One True Thing

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Summary: One True Thing is true to life
Review: As a chemotherapy nurse who followed Ovarian cancer patients from the time of diagnosis until death often, I was bowled over by the reality of this novel. This could have been written, but not as well, by several of my patients' daughters. I was impressed by the ability of the author to capture so well the range of emotions expressed as a loved one slips away. I highly recommend this book to anyone who appreciates good writing or to anyone who likes to FEEL something when they read.

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Summary: Great book...if you don't read the prologue first!
Review: This is a great book. It makes you re-evaluate your relationships with your family. I could relate to each character very well. The only thing I didn't like is the prologue, it tells you tooooo much! Some people will disagree I am sure, but for me, it was better not knowing the ending first, so I skipped the prologue.

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Summary: Like Camus' "The Stranger," only humanized
Review: After reading this book, one can see a similarity between it and Albert Camus' "The Stranger." The main difference being that Anna Quilden has humanized her story and her protagonist. The problem that lies here though is that in "The Stranger," the plot was necessary to convey the theme of the novel, whereas with Quilden, the trial section does not add to the initial part of the novel, but only detracts from one of the most emotionally fueled sections ever written. Ellen, the protagonist, goes through a 100 more pages which increase the affinity of the reader for her, but takes away from the overall plot.

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Summary: Beautifully written account of a mother and daughter's love
Review: This was an amazing book that I could not put down. The emotions that Ellen and her mother experienced throughout were so true. I cried lots as I read this book. I highly recommend One True Thing.

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Summary: What was the "One True Thing" in the book?
Review: Our couples book group recently discussed this book and share many of the same positive comments expressed by other reviewers. Interestingly, the men enjoyed the book as much as the women. One question we raised which has not been mentioned by other reviewers is, what is the one true thing? At first, we thought it was love, but after more discussion, we all agreed it was truth.

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Summary: Quindlen is the most underrated novelist of our time!
Review: I'm not a big fan of Oprah's Book Club, but if it brings Anna Quindlen the attention she deserves, then I say it has done more than its share in shaping the literary world. I first became interested in Quindlen when she was doing a talk show plug of _Thinking Out Loud_ (another amazing book!), but when I read this novel, I found all of the smart, witty, real-life-ness of Quindlen's columns translated into masterful fiction.

Quindlen writes the kind of story that Anne Tyler tries to write (don't get me wrong, I like Tyler a lot). Touching, tragic, funny and, unlike the much celebrated Tyler, true. The family relationships, the boyfriend and the slow pain of disease feel real enough to touch, to find in your own life. There is no soap opera here, not even a movie of the week. The reader need not participate in the "willing suspension of disbelief" because s/he actually begins to believe s/he's reading a memior.

Nonetheless, the language is beautiful. Quindlen has no difficulty moving between the realms of reporter and novelist, perhaps because her reporting has always been wonderfully...human.

The one true thing here is that you can't go wrong with anything Quindlen writes. Read it all. She does two things that are too often mutually exclusive: touches the mind and the soul.

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Summary: As real as it gets!
Review: This book is so real & it makes you think about your relationship with your family - especially your mother. Having had a grandmother who died from cancer I could relate to many of the details written about the different stages from the onset of the disease to the bitter end. It reflects so well the emotions & hurdles that the cancer patients themselves as well as the ones around them have to deal with. It also makes you think about your relationship with your own mother & how at times we tend to take it for granted & don't always see the real person! I highly recommend this book to all especially if you've been faced with the trials of cancer.

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Summary: Extraordinarily real.
Review: When Anna Quindlen left the OP-ED pages of the NY Times, I thought I was losing one of the only sane voices in NY.

I've read everything Ms. Quindlen has written and found ONE TRUE THING to be incredibly moving, making me question my own capacity for the bravery and comparing it to Ellen's.

Once finished, I immediately purchased BLACK AND BLUE as I needed another Anna Quindlen fix.

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Summary: Great Beach Book--Real Page Turner
Review: I read this book in one day. Anna Quindlen has a real knack for keeping your interest, or at least mine. This is the first book on my summer reading list and it will be a hard act to follow. The relationship between mother and daughter is complex and multi-dimensional..my hat is off to Anna for reaching in and examining it so closely and with such realism. Definitely a womans book though..Can't see any man having a real interest in this one.

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Summary: I read this book a second time!
Review: This book definitely made me think about my relationship with my mom and dad. I gained understanding. There were many "truisms" about life in general. Some passages I really savored. I loved the author's way of describing relationships.