Sheila Levine is Dead and Living in New York

Rating:
Summary: It's about time!
Review: My copy of Shiela Levine lives in a plastic ziploc bag since it's been slowly falling apart for years (each consecutive reading causes another page to come loose). I'm so thrilled to be able to read this again without being afraid of losing an irreplacable page to this previously discontinued book. I can't recommend it highly enough. If you liked Bridget Jones, you'll love Shiela.

Rating:
Summary: only 5 stars?
Review: My original $1.25 dog-eared paperback copy of this utterly amazing book is in storage somewhere, so i decided to buy another copy here. I'm so thrilled that another generation has discovered Sheila (and Gail Parent), and that ms. parent is going to be publishing a sequel!!
I've quoted from this book almost every week (no joke!) since i first read it in the mid-70s. (Of course, i remember being horrified when Sheila and Linda were contemplating turning 30 -- yikes!!) I used the paragraph describing Sheila's awakening to find her suicide attempt has gone dreadfully awry to ace my Speech 101 final at Brooklyn College. I still don't think i've ever read a funnier line than...
[paraphrasing here] "it was that voice. my mother's voice. the voice that told me i had to wear a coat over my halloween costume."
ms. parent, i've been searching for you all over the internet to let you know just how very much you influenced my life, and how much i admire your talent. please say that this sequel will be in stores soon -- i've just ordered your other books. and thank you for the use of your well-placed phrase "how attractive" (in response to "norman had to feed his cats"); i probably use that several times a day... to great reaction! I'm awaiting my "extra" copy of "Sheila" breathlessly, and can't believe a sequel is on its way!

Rating:
Summary: The Funniest Suicide Note Ever
Review: Okay, I found this book at the used bookstore, looking...well, let's just say well-read. For a quarter, I felt like I'd give it a shot.

Well, this book was pretty darn entertaining. Even though Sheila Levine's life was in shambles a generation before me, her story seemed timely. Lo and behold, my Mom had even heard of this book.

I have never read a suicide note that made me laugh out loud before. Come to think of it, I believe this is the only suicide note I've ever read.

I must add that this book got funnier as it went along, with the climax of the book artfully written.

Note that this book has some racier scenes. Not for the little ones, this book! But great for reading while traveling, as I did.

Try reading this in contrast to The Bell Jar (maybe afterward...it will pick you right up from Plath's downward spiral).

Another great book in the funny death genre is Final Arrangements by Miles Keaton Andrew. Completely different, but contemporary and hilarious. Have fun!

Rating:
Summary: It's time this poignant, funny book was resurrected!
Review: Sheila, darling, I miss you. I see you're out of print, and,boy, what a shame. Such a sad thing to happen to such a nice Jewishgirl. You embodied (and a nice body, what do you mean fat) the angst of all women who don't resemble Barbie Doll. I watched your mother plotz, I listened to you kvetch, and I empathized with your ever-postponed plan to commit suicide because no man would propose (even though you demonstrated you could cook and clean and do things in bed that nice Jewish girls weren't supposed to do). Who could resist your opening paragraph? "A few years ago, on the East Side of Manhattan, not far from Bloomingdale's, a man set up a business where he sold diet shakes, delicious chocolate milk shakes having only seventy-seven calories. Well, I tell you, fat young girls came from near and far and lined up around the block at lunchtime. Only seventy-seven calories and such heaven! I was one of the ones that had two for lunch every day..."

Rating:
Summary: One of the Original Chick-Lits
Review: This book is fantastic. So much wit and humor. The plight of Manhattan women seems to be a timeless theme and no one does it better than Parent.

Rating:
Summary: Great book--too bad it's out of print
Review: This book is wonderful, and I hate to hear that it's out of print. There's a little bit of Sheila to be found in all us girls, even though some of us would never admit it. Laughs are everywhere in this book--Parent has a way with words that makes Sheila seem all too real.

Rating:
Summary: Sheila Levine is Dead and Living in New York
Review: This is such a great book! I read it years ago, loved it, then lost my copy of it. I looked for it online, and was thrilled to find it again. This is a book that appeals to women of all ages, my mom loves the movie (you can't find that anywhere, either). I've told my daughter about it, because we both love the Bridget Jones books. (Helen Fielding & Gail Parent are very talented women). I am excited to hear that there will be a sequel, I have something to look forward to!

Rating:
Summary: Sheila Levine is Dead and Living In New York
Review: What a GREAT read for any woman who has or is currently playing the dating game. Sheila is the kind of woman we all would love to know. She's human to the core and oh so vunerable. I certainly believe we all can relate to Sheila and her life as she is trying to be herself and at the same time fit the mold that society has pre-ordained for single women of "that certain age". I first read this book in 1973, and just recently purchased another copy, as mine has been passed around and read by all my friends, and their friends,for the past 29 years. Sheila Levine will soon become your best girlfriend as you struggle with life's little adventures!!! LOVELY READ

Rating:
Summary: Sheila Levine is Dead and Living In New York
Review: What a GREAT read for any woman who has or is currently playing the dating game. Sheila is the kind of woman we all would love to know. She's human to the core and oh so vunerable. I certainly believe we all can relate to Sheila and her life as she is trying to be herself and at the same time fit the mold that society has pre-ordained for single women of "that certain age". I first read this book in 1973, and just recently purchased another copy, as mine has been passed around and read by all my friends, and their friends,for the past 29 years. Sheila Levine will soon become your best girlfriend as you struggle with life's little adventures!!! LOVELY READ