Rating: 
Summary: An "Okay" Book-Needed More Character Depth
Review: In this story, a teenage couple drives up, late at night, headlights out, to Blessings, the estate owned by Lydia Blessing. They leave a box and take off, and in this instant, the world of Blessings is changed forever. Blessings telles us the story of Skip Cuddy, who is caretaker of the estate, who finds a baby asleep in the box that was left there. He wants to keep her, and Lydia, for her own reasons decides to go along with Skip and help him. The secrets of the past, how they affect the decisions and lives of people in the present, what makes a person, a life, legitimate or illegitimate, and who decides; the unique resources people find in themselves and in a community- are told in this novel.I felt that the story needed more development of the characters for certain, and the author could have given them more backgrounds and depth. Something was missing along that line for sure.
Rating: 
Summary: Anna Quindlen is A Reader's Blessing
Review: Several years ago I heard Anna Quindlen speak at the 92nd street Y in Manhattan. While she spoke on several topics, what I remember most was how she praised her many teachers, particularly her professors from Barnard who encouraged her to consider writing as a career. As a teacher I was so overcome by Ms. Quindlen's words and I think this is when I fell in love with Anna Quindlen for the zillionth time. Now looking back on this event, I can't remember a time when I didn't love, admire and couldn't wait to read anything written by her. From her earliest columns at The NY Times to her wonderful fiction books, to a quasi memoir How Reading Changed My Life, to the Commencement speech, which ultimately became the book, A Short Guide to a Happy Life to her columns today for Newsweek, I am always interested and intrigued in what she writes about. Is it any wonder that as soon as Blessings her newest book hit the stores, I was first on line. And while I hated waiting, it was well worth the wait. I was so sorry it had to end knowing that once again I have to wait for another book by Ms. Quindlen. As she has done in her previous books, Ms. Quindlen introduces us to two memorable characters. Skip Cuddy is a young man who has had his share of problems over the years. He fell in with a bad crowd and a botched robbery landed him in prison for the past ten months. But a chance encounter with an elderly woman in a Wal-Mart parking lot will begin a series of events that will change his life forever. Lydia Blessing is the elderly woman Skip has helped out with her car. Mrs. Blessing has lived almost all of her life in Mount Mason first as a child and then as a war widow raising her only child and now into her golden years. But she likes Skip and before the day is through, Mrs. Blessing will offer him a place to live and a job as a hired hand at her home. Mind you, Mrs. Blessings home isn't any home but a magnificent estate, which was owned by her father. And Mrs. Blessing is no ordinary woman. Born to wealthy parents, Mrs. Blessing was raised in New York, attended private school and debutante balls. These days, Mrs. Blessing is somewhat of a recluse who watches her every penny although she is still immensely wealthy. Now fate will turn these two people's lives around. What neither of these two people can imagine is than in a short time their lives will become intertwined and they will form a friendship others could never understand. Shortly after Skip takes up residence in the apartment above the garage, two teenagers leave a baby on the doorstep of the garage. Skip finds the baby and instinctively he decides to keep the baby although he has very little knowledge about caring for a baby. One thing Skip does know is that he has to keep this baby a secret fearful of what the police might think if they found out the baby was in his care. During the day, Skip goes about his daily chores with the baby in a sling with a shirt covering the baby. His nights are spent poring over child rearing books and he agonizes over the baby's position while sleeping. After several weeks he names the baby Faith. Then one evening Mrs. Blessing finds the baby in Skip's apartment and she becomes part of hiding Faith from the authorities. Mrs. Blessing has her own secrets and as she helps Skip to care for the baby she reflects on her past. She thinks about her parents and the lack of love from her mother. She also reflects on her melancholy brother and his good friend, her husband who is killed early on during WWII. And then she reminisces about her daughter who was reared by nannies and boarding schools and had little to do with Mrs. Blessing as she grew up. She begins to see her life more clearly and her blessings. As the weeks pass, Lydia and Skip learn true values from one another. They also learn that blessings are all around. And the ending reaches its climax with some surprising twists as readers fully understand the blessings Faith has bestowed on both of these people.
So beautifully does Ms. Quindlen describe the grounds Blessings that readers will feel themselves smelling the flowers, seeing the trees and hearing the rustle of the leaves as the seasons change. They will also feel as though they are sitting in Ms. Blessing's living room or picnicking on the porch in the heat of the summer. And so lovingly does she describe the moments between Skip and Faith that readers surely will feel a baby napping on their shoulders or sitting on their laps. And more than anything we feel the love between a parent and a child as Skip protects Faith. In Hebrew we say the words, "May you be a blessing." Anna Quindlen is truly a blessing. Her books speak volumes on themes of loyalty, devotion, redemption but most of all love. We come to know her characters well. We care about these people and long after we've closed the book we continue to think about them. But most of all Ms. Quindlen's words never fail to place her readers smack in the pages of her book. Her words and the emotions she evokes are unforgettable and you are left with the desire to revisit these people and places again and again. Thank you Ms. Quindlen. Once again you've written a first rate novel which further confirms why this reader is in love with you. May you be a blessing!
Rating:
Summary: Blessings: an amazing novle
Review: "Well, I'm assuming the place won't be called Blessings anymore."
"No," the woman said. "Leave it where it is. People love the idea of a place with a name." (Pg. 256) After reading Blessings by Anna Quindlen, you will feel as if you have become Skip Cuddy. Everything that Skip does, one can relate to very easily. The main thing that can be learned from this book is to take what you can get from life, and enjoy every minute of it. In the beginning, a boy and a girl drop a box off at the foot of the garage at Blessings. Skip finds this box and discovers that there is a baby wrapped up in a flannel shirt in it. For a few weeks Skip tries to keep the baby a secret from Lydia Blessing, the owner of Blessings. Lydia Blessing is an 80 year old woman who has so many stories from her past to share. Some of them make her happy, and others make her sad, like the death of her brother Sunny. Even though Lydia meets Skip in a Wal-Mart parking lot, she decides to let him live in the apartment above the garage that the Fosters used to live in so that he can help around the house with the yard work. The one thing that Lydia found out about Skip is that he had served jail time for a crime that he didn't commit. He was just at the wrong place at the wrong time with his friends, who really committed the crime. Throughout the next few months Lydia learns to be more open to things and learns to trust Skip, or rather, Charles more. Lydia didn't like to call people by a nickname. Skip falls in love with the baby, and names her Faith. Skip enjoys watching her every chance he gets. One can tell that even Lydia begins to love Faith for she would listen for Faith on the baby monitor when Skip was out. One other way that Lydia changes is that she actually tries to talk to her daughter Meredith more, and even invites her to come and visit. One night Skip sees a light on in Lydia's house that isn't normally on. Then he sees a shadow walk by the light, and can tell that it is not Lydia. He makes a comment that he wishes that Lydia had put a phone in his apartment. So, Skip decides to go down and find out who is there. Sure enough, it is Skip's old friends Joe, Chris, and Ed. They are trying to rob the place. Chris being there made Skip so angry that he picked up the teapot that was on the floor and wanted to throw it at him. As moments passed, Lydia came into the room and saw Skip holding the teapot in one hand, and a gun in the other hand. Lydia had never seen Skip like this. Once the police arrived, they took Skip away because having the gun was a violation of his parole. Later on, Lydia felt very bad about what she had caused Skip to go through again. So, what will happen to Skip and Faith? Will Skip be able to keep Faith? What happens to Lydia? If you want to know what happens and the answers to these questions, you must read this book. Once I picked up this book, I could not put it down. I just wanted to continue reading it. You have to give a lot of credit to Anna Quindlen for writing such an amazing book. She makes you feel as if you are in the story by referring back and forth from Skip's past and Lydia's past to the present. This is a must read book.
Rating: 
Summary: A touching little story
Review: Anna Quindlen's Blessings is a touching story about love, family secrets, coming to terms with them and how life can change through the smallest discoveries.
Skip Cuddy lives above the garage at the estate Blessings, owned by Lydia Blessings, an 80 year old society "recluse". Mrs. Blessings knows how things ought to be done, and Skip, being on parole for a crime he did not commit, does what he is being told. He is not sure that life holds anything for him, as well as Mrs. Blessings in her old age tries to come to terms with her own, somewhat "wasted" life. There is not much joy in this book's first pages, where a teenage couple leaves a newborn baby girl to on the steps to the garage. Skip finds the baby girl next morning, and decides to keep her. He also decides to keep it a secret from Mrs. Blessings and the nosy housekeeper Nadine. Mrs. Blessings figures something out by accident, and for some reason she decides to help Skip with the baby. During the book we go back and forth between the present day, Mrs. Blessings past, and we also get a look into Skip's past. The language of this book is masterly done, and the going back and forth in time never becomes confusing. Both Skip's and Mrs. Blessing's lives are described with feelings, and you will feel that you know those people. It is hard not to be touched by this story, although it sometimes seems a tiny bit far-fetched. But then again, this book is fiction, and far-fetched things are supposed to happen in fiction
Rating:
Summary: A Story Lovingly Told
Review: In this book Anna Quindlen delivers a lovely story of strength, support, and love. Late one night, a teenaged couple abandons their newborn baby at the garage door of "Blessings", an estate inhabited by the elderly Lydia Blessing and her young handyman, Skip Cuddy.....and thus set off a chain of events that will propel both of these characters on a journey of discovery. Skip, who lives over the garage and finds the foundling, will discover unexpected depths of feelings for this little one, whom he names Faith. He also discovers the nurture of which he is capable--and what the tribulations of fatherhood can be. This baby gives Skip's life a structure and purpose that it never had before. Lydia discovers that perhaps doing what is expected is not always the "good" thing to do....and questions what the "right" thing to do really is. She has lived in the past for so long, thinking about her family's many secrets, but this baby brings her into the present with a welcome jolt. Despite trying to keep Faith's presence a secret, Lydia finds out that Skip has taken on the role of "father" to this baby, and the three of them become an unlikely sort of family. Quindlen shows us how a family is not necessarily comprised of those related by blood, but can be a unit made up of people who need, support, and care for each other. Together, Skip and Lydia find unexpected joy in Faith and find resources within themselves of which they were unaware. These two characters, of such different backgrounds and ages, also allow the author to tell the same story in two very different ways. Quindlen has written a richly descriptive and moving novel, one of redemption and personal growth, and about doing the right thing. Her observational skills, so evident in the columns she has written over the years, make us understand and care about these characters, their pasts, and how their lives affect others. I loved the double meaning of the title,"Blessings"...for not only was it the name of a house, but blessings were what these characters bestowed on each other. A wonderful reading experience that this reader will remember with great pleasure.
Rating:
Summary: Blessings: an amazing novle
Review: "Well, I'm assuming the place won't be called Blessings anymore."
"No," the woman said. "Leave it where it is. People love the idea of a place with a name." (Pg. 256) After reading Blessings by Anna Quindlen, you will feel as if you have become Skip Cuddy. Everything that Skip does, one can relate to very easily. The main thing that can be learned from this book is to take what you can get from life, and enjoy every minute of it. In the beginning, a boy and a girl drop a box off at the foot of the garage at Blessings. Skip finds this box and discovers that there is a baby wrapped up in a flannel shirt in it. For a few weeks Skip tries to keep the baby a secret from Lydia Blessing, the owner of Blessings. Lydia Blessing is an 80 year old woman who has so many stories from her past to share. Some of them make her happy, and others make her sad, like the death of her brother Sunny. Even though Lydia meets Skip in a Wal-Mart parking lot, she decides to let him live in the apartment above the garage that the Fosters used to live in so that he can help around the house with the yard work. The one thing that Lydia found out about Skip is that he had served jail time for a crime that he didn't commit. He was just at the wrong place at the wrong time with his friends, who really committed the crime. Throughout the next few months Lydia learns to be more open to things and learns to trust Skip, or rather, Charles more. Lydia didn't like to call people by a nickname. Skip falls in love with the baby, and names her Faith. Skip enjoys watching her every chance he gets. One can tell that even Lydia begins to love Faith for she would listen for Faith on the baby monitor when Skip was out. One other way that Lydia changes is that she actually tries to talk to her daughter Meredith more, and even invites her to come and visit. One night Skip sees a light on in Lydia's house that isn't normally on. Then he sees a shadow walk by the light, and can tell that it is not Lydia. He makes a comment that he wishes that Lydia had put a phone in his apartment. So, Skip decides to go down and find out who is there. Sure enough, it is Skip's old friends Joe, Chris, and Ed. They are trying to rob the place. Chris being there made Skip so angry that he picked up the teapot that was on the floor and wanted to throw it at him. As moments passed, Lydia came into the room and saw Skip holding the teapot in one hand, and a gun in the other hand. Lydia had never seen Skip like this. Once the police arrived, they took Skip away because having the gun was a violation of his parole. Later on, Lydia felt very bad about what she had caused Skip to go through again. So, what will happen to Skip and Faith? Will Skip be able to keep Faith? What happens to Lydia? If you want to know what happens and the answers to these questions, you must read this book. Once I picked up this book, I could not put it down. I just wanted to continue reading it. You have to give a lot of credit to Anna Quindlen for writing such an amazing book. She makes you feel as if you are in the story by referring back and forth from Skip's past and Lydia's past to the present. This is a must read book.
Rating:
Summary: Beautifully Written
Review: In Blessings, Anna Quindlen expertly winds together two stories, that of a handyman who takes in an abandoned baby, and the elderly woman who employs him to care for her farm. Both the handyman and the elderly woman struggle with their pasts. He fights to escape his past and the bad characters associated with it in order to make a good home for this baby. She tries to come to terms with secrets buried within her own family. As usual, Anna Quindlen's prose is impeccable. While at times the plot is slow to develop, its intricacy makes the read rewarding. And the characters are as well developed as close friends.
Rating:
Summary: Blessings
Review: I have to say that I was disappointed it this book. In the beginning it was very difficult to follow, because the story jumped back and forth from the present to different periods in the past. The author's description of the home "Blessings" was beautiful and kept me reading, but I was again disappointed in the ending. Her writing was beautiful, but I think the plot and ending were lacking.
Rating:
Summary: Life is more than what it seems
Review: Blessings is the third Anna Quindlen novel that I've read and enjoyed. She is such an eloquent writer with accurate descriptions of the silent suffering and happiness that occurs in the human psyche. I enjoyed this story of Lydia Blessing and Skip Cuddy who through the nuturing and love of an abandoned baby girl make an usual "family." Much of the story takes place in a bittersweet remembering that occurs in Lydia's mind as she reviews the last eighty years of her life. The reader is touched as Lydia remembers both the pleasures and pains of being a Blessing. She once again feels the sadness of her mother's rejection and her subsequent treatment of her own daughter. The sorrow from her brothers death and the realization of her naivete. The baby makes her yearn for a life that is gone but at the same time encourages her to try for another level of relationship with her daughter and the people around her. She realizes that life is not a static, preset karma, but a flowing river of choices that can always be made in the moment. In the same respect the character of Skip parallels Lydia's feelings by trying to become more than his families history. Quindlen has crafted a touching story that resonates at the core. Can life be changed or are we bound to become what is expected? New life, like the baby that is found by Skip and Lydia, presents us with a blank page of innocence that challenges us to become more than our limitations.
Rating:
Summary: Quindlen does it again
Review: Anna Quindlen shows us she is still an incredibly gifted writer with the uncanny ability to draw us into a story and become part of the character's lives. We love them, we hate them, we feel sad for them, and we cry for them.
In her latest book, Blessings, Anna tells a tale that reads like a soft breeze on a balmy summer day. And just when you relax into the softness, Anna orchestrates a startling turn of events where all the characters remain true to their roles. A master of storytelling! Often I will not continue to read an author after they have published a few works. It seems like popular writers hop on the "write as fast as you can and forget about quality once you have a readership following" band wagon. I do not see that trend with Quindlen and will continue to seek out her works. This one's another winner.
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