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Title: Say When by Elizabeth Berg, David Colacci ISBN: 1-59086-751-3 Publisher: Brilliance Audio Pub. Date: June, 2003 Format: Audio Cassette Volumes: 5 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.88 (33 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: There is beauty in simplicity...
Comment: That's what Elizabeth Berg does best. She takes the mundane things in life, the normalcy, and she changes it around, to help us remember what we saw once, as well.
In this new book, Say When, it opens with a wife and husband, Griffin and Ellen, where the husband has found out that his wife is in love with someone else, and she wants to leave him. To me, this is news enough, because I always feel as though Im reading about the husband doing this to the wife. Needless to say, Griffin is not happy with the separation. He seems to be a character who is happier when married.
The twist on it is, is that no one wants to leave the house. The one thing that they seem to have in common, is the great love they have for their eight year old daughter, Zoe. From then on, they try to reside in the same household peacefully, but, instead, they have much anger and resentment toward one another. I noticed that Griffin, like many others in relationships, thought that everyone was happy and satisfied. Instead, he never realized how unhappily married she had become. She used a great metaphor, "I think our marriage was like a house we stopped using. I mean, you know, you move in, and there are all these terrific rooms, .... and you end up being in the same two rooms all the time... We got swallowed up by a domestic routine that didn't leave room for us as the individuals we are."
I think the good thing about Griffin, was that he found satisfaction within himself, so that, if she ever did come back, he would know that he was being with her for the right reasons, not because he didn't want to be alone.
There is a lot of deconstruction of people and what keeps them togther and pulls them apart. There are a lot of memories and nostalgia so you get to know who you are reading about, wonderful descriptions of people so you feel you can see them, and it was a very quick read. Highly recommended.
Rating: 5
Summary: Marital struggles seen through the husband's eyes
Comment: Elizabeth Berg is a master at telling stories of family drama, and Say When is one of her best books. At the start of the novel, Griffin suspects that something is going on with his wife, Ellen, a sometimes odd woman with a tendency towards sadness. However, he is stunned when she informs him that she his having an affair and wants a divorce. When Griffin refuses to leave the house, they suddenly find themselves negotiating the care of their 8-year old daughter, Zoe, while living as merely roommates.
The fact that the story is told from the husband's point of view is refreshing, as is the fact that there are no bad guys here--both Griffin and Ellen are nice people who have made some mistakes. Furthermore, both are good parents to Zoe, and their interactions with their child are completely realistic as well as touching. In the midst of his domestic turmoil, Griffin gets a job as a mall Santa during the Christmas season, and his conversations with his many young visitors also ring true. The plot is simple yet never predictable, easily engaging the reader in a comfortable way. Overall, this is a delightful little book about marriage, family life, and second chances.
Rating: 4
Summary: Just wish that I had liked Ellen....
Comment: I enjoyed this book and was relieved at the outcome, but I found that I could not 'like' Ellen. I thought that she was a rather selfish character and though Frank was not always a good guy, my empathy was more often than not with him. I wonder what would have happened if Frank had done as asked initially and left? Most of my sympathy went to Zoe and Donna....you'll know who I mean when you read it! All in all a very good book.
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Title: True to Form : A Novel by Elizabeth Berg ISBN: 0743411358 Publisher: Washington Square Press Pub. Date: 13 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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Title: Eat Cake : A Novel by Jeanne Ray ISBN: 060961004X Publisher: Shaye Areheart Books Pub. Date: 27 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Ordinary Life : Stories by Elizabeth Berg ISBN: 0812968131 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 13 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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Title: The Pursuit of Alice Thrift by ELINOR LIPMAN ISBN: 0679463135 Publisher: Random House Pub. Date: 17 June, 2003 List Price(USD): $23.95 |
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Title: The Amateur Marriage: A Novel by Anne Tyler ISBN: 1400042070 Publisher: Knopf Pub. Date: 06 January, 2004 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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