In Her Shoes : A Novel
by Jennifer Weiner

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Book Summary Information

• ISBN13: 9780743418201
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!

Book Reviews of In Her Shoes : A Novel

Book Review: Wow! What a great storyteller!
Summary: 5 Stars

Jennifer Weiner is the type of writer I dream of and wish for with just about every purchase - someone who knows that a book should firstly, entertain, provide great characters and make you feel all kinds of emotions. I laughed, I cried, I sympathised, I was horrified, amazed, the list goes on.

I will concede that you don't immediately fall in love with either sister when you meet them. Both Rose and Maggie require a lot of understanding and aren't easy to empathise with. Rose is competent at work, large but not fat, clueless about clothes and men and being popular, trapped in the box of always having to be the strong one who does the right thing. This kind of trap is not as obvious as most, it's subtle but still there.

Rose is not as likeable as the main character in Weiner's first novel, "Good in Bed," a really great and hilarious read with a good heart. Perhaps that's why so many people rated this novel down. Weiner isn't trying to make us laugh with each and every line - the narration is more to the point, much less acerbic and cynical than "Good in Bed" since it's not done in the first person but rather third person omniscient. We get to feel what Maggie, Rose and the Grandmother are experiencing in turn, so it's really a book about 3 women, 3 separate worlds, not just 2 sisters. This makes it much more complex than "Good in Bed" and I applaud the author for taking this on. I think she did really well.

Maggie, the younger daughter, is the problem child - basking in the glow of popularity at first, but then her learning disabilities catch up with her, and she's doomed to trying to live off her looks from then on. Since I have friends who are learning disabled - most of the housecleaners - I could really sympathise. Living off one's looks is a very common theme here in Southern California and the women who do it have major issues with self-esteem because of it. Weiner understands this very well.

Maggie and Rose are complex characters, survivors of their mother's death at an early age, a stepmother with her own problems and her own favored child, a father who's in denial and distant. Then we meet their estranged Grandmother, who let their father deny her contact with her grandchildren after her daughter's death, and is dealing with that guilt and also new love in a retirement community in Florida.

The road the characters travel to a happy ending is not easy, but they overcome every obstacle and make peace with their legacies. Both sisters travel a huge character arc and make a complete turn-around in their lives.

I loved the book and wholeheartedly endorse it, but just to be safe recommend that you buy it used. If you're not used to complex characters that are way different than the usual chick-lit, take-it-to-the-beach-romance novel, this book will challenge you to like it. It's somewhere in between the typical summer read and "Ya-Ya Sisterhood." I think of Weiner as the Jane Austen of the new milleneum - she writes about love and money. What else is there?

Summary of In Her Shoes : A Novel

Meet Rose's sister, Maggie. Twenty-eight years old and drop-dead gorgeous. Although her big-screen stardom hasn't progressed past her left hip's appearance in a Will Smith video, Maggie dreams of fame and fortune -- and of getting her big sister on a skin-care regimen.

These two women, who claim to have nothing in common but a childhood tragedy, DNA, and the same size feet, are about to learn that they're more alike than they'd ever imagined. Along the way, they'll encounter a diverse cast of characters -- from a stepmother who's into recreational Botox to a disdainful pug with no name. They'll borrow shoes and clothes and boyfriends, and eventually make peace with their most intimate enemies -- each other.

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