Rating: 
Summary: One of the best books of all time!
Review: I picked up this book because one of my girlfriends referred "She's Come Undone" to me and said it was absolutely fabolous. Although I have not had an opportunity to read that one yet, I picked up the mass market paperback version of this book because it was brand new and the 2 babies on the front cover intrigued me (also I remembered the referred author's name). I absolutely looooooooove this book. The characters are so real, and Lamb does a fantastic job of identifying the thought process of the everyday man/woman in dealing with mentally ill family members or family members in general (with and without their flaws). I am now on my second read of this book. I too cried at the end; which has NEVER happened to me before. I have also never wanted to read a book for the second time. You will not regret picking up this book!
Rating:
Summary: patience is a virtue
Review: This review is really for those of you that are feeling the dread of another 400 pages of drawn out storytelling. Lamb makes up for it in the end.I absolutely LOVED "She's Come Undone" and figured this would be as good. I was right! BUT the 1st 75% of the book really dragged for me and I was ready to put it down - for the 2nd time.....but I persisted and WOW- I was completely in awe by the end of the book, I wanted more! It's like one of those movies (or books) you can't stop thinking about and wanting to rewatch (or reread). I'm REALLY glad I was determined to finish it this time - persistance pays off!
Rating:
Summary: An utterly spellbinding and fabulous book!
Review: I have never taken the time to review a book, or anything else for that matter, because I never really felt that passionate about a product before. This is a captivating, fabulously written story that I can barely put down. A weighty novel, at nearly 900 pages, one might think that it would move slowly. This is not the case at all! The story was absolutely wonderful and I am excited to delve into the author's other works. It has been at least a couple of years since I picked up a novel, and faced with a 5 hour plane ride, I selected this one from an airport bookstore! Lucky for me! It has renewed my interest in reading literature.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Captivating
Review: I left this book on my shelf a long time before deciding to tackle it. Its 900 pages and its less-than inspiring subject matter initially intimidated me. But when the mood struck I started the first page. Two days later I finished it and only felt bad that I waited so long to read it. I suppose that's what a talented writer can do - make 900 pages evaporate in no time. There are so many terrific things that I would like to say about this book that my words would become a mini-novel unto itself. The one comment I would make is the thought that stays with me when I read the last full paragraph - how that paragraph so beautifully captured the entire novel. Suffice to say that a book with a talented author, a great storyline, engrossing characters and a penetrating theme contains the right ingredients for a captivating read.
Rating:
Summary: My favorite book of all time
Review: Wally Lamb uses precise narration, fantastic dialogue, colorful and loveable characters along with an intriguing story to create a delectable and fascinating (as well as addicting) read. I finished this book in less than 3 days, even though it was 900 pages or so. I simply could not put it down at all. My family has a history of mental illnesses, and this book is very accurate in depicting their developments and their effects on the ill person and the peers around him. It's simply an incredibly written book. Without a doubt, one of the most incredible achievements in literary history.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't Put It Down
Review: Wally Lamb writes characters so well that you feel they are family members or intimate aquaintances. Though this book is 900 pages, I never lost interest and never got bored. My only complaints are that the end was tied up a little too quickly and neatly and that it did, in fact, end. I found myself feeling lonely once the story was over. It gives the reader alot to think about and describes Sicilian ancestory with distubing accuracy. I loved this book. It is an effective and addicting read.
Rating:
Summary: Wally Lamb Strikes his Readers Again!
Review: I started reading this novel in the summer and put it down when I went back to school for the fall semester. Now that I am on Christmas vacation, I picked it back up again so I can finish the last 300 pages. Strange thing is, I did not forget ONE THING over a period of 4 months of not reading this book. Lamb has a way of capturing his readers' mind. Even while I was reading textbooks for school, I could remember details of his novel. Definitley a good read! You will not be dissapointed.
Rating:
Summary: great book
Review: It kept getting better and better. The more I read the more I couldn't put it down. I didn't know if I would like it from the description on the cover, but I'm glad I tried it. I'm curious now about his other works.
Rating: 
Summary: Genuinely Artificial
Review: This material, which I could hardly call a novel, looks like someone tried a little industrial production technique - divide material, assign it to different groups of students and the add a bit of text to make it look like a minimal connection. One can easily separate 3 stories which hardly touch each other at all, and are not even mixed but just shufled a bit in a completely mechanical manner - small pack of book flags just to mark chapters will allows you to read them without having any problems following the "action" since they simply don't interfere. Rather hilarious side effect of this artificial composition that in many places author would go summarizing parts of "other books" and occasionally you would get the summary before the long and slow part actually comes. It looks like he was either in a dilemma whether the shuffling of disconnected parts would "pass" at all or he actually went to write one regular novel and then just wanted to stuff in the "extras" which were not complete enough to survive on their own. The end result it a rather sorry compound in which one book looks like an all too common Hollywood 3 act plot, the other might have had a potential as a book of the old Italian crossing the globe if given the time to be developed to stand on it's own feet, and the third being hardly anything more then a little politicking and leafing through some psychology books to write rather incoherent illustrations. Bibliography is not bad though. Just like the usual academic papers, the book actually has the bibliography section which completes the picture of the whole book as a kind of raw, mechanical design and nothing one could actually call a novel, let alone a work of art. To some extent, the style and composition do resemble books printed at fast speed for each new version of various software packages and produced as a literal paste-up of chapters written by different authors. One can see a technique, but that is where everything begins and ends in this book.
Rating:
Summary: Great value for an amazing reading...
Review: It has been about a year since I finished reading She's Come Undone. I had promised myself to read another Wally Lamb book but never got around to it until now. I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy it, as I have been reading too many airhead chicklet novels as of late. It took me about 90 pages to fully get absorbed into the story. At page 526 I was hooked (this morning). I cannot put the book down and I am planning on finishing it tonight. It makes you think about so many things. It is so easy to relate to on SO many levels. I am definitely passing it around to all my friends once I am done.
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