textpublishing's review against another edition
5.0
Those who love Toni Jordan for her razor-sharp humour and artful wit will not be disappointed by her latest offering
Our Tiny, Useless Hearts charts the highs and lows of relationships with keen insight and rapturous charm. Dysfunctional families and romantic escapades lay the foundations for this hilariously fun, full-of-heart novel.
‘Harnessing the exquisite timing of the great comedies to the narrative power and emotional intelligence for which she is famous, Toni Jordan brings all her wit, wisdom and flair to this brilliant, hilarious novel.’
Booklover Blog
‘Toni Jordan is in that small group of novelists who can write smart, character- and situation-driven humour, which is to say laugh-out-loud comedy: take Our Tiny, Useless Hearts to the beach.’
Graeme Simsion, Best Books of 2016, Guardian
‘Farce entertains through exaggerated and improbable situations and Jordan has nailed that sentiment in this novel.’
Herald Sun
‘That Toni Jordan’s new novel manages to be a full-length fiction that simultaneously operates as a hugely enjoyable farce and an emotionally rich domestic drama is a testament to her skills as a writer and the charm of her voice.’
Australian
‘An enjoyable romp full of bed-swapping antics, lies and subterfuge…Full of wit and sparkle…In between the hilarious coupling shenanigans the novel is a clever suburban satire and a sly nod to Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina.’
Canberra Times
‘Laugh-out-loud funny, yet with real emotion at its core, this is a sexy-smart rom-com about love and marriage…I loved it.’
Australian Women’s Weekly
A new Toni Jordan is always a special pleasure and her latest is a wonderful, witty treat of a novel: cutting and clever, and yet so very romantic, as though P. G. Wodehouse had satirised life in the suburbs.’
Liane Moriarty
‘A concoction of robust jokes, observations both profound and pat and a very nice visual humour, Our Tiny, Useless Hearts rips along.’
Age/Sydney Morning Herald
‘A classic bedroom farce with snappy dialogue and egocentric yet endearing characters…’
Australian Book Review
‘Crafty, clever and comical…Take a little of Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors, mix well with Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, then set characters in one home, say in Carnegie, and you may begin to understand the wit in this delicious classic farce.’
Readings
‘Crisp and clever…Jordan doesn’t cheat readers on the romance, either – conjuring a flawless but vividly rendered romantic hero and a love story that feels fresh and sexy.’
Saturday Paper
‘I hope romance readers of Australia are like me and have found their way to their hot, biting observations of the ups and downs of love.’
Alpha Reader
Watch Toni Jordan chat about Our Tiny, Useless Hearts here and read an extract from the book on the Text blog.
Our Tiny, Useless Hearts charts the highs and lows of relationships with keen insight and rapturous charm. Dysfunctional families and romantic escapades lay the foundations for this hilariously fun, full-of-heart novel.
‘Harnessing the exquisite timing of the great comedies to the narrative power and emotional intelligence for which she is famous, Toni Jordan brings all her wit, wisdom and flair to this brilliant, hilarious novel.’
Booklover Blog
‘Toni Jordan is in that small group of novelists who can write smart, character- and situation-driven humour, which is to say laugh-out-loud comedy: take Our Tiny, Useless Hearts to the beach.’
Graeme Simsion, Best Books of 2016, Guardian
‘Farce entertains through exaggerated and improbable situations and Jordan has nailed that sentiment in this novel.’
Herald Sun
‘That Toni Jordan’s new novel manages to be a full-length fiction that simultaneously operates as a hugely enjoyable farce and an emotionally rich domestic drama is a testament to her skills as a writer and the charm of her voice.’
Australian
‘An enjoyable romp full of bed-swapping antics, lies and subterfuge…Full of wit and sparkle…In between the hilarious coupling shenanigans the novel is a clever suburban satire and a sly nod to Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina.’
Canberra Times
‘Laugh-out-loud funny, yet with real emotion at its core, this is a sexy-smart rom-com about love and marriage…I loved it.’
Australian Women’s Weekly
A new Toni Jordan is always a special pleasure and her latest is a wonderful, witty treat of a novel: cutting and clever, and yet so very romantic, as though P. G. Wodehouse had satirised life in the suburbs.’
Liane Moriarty
‘A concoction of robust jokes, observations both profound and pat and a very nice visual humour, Our Tiny, Useless Hearts rips along.’
Age/Sydney Morning Herald
‘A classic bedroom farce with snappy dialogue and egocentric yet endearing characters…’
Australian Book Review
‘Crafty, clever and comical…Take a little of Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors, mix well with Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, then set characters in one home, say in Carnegie, and you may begin to understand the wit in this delicious classic farce.’
Readings
‘Crisp and clever…Jordan doesn’t cheat readers on the romance, either – conjuring a flawless but vividly rendered romantic hero and a love story that feels fresh and sexy.’
Saturday Paper
‘I hope romance readers of Australia are like me and have found their way to their hot, biting observations of the ups and downs of love.’
Alpha Reader
Watch Toni Jordan chat about Our Tiny, Useless Hearts here and read an extract from the book on the Text blog.
higginla's review against another edition
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
nataliemeree's review against another edition
1.0
Cliche plot. Cliche ending. Frustrating multiple dialogues that were more annoying than funny
bdiggity's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.0
carlytenille's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Pregnancy, and Infidelity
oanh_1's review against another edition
2.0
I barrelled through this, and I enjoyed reading it the way you would enjoy watching a trashy TV show. Couldn't stop; wanted to know what happened next, but kept rolling my eyes.
tasmanian_bibliophile's review against another edition
3.0
‘I can’t speak. I am literally speechless.’
So, let’s identify the main players. There’s Caroline, who is married to Henry. Henry is having an affair with Martha, the teacher of Martha and Caroline’s daughter Mercedes. And Henry, after he tells Caroline this, heads off to Noosa with Martha. Caroline heads after them, after first shredding Henry’s clothes.
Then there’s Caroline and Henry’s neighbours: Lesley and Craig. Caroline is having an affair with Craig.
Caroline’s sister Janice steps in to look after Mercedes and her sister Paris, Craig comes calling on Caroline and Janice’s ex-husband Alec comes to visit Mercedes … and things get really hectic from there.
I had so much fun with this book I read it twice. Seriously. I missed some good one-liners first time around, and Ms Jordan’s timing is just superb. The measure of great farce, surely? Yes, the story is way over the top and most of the characters are so shallow they’d drown in a rain drop.
And then there’s Craig:
‘When you step inside an airport, you cease to have any rights whatsoever. Legally, it’s a return to the feudal system. It’s like the Manga Carta never happened.’
And, just in case you’ve never heard of the Manga Carta, Janice helps out with:
‘The Manga Carta is, presumably, a document drafted in 1215 by the Archbishop of Canterbury in the form of a Japanese comic book.’
In the right mood, I enjoy books like this because they make me laugh. In the wrong mood, they could become missiles. It’s all in the timing.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
So, let’s identify the main players. There’s Caroline, who is married to Henry. Henry is having an affair with Martha, the teacher of Martha and Caroline’s daughter Mercedes. And Henry, after he tells Caroline this, heads off to Noosa with Martha. Caroline heads after them, after first shredding Henry’s clothes.
Then there’s Caroline and Henry’s neighbours: Lesley and Craig. Caroline is having an affair with Craig.
Caroline’s sister Janice steps in to look after Mercedes and her sister Paris, Craig comes calling on Caroline and Janice’s ex-husband Alec comes to visit Mercedes … and things get really hectic from there.
I had so much fun with this book I read it twice. Seriously. I missed some good one-liners first time around, and Ms Jordan’s timing is just superb. The measure of great farce, surely? Yes, the story is way over the top and most of the characters are so shallow they’d drown in a rain drop.
And then there’s Craig:
‘When you step inside an airport, you cease to have any rights whatsoever. Legally, it’s a return to the feudal system. It’s like the Manga Carta never happened.’
And, just in case you’ve never heard of the Manga Carta, Janice helps out with:
‘The Manga Carta is, presumably, a document drafted in 1215 by the Archbishop of Canterbury in the form of a Japanese comic book.’
In the right mood, I enjoy books like this because they make me laugh. In the wrong mood, they could become missiles. It’s all in the timing.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
sharondblk's review against another edition
4.0
Working it's way between farce, satire and genuine emotion this book was a lot sillier than I expected. It is always a joy to read something set in the suburbs of my town, and, although there were points at which it dropped over the edge into silliness, this book redeemed itself by being sweet, positive, and ultimately uplifting. it was, at times, read out loud to my husband funny, and I read it in 2 days, because I couldn't put it down.
thisgirl_writes's review against another edition
5.0
Could not put this down. Read it in one day and laughed the whole way through.
camoo3032's review against another edition
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
Moderate: Infertility
Minor: Sexual content