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At that point, Little Earthquakes was my first, um, attempt at getting out of the egg.
You know, that little chicken that kinda kicks out the egg [imitates chicken] and says, 'Okay, um, what have I really not been saying all these years? But what am I saying?
I'm just saying absolutely Nothing. So I started to think about The truth is actually the most shocking thing you can do because nobody really hears it much. So when you start saying things truthfully, and I mean truthfully , there's no greater So I had to find out, I had taken on all of these belief systems. I mean, to finally say, 'No, wait a minute, I'm just, who's this redhead?
But, you know, what are my beliefs? Not what you want me to believe. Characters that, despite everything, looked like real people. The story is simple -- it's about four women and their maternity problems, their lives, their husbands, parents, mother-in-laws But it's told with such heart, captivating you from the first page to the last. There are characters you'll love and hate, with whom you'll identify with, with whom you'll cry and laugh. I ended up shedding some tears at the end of the book, just because I wasn't indiferent to these characters that seemed so real.
I will be looking for more books by Jennifer Weiner in the future, without a doubt. May 26, Preeti rated it really liked it. The mice who stole the other half have scattered star-crums in the sky. Bye and bye, bye and bye, my darling baby, don't you cry. The moon is still above the hill. The soft clouds gather in the sky" Jan 27, Amy rated it liked it Shelves: I've liked Weiner's other two novels, if only because she chooses to have the main character not be stunningly beautiful, tiny proportions etc.
I still think my favorite of Weiner's books is Good In Bed , but there was a lot that I liked about this book, too. Once again, the author has creater characters that oculd indeed be real.
I'm so sick of chick lit books where the characters are perfect looking and fall for hunks of masculinity. Of sexual banter and tension that is a littl I've liked Weiner's other two novels, if only because she chooses to have the main character not be stunningly beautiful, tiny proportions etc. Of sexual banter and tension that is a little to perfect Following these ladies through the course of their friendship was interesting-- watching their own personal growth, the growth of their friendships, and the growth of their relationships with their husband made an interesting read.
I of course loved the bits of cookery thrown in to the novel via Becky's talents--I want the recipe for that fig-jam pizza. I nodded my head in sympathy when one mom Becky again, I think, had T Berry Brazelton in one hand and the phone in the other to have her husband listen to their wailing child so he can help identify the "type" of cry baby is making--"Is it a shrill, rising cry or a low, rhythmic cry? I was also delighted by the description of the tres leches cake served at the restaurant Mas.
Aug 23, Linda rated it it was amazing. Powerful to me during this period of my life. This author's way of intertwining lives and making you feel like you have a front row seat is just amazing. It was hard to be brought back to those early days with a baby and how it did shake up every essence of your life and marriage, but wonderful to have perspective. I enjoyed all of it and her amazing writing.
I also liked how the ending felt real. Aug 03, Heather rated it did not like it. I don't read a lot of chick lit, but I have enjoyed Jennifer Weiner books in the past, and I was looking for a quick read. This book fulfilled that purpose, fortunately, or I may not have finished it.
This story is about three "very different women" who meet by chance at a prenatal yoga class and bond over the hardships of new motherhood. The first problem with the book: These women are not all that different. They are all well-to-do women with loving, supportive husbands yes, even the one who c I don't read a lot of chick lit, but I have enjoyed Jennifer Weiner books in the past, and I was looking for a quick read.
They are all well-to-do women with loving, supportive husbands yes, even the one who cheats is loving and supportive - after all, if we are to believe his knocked-up mistress, he "didn't mean to" with mommy issues of which they are unbelievably self-aware but totally unable to resolve. These women do not face real hardships. Kelly, whose husband loses his job, is somehow able to keep up with the rent on her apartment, without dipping into savings, on only her own part-time salary, even though we're told early on that the rent was about half of her husband's and her full-time income. I quickly grew tired of reading about their lack of sleep, excess laundry, crying babies, etc.
I'd be willing to forgive the shallow nature of these women's problems if any of them were likable or worth sympathy. Ayinde goes from being a confident career woman to someone so needy and naive she follows every word of a misogynist childcare advice book. Becky, the fat chef there always has to be a fat woman in a Jennifer Weiner book , is the most normal, but as co-owner of a successful restaurant and wife of a surgeon, she is so destitute she has to buy a used stroller and is too stupid to know if it meets child safety regulations. Lia's story is the only one that evoked any emotional response.
She lost her baby when he was only 10 weeks old, and she ran back to her childhood home to escape the grief and guilt.
Little Earthquakes is the debut solo album of singer-songwriter Tori Amos, featuring the singles "Silent All These Years", "China", "Winter" and "Crucify". Little Earthquakes Lyrics: Yellow bird flying / Gets shot in the wing / Good year for hunters / And Christmas parties / And I hate, and I hate / And I hate, and I hate.
There she meets the three women mentioned above, who somehow help her move on. What this book really need was a scene where Lia screams at the other three to get over their ridiculous problems and realize how lucky they are to still have their children. LIa is definitely the central character of the book - it begins and ends with her, and her chapters are in first-person narrative rather than the third-person narrative of the other women's chapters. I can't help buy wonder, then, why Weiner didn't make her someone more relatable than a Hollywood semi-star with a famous husband. Is the lesson that even celebrities encounter tragedy?
Apparently Weiner wrote this book based on her own experiences as a first-time mother, and honestly I don't see its appeal outside of people who experienced the same thing in the same way - middle-class to upper-middle class mothers in happy if not perfect marriages. It offers no insight to anyone who experienced motherhood outside of those parameters. Aug 14, Jennifer rated it it was ok Shelves: I'm surrounded by pregnant women, new mothers, and aspiring moms. Everywhere I turn, there's a picture of a belly or a copy of an ultrasound on facebook.
At work, I hear the stories of morning sickness and misery from two pregnant co-workers. I spend much of my time planning programs and creating flannelboard figures for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers. I'm nowhere near the point of having a child of my own, but I'm barraged by the thought of them.
I picked up this book, not knowing what it w I'm surrounded by pregnant women, new mothers, and aspiring moms. I picked up this book, not knowing what it was about. I had previously read Good in Bed and In Her Shoes , but I couldn't really remember much beyond the bare outlines of the stories. This story centers around a chance encounter at a pre-natal yoga class. Every woman has a chapter within the month.
The time span of this book is a bit longer than I expected. The premise was interesting, but by the end, I was sick of all of the characters. I felt like it needed to end earlier. The stories were not all equally interesting, and I really despised a couple of the characters i.
Kelly, and on occasion, Ayinde. Lia, the former Hollywood starlet, was completely out of left field, and I wasn't convinced that Becky could forgive her quite that easily for randomly leaving baby objects in a perfect stranger's baby bag. I enjoyed the Philadelphia setting. I liked reading about Rittenhouse Square and Walnut Street. At the end of it all, I was just glad to finish. This book was exhausting, which I think was a primary goal of Weiner.
If it makes you cringe a bit, then it's probably not for you. As always, Jennifer Weiner writes to present such vivid and realistic characters and situations that we can't help but place ourselves in their shoes. She lost her scholarship at the age of 11 -- quite possibly due to her interest in popular music -- but continued writing songs nevertheless, eventually moving to Los Angeles in her late teens to become a pop singer. US Billboard [30]. Jan 11, Amy rated it liked it Shelves: She met a guy, they had a baby, got married and the baby died.
She wants everyone to know how tough it is to have a baby. She repeats this over, and over, and over I gladly take my leave from the world of breast-feeding and pacifiers - I'll continue to be a doting visitor for now. View all 4 comments.
Apr 30, Jocelynne Broderick rated it really liked it. I didn't give it 5 stars because the main character is typical of her other books I did like the detail she went into in the supporting cast though. She easily could have left them all sort of one-dimensional, but she gave them all real situations, real lives, real problems. And I like that.
I like that her main characters are sort of quick to judge others other women mostly but end up realizing that even though she had thes I didn't give it 5 stars because the main character is typical of her other books I like that her main characters are sort of quick to judge others other women mostly but end up realizing that even though she had these 'guesses' at what they may be like judging the book by the cover I guess , she finds that they aren't as 'got-it-together' or snobbish as she originally thought.
So I will keep reading her books. They give me hope. That the overweight, misfit will have a group of close friends. Sep 07, Glorialaihuang rated it it was ok. So I deviated from my usual elitist book-selection method whereby I try to only read books with awards or accolades, and I read this book.
I had never heard anything about it, so was a little amused and surprised to find out it was basically full of pregnant characters. I was also surprised to discover that the author also wrote "In Her Shoes," which I frankly didn't even realize had been So I deviated from my usual elitist book-selection method whereby I try to only read books with awards or accolades, and I read this book. I was also surprised to discover that the author also wrote "In Her Shoes," which I frankly didn't even realize had been a book before it was a trashy movie starring the constantly-annoying Cameron Diaz.
Anyway, that kind of set the tone for the book. In the end, it was a fairly enjoyable read, about as enjoyable as "In Her Shoes" was as a movie - it's definitely mind-candy, fluff that can be easily-digested in a day or two.
Like any good piece of candy, the story is quite compelling at times, and even moving in parts, but I couldn't shake the feeling that I was reading a high school diary despite the fact that the subject matter is motherhood. I think it's largely because of Weiner's very liberal sprinkling of punctuation to indicate emphasis "Oh my GOD!! There's definitely some tragedy and drama sprinkled in there though - I thought that one of the most interesting aspects of the book was the title. One of the characters goes through a nearly unspeakable tragedy from a mother or a mother-to-be's point of view , and she talks about how she once saw an interview of an earthquake victim.
The interviewer asked the victim, who had lost her family, "How long did the earthquake go on for? Her cult grew and grew. Crucify, Precious Things, Leather and Mother all touch on various aspects of her preoccupations: It was Me and a Gun which raised the most eyebrows, her voice alone narrating her own trauma as a rape victim.
It drew praise and opprobrium in equal measure, yet confirmed that this was a genuine artist with loftier aims than transient popularity. Yet Amos had arrived on her own commendably idiosyncratic terms. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Licence. If you choose to use this review on your site please link back to this page.