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A review by eileen_critchley
Separation Anxiety by Laura Zigman
funny
lighthearted
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
4.0
Judy is a middle-aged wife and mom who feels like the things that matter in her life are slowly slipping away. Her teenage son, her marriage, her financial stability, her best friend, her parents, her self worth. She feels invisible and lonely. In other words, she's having a midlife crisis. During this time of transition, she begins wearing the family dog, Charlotte, in a baby sling left over from her son's baby days to feel needed, centered, to fill a void. Her life feels like a mess and out of control, but this is a way to self-soothe (how Charlotte feels about it isn't really addressed, but apparently she is, at the very least, compliant).
This book is obviously fairly niche. Will it appeal to 30-year-old men? Nah. I'm not even sure it would work for 30-year-old women. But it struck a chord with me. I don't have a dog, and my marriage is not on the rocks, however I, like most middle-aged moms, have some of these same feelings and anxieties. Letting go of your kids' baby years and childhoods is bittersweet. It's a challenge to be in this space, even if the changes are good and positive.
Somewhere around the last quarter of the book, the pacing slowed down a bit for me. the death of family friend, Glenn, was very sad, as my family went through something similar when I was a child. Losing one of his closest friends hit my father hard and affected him for the rest of his life I think Also, I did not at all like the detail of her husband and houseguest starting to wear dogs too?? I thought this was unnecessary and kind of pushed the book over into almost satire territory. Other than that, though, I enjoyed this book. Sometimes I don't care for the writing style in books like this, but that wasn't the case here.
I've had this book on my Kindle for a while; I'm not sure what prompted me to get it. But I heard it was going to be made into a series so I felt now was a good time to pick it up. I'm not sure who is in the series, but if I were casting it, Kathryn Hahn would make a great Judy.
{owned, Kindle}
This book is obviously fairly niche. Will it appeal to 30-year-old men? Nah. I'm not even sure it would work for 30-year-old women. But it struck a chord with me. I don't have a dog, and my marriage is not on the rocks, however I, like most middle-aged moms, have some of these same feelings and anxieties. Letting go of your kids' baby years and childhoods is bittersweet. It's a challenge to be in this space, even if the changes are good and positive.
Somewhere around the last quarter of the book, the pacing slowed down a bit for me.
I've had this book on my Kindle for a while; I'm not sure what prompted me to get it. But I heard it was going to be made into a series so I felt now was a good time to pick it up. I'm not sure who is in the series, but if I were casting it, Kathryn Hahn would make a great Judy.
{owned, Kindle}