Girls in White Dresses by Jennifer Close

Flap Copy from ARC: "... Close follows Isabella, Mary and Lauren as they struggle through those dizzying years of early adulthood. While everyone around them seems to be planning a wedding or basking in professional success, our protagonists are grappling with blind dates ("What about me says 'Set me up with an obese person?'"), chasing away ghosts from the past ("Bridget Carlson was the kind of friend you couldn't get rid of"), and learning that sometimes beauty is in the eye of the beholder ("Our friend Ellen dates ugly boys"). Through boozy family holidays, on-the-job flirtations, disastrous ski vacations, and hungover bridal showers, "Girls in White Dresses" pulls us deep inside the circle of these friends, perfectly capturing the wild frustrations and soaring joys of modern life."

I don't have much positive to say about this novel ... in fact my experience of the book was so different from that of so many other reviewers that I almost wonder if we didn't read the same book?! These girls, immersed as they are in the murky and bizarre period of life known as one's twenties, should have been funny, interesting and at the very least memorable. As it was, the individual characters were so bland that at times I had a hard time remembering which was which or whose story was whose. They had such low self-esteem and such stereotypical and offensive prejudices against friends and strangers alike that I just felt sorry for them, and for myself for bothering to continue to read. Where are the intelligent stories about strong, funny, realistic women? Why does so much 'chick-lit' have to be stupid? Argh. Don't waste your time on this one - I give it 1 star.

Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones

Flap Copy: "Set in a middle-class neighborhood in Atlanta in the 1980s, the novel revolves around James Witherspoon's two families: the public one and the secret one. When the daughters from each family meet and form a friendship, only one of them knows they are sisters - a relationship destined to explode. As Jones explores the backstories of her rich yet flawed characters, she reveals the joy, and the destruction, they brought to one another's lives. And at the heart of it all are the two girls whose lives are at stake - portrayed with raw authenticity as they seek love, demand attention, and try to imagine themselves as women."

This book was not exactly what I was expecting when I first picked it up. The writing is excellent, though the story is heartbreaking. Jones divided the novel into two halfs: the first is Dana's story, in her own words, of life as a secret daughter in a secret family; the second is Chaurisse's much more mundane tale of life in what she sees as a normal family. Dana's experiences are awful, as are (in my opinion) the adults in her life who enable and create her negative environment. Though Chaurisse is not directly to blame for the way that Dana is treated, her very existence as the public daughter nearly destroys her hidden sister's dreams.

Jones tells an engaging story, one that made me want to keep reading. I was truly disappointed by the Epilogue however, which left me with a bad taste in my mouth and less respect for the characters than I had previously held. I give 'Silver Sparrow' 3.5 stars - I'd recommend it, but be prepared for a little disappointment in your fellow man.

You Against Me by Jenny Downham

Flap Copy from ARC: "If someone hurts your sister and you're any kind of man, you seek revenge, right? If you're brother's accused of a terrible crime but says he didn't do it, you defent him, don't you?

When Mikey's sister claims a boy assaulted her, his world begins to fall apart. When ELlie's brother is charged with the offense, her world begins to unravel. When Mikey and Ellie meet, two worlds collide."

This well-written novel addresses the very real issue of sexual assault in high school. I believe it was an accurate representation of what it would be like for a high school girl who got drunk at a party and was taken advantage of, only to face people who either don't believe her or believe she invited the assault because of the way she chose to act and dress. One surprising element to me was that it seemed all the high school kids were on her side, and against the accused assailant; I would think it would be more split and he would have people in his camp as well.

The writing here is casual and easy to read even if the subject matter is not; the author definitely invited you to be an up-close observer of the action. The novel featured well-flushed-out main characters that were distinct and had a clearly defined role in the plot. The best character by far was Ellie, the sister of the alleged assailant (Tom); her being torn between what she knows she saw and the story her brother and parents have told her to tell is very real and a bit heart-wrenching -- she's only a kid, and has to decide between telling the truth and saving her beloved older brother.

I was disappointed by how the parents of the accused rapist are portrayed - never once do they ever act as though their son did anything wrong, they never ask him if he actually did it, they never seem upset - only angry at their daughter for not being willing to blindly follow the family's story. They were infuriating (presumably by design) and I found it very difficult to relate to them as characters.

A good read about an intense subject - I give it 4 stars.

The Gap Year by Sarah Bird

Description from ARC: This is a novel "about love that can both bind family members together and make them free, set in that precarious moment before your child leaves home for college.

Cam Lightsey, lactation consultant, is a single mom, a suburban misfit who's given up her rebel dreams to set her only child on an upward path.

Aubrey Lightsey, a pretty, shy girl who plays clarinet, is ready to explode from wanting her 'real' life to begin.

When Aubrey meets Tyler Moldenhauer, football idol of students and teachers alike, the fuse is lit. Aubrey metastasizes into Cam's worst teen nightmare: full of secrets and silences, uninterested in college. Worse, on the sly she's in touch with her father, who left when she was two to join NEXT! - a celebrity-ridden cult - where he's a headline grabber. As the novel unfolds - with emotional fireworks, humor, and edge-of-your-seat suspense - the dreams of daughter, mother and father chart an inevitable, but perhaps not fatal, collision ... "

I started this book expecting a standard chick-lit-esque story of a teenage girl yearning to escape the nest and her over-protective mother who can't let go. While that plotline does exist within the book, Sarah Bird has crafted a delightful novel with so many more nuances and layers than that first bare-bones description could convey.

The novel is told from both Cam's (the mom) and Aubrey's (the daughter) perspectives; it also shifts in time over the course of Aubrey's senior year of high school. Aubrey's voice is especially well-done - Bird clearly has a very strong awareness of the realities of late adolescence! I found all of the characters to be interesting and well-written, from Cam, the lactaction-consultant/single mom, to Dori, her ageing hippie friend, to Aubrey and Tyler, two teenagers struggling to become individuals in the shadow of so many people's great expectations.

This book was, at turns, laugh-out-loud funny, tender, and even heartbreaking. I think Bird got to the heart of the tough relationship between mother and daughter, and the painful reality that sometimes what we most desperately want is unachievable, and may not be the right thing for us anyway. She explores the many 'gaps' in our lives, and how normal families try to fill them, with gentle humor and compassion.

This is the first book I've read by Sarah Bird, but it won't be the last. I give it 4 stars.

When God Was a Rabbit by Sarah Winman

Flap Copy from ARC: " ... Sarah Winman has written the story of a memorable young heroine, Elly, and her loss of innocence - a magical portrait of growing up and the pull and power of family ties. From Essex and Cornwall to the streets of New York, from 1968 to the events of 9/11, 'When God Was a Rabbit' follows the evolving bond of love and secrets between Elly and her brother, Joe, and her increasing concern for an unusual best friend, Jenny Penny, who has secrets of her own."

To quote the publisher, "this is a book about a brother and a sister. It's a book about secrets and starting over, friendship and family, triumph and tragedy, and everything in between. More than anything, it's a book about love in all its forms."

Winman's debut novel is divided in two - a humorous look at Elly's childhood relationships and trials, and a much more serious tackling of her adult life and the fractured connections she struggles to maintain. Winman has created quite a cast of characters - from Joe, Elly's moody gay brother who would do anything to protect his little sister, to Nancy, the glamorous Hollywood-actress aunt whose bountiful and loving personality are the glue that keeps the family together, to Arthur and Ginger, elderly best friends who enter the family as guests at their bed-and-breakfast and never leave.

The tone of the book is certainly more serious than not, as Elly, Joe and Elly's best friend Jenny Penny struggle with abuse, sexual uncertainty, family drama and the stress of separation. Winman has defintely captured the pain and awkardness of lost innocence while stepping outside the standard coming-of-age mold.

The characters' voices are clear, and I really enjoyed Winman's descriptive, literal writing style - there were multiple moments where I couldn't help but laugh out loud. At the same time, I found certain elements of the plot to be unrealistic - honestly, how many bizarre turns of fortune can one family experience? I would have rated the novel higher had I found it to be more believable - as it is, I give it 3 stars for being well-written and creative. I definitely look forward to reading more from Sarah Winman in the future.

Heat Wave by Nancy Thayer

Product Description from Amazon.com: "Making the startling discovery that her family finances are in dire straits is only the latest shock endured by Carley Winsted after her husband’s sudden death from a heart attack. Resisting her in-laws’ well-meaning overtures to take in Carley and her two daughters, the young widow instead devises a plan to keep her family in their beloved home, a grand historic house on the island of Nantucket.

The solution is right at Carley’s front door: transforming her expensive, expansive house into a bed-and-breakfast. Not everyone, however, thinks this plan prudent or quite respectable — especially not Carley’s mother-in-law. Further complicating a myriad of challenges, a friend forces Carley to keep a secret that, if revealed, will undo families and friendships.

When her late husband’s former law partner keeps showing up at the most unexpected times, Carley must cope with an array of mixed feelings. And then, during a late-summer heat wave, the lives of Carley and her friends and family will be forever changed in entirely unexpected ways."

First, let me specify that I received an ARC of this book - the above description comes from amazon.com because the description inside the ARC is clearly of a MUCH earlier version of the book, when the story was intended to take a very different turn!

This novel would make a great beach read, despite beginning with a sad premise (that the heroine (Carley) has just been widowed and finds herself in dire financial straits.) I think Thayer does a great job of introducing complex, interesting female characters - I'm just not sure she does a great job with the follow-through. The trajectory of this novel was highly predictable, and I think cheapened my experience as a reader - as though the author didn't give me enough credit to appreciate a more complex storyline, or the real problems and stresses that the characters would most likely face in real life.

Overall the story is light, a little fluffy and insubstantial for my taste. I enjoyed reading the book, and it was certainly a quick read, but I just wanted more from the story and from the characters - I wanted them to wow or surprise me in some way, and it never happened. I think Thayer has a knack for character creation, I hope she takes it one step farther next time. I give this book 2.5 stars.

Promise Me: How a Sister's Love Launched the Global Movement to End Breast Cancer... by Nancy Brinker

Flap Copy from ARC: "Growing up in postwar Peoria, Illinois, Suzy and Nancy Goodman were inseparable, with the elegant, socially poised Suzy serving as younger sister Nancy's best friend and role model in the grand adventure of life. Then, in 1977, at thirty-four, Suzy was diagnosed with breast cancer. Three years later, having endured uninformed doctors, multiple surgeries, and several grueling courses of chemotherapy and radiation, she died. In one of the sisters' last conversations, Suzy begged Nancy to do something to stop the suffering. "Promise me, Nanny," she said. "Promise me you won't let it go on like this."

Her heart broken, Nancy promised. "I swear, Suzy. Even if it takes the rest of my life."
At that moment, Susan G. Komen for the Cure was born.
Armed with only $200 and a shoebox filled with names, Nancy embarked on her thirty-year quest to change the way the world thought about, spoke about, and treated breast cancer - a quest that took on added urgency when she herself was diagnosed with the disease. Through it all, she was aided by her husband, Norman Brinker, whose dynamic approach to business became Nancy's model for running her foundation ...

Nancy was luckier than Suzy: she survived breast cancer and went on to turn SGK into the most influential health charity in the world. To date, SGK has contributed some $1.5 billion for cutting=edge research and community programs. And thanks to a sister's love, a diagnosis of breast cancer is no longer a death sentence."

"Promise Me" is at heart the story of a family in motion - from Nancy and Suzy's early years together, to their young adulthood and the individual growth they shared, to Suzy's unexpected and tragic illness and death, to the promise Nancy made and was unable to forget, to Nancy's second marriage and the strength and resources that relationship afforded.

From the start, Nancy and Suzy are two very different sisters being raised in a household with one common theme - that support of and service to others is the only true path to happiness and fulfillment. The girls are brought up smothered with love and family, but with a sense of duty to the less fortunate and the less appreciated. That attitude, instilled in them both by their incredible mother, shapes both women as they mature and become wives, mothers and active members of their communities. When Suzy is diagnosed with breast cancer, and her sad prognosis becomes clear to the family, Suzy extracts a promise from her baby sister - that Nancy will make it better for other women, that she will do everything in her power to change the experience of breast cancer for women everywhere - from the social silence to the drab hospital waiting room, Nancy must bring women's needs to the forefront of scientific research. The promise is made, though Nancy at first has no idea how to proceed.

Suzy's death is the catalyst for Nancy's action, and the first breath of life for Susan G. Komen for the Cure. The remainder of the book summarizes the various actions and goals of the organization, with personal vignettes peppered throughout. Nancy's relationship with her second husband, Norman Brinker, is explored in detail as he was a motivating and educating force in her efforts at building and then maintaining a successful non-profit organization.

This book is full of life, full of a sense of purpose but without a holier-than-thou attitude regarding that greater purpose. I think Brinker's strengh and personality are evident on every page, as are her intelligence and wide breadth of knowledge on all subjects relating to breast cancer. I found her 'memoir' to be honest, uplifting and also strongly grounded in reality - her voice is strong, her message clear, yet her vulnerability as a sister and a woman are embraced. I highly recommend this book, I want to share it with my sister right away.