Rating: 
Summary: Poorly written but occasionally enjoyable
Review: I just heard the audio version, mostly during two long drives. Judith Ivey, the reader, does an admirable job, though not perfect, acting out all the roles in numerous accents. Sometimes I wondered why on earth she'd stress this word or that syllable, but overall, it was an excellent performance.
If only she'd had better material to work with. At times I became furious at the amateurish writing, the predictable plots, the cookie-cutter characters, and the pathetic dialogue.
Much of the narrative was overly descriptive and plodding. The author leaves in phrases her first-year composition teacher would have instructed her to cut for wordiness.
People and events come and go with no resolution. Sidda broods about missing the kind of girlfriend relationships her mother has (where four girls never argue, fight, or become jealous of each other) but, aside from one friend's brief appearance, Sidda never interacts with any girlfriends at all. So why bring it up if she's not going to act on it?
A long story about Vivi being sent to a convent ends anti-climactically; Vivi's friend's mother simply takes Vivi home. Why Vivi's mother is no longer adamant about saving her daughter's soul is not mentioned.
As others have pointed out, the plot twists are predictable. What the author must have thought was suspenseful (when Viviane doesn't want to leave a tennis match, for example) are so obvious that I shouted at my cassette player, "Jack's dead!" When she finally hears the news, I get no insight into her feelings, though she rambles on for some time.
And the Ya-Yas. It's as if the author created the characters with a color-by-number set -- as if whenever she needed to write a line of dialogue, she would just refer to a list of two, maybe three characteristics for each person. "Teentsie needs to speak? OK, I'll throw in a phrase in French. 'Mon cher' ought to do. It's Caro's turn? Just have her say 'Pal.' Niecie (sp?) will find something to be afraid of. There, I'm done!"
As bad as the writing was, the performance was entertaining. This book is just a bit of fluff disguising itself as meat.
Rating: 
Summary: I was hoping for more
Review: I'll admit that I didn't even know that this book existed until I saw a preview for the movie. I always like to read the book a movie is based on before I see the actual movie, and since Divine Secrets looked like such a cute movie I went out and bought the book.
It starts off superbly. I laughed at stories of the sisterhood's escapades when they were children and teens, and I cried when tragedy struck. I kept turning the pages because the characters were sincerely interesting, and the plot was flowing nicely. POOF! It nosedives. It unravels and disintegrates and I didn't even want to finish the book (but I did, in hopes - which were left unfulfilled - that I had merely hit a dull patch and that it would pick up again). The ending doesn't seem realistic and there are problems with holes in the plot. It was as though the main character was supposed to suddenly be blessed with realizations that would reasonably have had no origin since meaningful chunks of her mother's life are left unexplained to her. The reader gets the background knowledge, Sidda does not (yet the author acts like she does).
I'm debating whether or not to recommend this book -- I suppose it depends on your expectations. Perhaps mine were too high. As a writer, however, this author shows great potential. I believe that in the future her work will grow and become more solid.
Rating:
Summary: I struggled through the beginning but I the end made up for
Review: I will admit I was excited about this book to due to the movie coming out and I started reading it two days ago and I struggled with the beginning the characters switching and you not know if it was the main character Sidda or Vivi(Sidda's mother). I was about to put it down when I got to "action" of the book and after that I enjoyed the story they writer was trying to get us to. I gave it only 3 stars because the beginning was difficult to get through but the Ya-Ya's realtionship was great and loved all their interacts in the book.
Rating: 
Summary: Boring---Read Something Else
Review: I agree with Nicole Bonnell, who is halfway through the book and can't take it anymore. I'm in the same situation. A good book holds the reader's attention quickly; there should be some kind of narrative hook that draws you in. I have no idea what that hook is in this book. The flashback scenes to Vivi's childhood are incredibly boring. I read voraciously, and based on everyone's praise of this novel, was sure this book would make my top ten list of books I love. I can't believe it's actually on my very short list of books I despise. My suggestion is to save your money; don't buy the book, as I did. Borrow it from the library to see whether you like it first. If you are a discerning reader, you will notice the humor is not funny, and the characters are one-dimensional and unintriguing.
Rating:
Summary: not nearly as good as I thought it would be
Review: I was not impressed with this book. There were some highlights, the best parts were when Sidda was going through the scrapbook. Overall though, not that great. Will not be seeing this in theaters, will wait til it comes out on dvd and rent it, not buy it!
Rating: 
Summary: Deep
Review: I read little altars everywhere first, and I don't know if I should have. If you read this book alone you fall in love with the characters, although everyone is flawed and there are a lot of family discord you really end up loving them for the love they have. You also pity them too. I guess it really makes you think of how great a gift woman friendship is. I know I hold my girlfriends close to my heart. But, when you read Little Altars everywhere, well, you begin to dislike some characters that divine needs you to love in order to get the moral. So, it's a catch 22. I told my friend who is also reading, that I think maybe the author was VERY angry with the an abusive person in her life but then learned to forgive and get a different perspective and then wrote a redeeming divine. But, who knows. I suggest either way you do it one or the other book first you should DEFINETLY read both! Oh, and the movie, well, it's not for men really LOL, more about women and friendship... but it's also not really the book either!
Rating: 
Summary: Behind the scenes of the Ya Ya Life
Review: I had to read this after seeing the movie of the same title -- the movie felt like the (excellent) Cliff Notes version of the books -- I came away feeling something had been left out, that there was much more to the story than I saw. Hilarious and well-acted, the film version though showing us the a dark side, also glamorized the life of Viviane Walker, Southern alcoholic mother and her still drinkin' after all these years buddies. There had to be more in the books, I hoped -- and there certainly is! This book gives a deep, full view of the Walker family, showing the pattern and likenesses in Viviane Walker's life and those in her eldest daughter, Sidalee's. Rebecca Wells somehow takes the short vignettes from Little Altars, and expands them. Sida retreats to a friend's cabin to sort out her forty year old life, peering into the oversized scrapbook with the Divine Secrets pasted and stuck inside. She gets some pieces of the whole story -- letters, a conversation with some of her mother's friends, newspaper articles -- and eventually she can see her mother as more than a once abusive, often drunk, perpetually self-centered woman. But we are allowed to see even more -- she gets a more complete story, but we get to feel the connections between events, as well as discovering matching patterns in Sida's and her mother's lives. This is all done in an incredibly gentle and subtle manner, not maudlin, not glossy. The story -- book and movie -- is about enduring friendship, a mother's love, a daughter's pain, reconciliation and forgiveness. If you liked the characters in the movie, this book will give you more -- not neccessarily in quantity, but certainly in quality. If you are more comfortable with Shep as the patient, understanding father and husband, if you liked the smooth and happy ending, you may find the books disturbing (but read them anyway -- excellent writing, a joy to read!) This is a wonderful completion of the story begun in Little Altars, as well as a fuller, deeper, more realistic rendition of what we see in the movie.
Rating:
Summary: Ya-Ya? No, No!
Review: "You MUST read this book!" I was told time and time again, usually with a scrap of paper and the title scribbled on it. "Even though you're a guy - read it! You'll love it!". So finally I got it...and read it...and didn't particularly love it. I liked it - somewhat. Yet, with all the hype surrounding it (from SO many people), I wanted to love it. Why didn't I love it? Because the characters were no more than caricatures, the plot was plodding, the humor forced, and the ending could be seen by Helen Keller. Wells had her eye on the "Oprah Book Club" logo when writing this book, but (surprise!) the book isn't depressing enough to warrant Oprah's stamp of approval. Which is why I liked it - somewhat. Lately, people have been telling me "You MUST see this new movie! You'll love it!" with a title scribbled on a piece of paper. Guess what the title is?
Rating:
Summary: Oh Ya Ya
Review: This is one of those books that makes me long to return to my Southern roots. Wells strongest talent is her descriptive power which places readers smack dab in the flavorful heat of the Deep South. I hope the movie doesn't ruin the story, though I suspect it will. Do yourself a favor and read the book instead.
Rating:
Summary: 84 thousand reasons to read this book
Review: I'll skip the summarization of the plot since all of the reviews here do a great job of telling you what this book is all about. Let me get straight to the point: this is a wonderfully hilarious, heartbreaking novel with memorable characters, beautiful, witty dialogue, and downright fantastic story telling.
I don't normally read this kind of book; I lean more toward thrillers and horror novels. I must admit, I got caught up in all the Ya-Ya frenzy surrounding the release of the film. Out of curiosity, I picked up Divine Secrets and didn't put it down until I devoured each and every word. These characters have such depth, and I found myself longing for an eccentric hat, a Bloody Mary, a cigarette, and a gaggle of close friends! I could almost feel the sultry heat of Louisiana and smell all the wonderful smells of the south: fried catfish, flowers everywhere, smoky barbeque, lake water. Wells manages to use a simple narrative writing style while painting incredibly vivid mind pictures.
This is a powerful story about a middle-aged woman trying to come to grips with her all-consuming, ever-present mother. These humanly flawed characters have depth and personality. I truly wanted to know what happened to each one. It's so easy to forget that our mothers had and have lives separate from us, and Siddalee gets the chance of a lifetime: to begin to know her mother as a girl and young woman.
I know I'm gushing on and on about this novel, but it really struck a chord with me. I want more of the Ya-Yas! If you think you can get the full feel of the novel by going to see the film, think again. There are so many things that the film omits, and it can never capture the senses the way this book does (although the film isn't bad). If you like good story telling, and if you don't mind a whirlwind of emotions when you read, then grab this one right now.
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