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Summary: Marvelous romantic comedy--the ultimate "chick" book.
Review: The book is great fun. The characters are vivid, the humor wicked and the pace of the book is frenetic. If some of the plot elements are a bit predictable--and they are--no one will care as the vitality of the story and the writing overwhelm whatever minor flaws the book suffers from.This strikes me as the ultimate "chick" book similar to Nick Hornby's High Fidelity being the ultimate "guy" book. Both are exceedingly funny and can be read by "the other side" and still be apprciated and enjoyed immensely. A fast, easy enjoyable read. Take it with you on a plane trip--this book will relieve the unending tedium that travel now entails. Or better yet--give it to your significant other as a gift at Valentine's Day or a birthday. You can't go wrong.
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Summary: My new favorite author!
Review: This is the first book I've ever read by Marian Keyes. I was really impressed by her narrative style. From the first page, it was like I was talking to a good friend. You laugh together, cry together, and hopefully you end with a happy ending. Also, Claire is an interesting character and it was intriguing watching her deal with the obstacles that stood in her way. She was very real. She stayed in her nightgown for days on end, she sought comfort from a younger man, and she cared deeply about her child. I was disappointed when I reached the end of the book because I wanted to continue on Claire's journey! I recommend this book to anyone, whether you're single, divorced, or married!
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Summary: This one is worth much more than 5 stars...
Review: I hope my words will be able to adequately describe my surprise and pleasure when I discovered this book. It was totally by accident. Where has this author been all my life. She has many more and I plan to hunt down everyone of them. This book has over 400 wonderful pages. It's a page turner. The humor is great, and so are everyone of the characters. Her family, the husband and even a few off beat surprises. It kept me going right up to the end. I salute you Ms. Keyes you are a excellent writer. I'm glad I make my own decisions on what books to read because Oprah has missed another winner! Thanks for the good time I had with your book. I'll miss you Claire, Helen, Anna, Mum, Dad, Adam and even James.
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Summary: I love this book!
Review: Smart, funny, motivational, highly entertaining - if I could give this book more than five stars, I would. It is really that good. Basic plot summary - James tells Claire the day she gives birth to their daughter that he's leaving her for another woman. Naturally Claire is devastated and goes home to Ireland to recoup. The journey (and I'm not talking the physical travel) she takes, from London to Ireland, and back, is a wonderful tale. Any woman who's ever dealt with men will relate to this tale. Claire is someone I'd like to know in real life. Do yourself a favor and get this book.
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Summary: What a fun book!
Review: You will be sucked into this book from the first page. Immediately, you are introduced to Claire, who speaks to the reader in first person. Claire has just given birth to a baby girl, and her husband subsequently arrives and tells her that he is leaving her. Immediately upon release from the hospital, she leaves her London home with her new baby, Kate, and goes back to her parents, who live in Dublin. You will find that you really get to know Claire as she goes through so many emotional states- depression, anger, and love for her new child. Claire tries to fill the void left by her husband by dating again, and she finds that she is very attracted to Adam. The problem is that Adam is friends with her younger sister! The only thing I did not like about this book was Claire's sound off near the end of the book regarding abortion. No matter how you feel about this hot button issue, I did not think it was appropriate for Ms. Keyes to interject her opinions in the way that she did. This book is supposed to be fun, and this particular section distracted me. However, I'm not holding it against this book! Read it- you will love it!
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Summary: Clever humor, great characters, predictable storyline.
Review: This is my favorite of the three Marian Keyes novels I've read.
Keyes' humor is a little dark, but quirky and uncompromising. She's great at describing real life frustrations. Her heroines are always strong and have a warped sense of humor. I love the introduction to Claire's family. Helen is hilarious, and even though she may make a better secondary character, I hope she gets a book of her own. Every character in Claire's family is wonderfully drawn. However, I could not understand why Claire's husband, James, had an affair and acted as he did. I didn't feel like I understood his character or motivations at all. At least if he's going to act like a jerk, have the reason be fairly credible.
I am seeing a trend where Marian Keyes' stories follow the same basic storyline. Fairly attractive heroine involved in crisis, must rebuild her life or meet challenge. Her life and the people in it no longer look the same. Everpresent male friend/boyfriend eventually steps forward for relationship. Heroine renews life.
This story is a pageturner, but still in the Marian Keyes way-- predictable. And I don't always appreciate Keyes' humor, which is sometimes too wry for me. If you like this storyline check out the 1986 movie Heartburn with Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson.
Autobiographical novel is by Nora Ephron, who was briefly married to and had two sons with Washington Post journalist Carl Bernstein of Watergate fame. Deftly directed by Mike Nichols. Kevin Spacey can also be spotted in his first feature film role.
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Summary: such a wonderful book
Review: i stumbled upon this book one day and enjoyed the bright front cover. inside i found a wonderfully written romantic/comedy. This story is about a 20-something woman who one day trades a son for a husband. She goes through a long period to find her true self and along with her friends and (hysterical) family she is able to deal with her life. I laugh every time i read this book and have even bought it for my friends as gifts. Its is such a cheer-you-up story. Take the time to read this story and you will be happy you did.
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Summary: GREAT BOOK!
Review: I tend not to get descriptive in my reviews of the books I'm rating because you can see that in all of the other reviews. I just wanted to say that I loved this book! I also just read "Rachel's Holiday" by Marian Keys and loved that too. I believe she also wrote "Lucy Sullivan is Getting Married" and that was great too. So, to sum up, I think it's safe to say that Marian Keyes is a great author!
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Summary: Very quick read
Review: This book was a great book. It was the first Marian Keyes book I've read and I know it won't be my last. Claire is a woman who has been dumped on the day of having her child. She doesn't know where to go or what to do. So she heads off to Dublin to stay with her family. At times in this book some of what happen just didn't seem possible to me for a woman who is getting over being left by her husband. Claire was strong at times but at other times I felt she was very weak in some of her choices. James on the other hand I felt was a jerk who needed to get a life. Claires family was a riot her sister Helen who seem to have more life problems and they always seem to be more important that Claire's. Anna who seem to be off in her own world and of couse Claire parents they reminded me of my own parents who still look out for me. Overall I felt that this book was a wonderful quick read and kept me into the story always wanting to know more about what was going to happen to Claire of what she would say. Overall the reason why I only gave this book 4 stars was because I felt that there a lot left out and there could have been a lot to go with the story.
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Summary: love the book, can't stand its namesake food ....
Review: Watermelon is an excellent novel. The title comes from how big and bloated Clare feels after giving birth to her first child, shortly after which her husband James walks into her hospital room and says he is leaving her for their neighbor, whom she always thought was so nice. Devastated, Clare leaves London with her new baby to her family home in Dublin to try and make sense of what has happened and to grieve the loss of James. Clare is lots of fun and full of (...), just like your real life friends. She doesn't have it all together despite being 30 and having a marriage and baby, and that's a relief. It makes her human, and seeing her struggle through a woman's worst nightmare in what should be a time of joy makes your heart ache even while Keyes' impressive writing style makes you laugh. My only complaint is the Clare's selfish younger sister Helen who is apparently a beautiful goddess but sounds like a massive pain both here and in Rachels' Holiday. I hoped her character would develop a bit so she gets the slap she is begging for but it never happens. But I do like the other sister, Anna the Druggie!
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