any means, but the overall tone is somewhat tragic, and if you're not in the mood for this kind of book, you might want to stay away. I am glad that others were able to enjoy it - we won't all like the same books. If your tastes are similar to mine, though, consider yourself warned...
Rating:
Summary: This was a GREAT Book
Review: I have not read anything from Joy Fielding and this one sparked an interest. It is about four friends and all that their friendship endures.
Bad marriages, children, careers, and how they tried to be true to each other during these troubled times. I read it very quickly and it holds your interest right away from the very beginning. I recommend this book to everyone.
Rating:
Summary: you won't want to put this book down
Review: This is my second book by Joy Fielding I've read in as many weeks. While working throughout the day I would find myself wondering what was happening to the characters. I was disappointed to be done with the book, and ran right out to the library to get another Fielding novel the day I finished this one. The ending is incredible and makes you think long after the last page is read.
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Summary: It is "GRAND" On Grand Avenue
Review: Very good book. I love the plot, I love the characters, I love the twists and turns. But most of all I love the underlying fact that as we age we become least likely to have the same friends. The older we get the more self absorbed we become. That is why it is always so easy to make friends in elementary school. Because we are still trying to find our own identity. I am not sure if this was Joy's objective message throughout the book. But that is what I got out of it. Excellent book. A must read for people that like dramatic fictions. :) BTW I am from Cincinnati OH for twenty three years, and Joy made not one mistake about Cincinnati, EXCELLENT DETAILS about the City. Good Job Joy. VERY GOOD BOOK.
Rating:
Summary: Worth the Read
Review: This book was definitely a page turner. After 500+ pages, I was disappointed it was "over." Following these four women for more than a decade, Fielding keeps the reader riveted to the page as we laugh, cry and gasp as their stories unfold.
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