melissakuzma's review against another edition
4.0
This book has everything I like: New England - check! Beach house - check! Dysfunctional family - check! I really liked it and thought it was better than the author's previous novel, Commencement. Great beach read!
meglobello's review against another edition
3.0
I loved the characters in this book, especially Maggie! This is a great summer read!
aftoncyrus's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
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
3.75
vanessagrausam's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
relaxing
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism
Moderate: Alcohol, Cancer, and Death of parent
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
minniepauline's review against another edition
3.0
I was sitting here trying to remember if I've read this book or not, as I was updating my list. I guess that says it all.
nursenell's review against another edition
2.0
I had read Saints for All Occasions by the same author and really enjoyed it so I looked forward to reading this. Was I ever disappointed. The story is about a matriarch, her two daughters, one daughter-in-law, and one granddaughter who come together for a few weeks in Maine where the family has long had a summer home. They are Irish Catholics from Boston, and the book is full of stereotypes: the ability to hold grudges; guilt, lots of guilt; alcoholics; recovered alcoholics; the requisite lesbian daughter; the pregnant and unmarried granddaughter. None of the women were particularly likeable or complex. This could have been such a good book. And the ending, talk about abrupt! That was a disappointment.
k8iedid's review against another edition
4.0
It's like J. Courtney Sullivan snuck into my Irish Catholic family. Ok, so the characters weren't altogether likable, but I was wrapped in by their interaction and because the book well-communicated the secrets families share, and the layers that contribute to family complexity. Plus, a dollhouse.
melissapalmer404's review against another edition
4.0
#54 Book Read in 2012
Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan
A beach cottage in Maine is the setting for a family full of issues. Alice is the matriarch who lives at the beach cottage. Every summer her children and grandchildren come out for a month (rotating the time through each child and family) to spend time at the beach house. Alice is a hard woman for them to feel connected to and she is not really enamored with how her children and grandchildren turned out. The fur really begins to fly when the children find out that Alice has agreed to donate the cottage and land to her church after her death. Alice's children are devastated; they assumed they would inherit the place and that their children could continue to spend time there in the summer.
But this book is more about a beach house. This book details the complicated relationships among family members. Alice's daughter Kathleen is a recovering alcoholic. She has not come to the beach house for years. She does this summer after learning that her own daughter, Maggie, is pregnant and no longer with the father of the baby. Ann Marie, Alice's daughter-in-law, is not happy in her marriage. She feels taken for granted by her husband and by Alice, as Ann Marie is the one who does the bulk of the domestic matters.
The characters in this book are complicated and sometimes hard to like but they are interesting to read about and to follow. The description of the setting is well written. I enjoyed this book.
http://melissasbookpicks.blogspot.com
Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan
A beach cottage in Maine is the setting for a family full of issues. Alice is the matriarch who lives at the beach cottage. Every summer her children and grandchildren come out for a month (rotating the time through each child and family) to spend time at the beach house. Alice is a hard woman for them to feel connected to and she is not really enamored with how her children and grandchildren turned out. The fur really begins to fly when the children find out that Alice has agreed to donate the cottage and land to her church after her death. Alice's children are devastated; they assumed they would inherit the place and that their children could continue to spend time there in the summer.
But this book is more about a beach house. This book details the complicated relationships among family members. Alice's daughter Kathleen is a recovering alcoholic. She has not come to the beach house for years. She does this summer after learning that her own daughter, Maggie, is pregnant and no longer with the father of the baby. Ann Marie, Alice's daughter-in-law, is not happy in her marriage. She feels taken for granted by her husband and by Alice, as Ann Marie is the one who does the bulk of the domestic matters.
The characters in this book are complicated and sometimes hard to like but they are interesting to read about and to follow. The description of the setting is well written. I enjoyed this book.
http://melissasbookpicks.blogspot.com