Rating: 
Summary: Good summer read
Review: I thought this book by Judy Blume was good. A little slow at the begining but it picks up and you don't want to put it down because you don't know what's going to happen next. When you read this book, you just have to remember who you are reading about. The two main women in this book, B.B. and Margo jump around sometimes your seeing things through Margo's eyes and sometimes through B.B's that's what really caught my interest in this book. The book is about these two women and how they deal with being divorced mother's. I really enjoyed reading this book as I have enjoyed reading every book that Judy Blume has written even from when I was a child. I am ready to start Summer Sisters and I'm sure it will be a winner with me as well. Judy Blume never dissapoints me!
Rating: 
Summary: Take me back
Review: I was a member of the book of the month club once, which was responsible for me owning some notable hardcover books, and I doubt if anyone actually read any of them more than the number of people who read my copy of SMART WOMEN by Judy Blume. I thought of it today because I was trying to think of a euphemism for the one word I never say in a review, which comes down to a simple summary of the plot of this book, if you are familiar with the Loving Spoonful song `Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind?' as it relates to the problem of one guy choosing between two women, only the song was about sisters and the plot in this novel is mother-daughter romantic disaster. This book clings to the mind, even while you are reading it, because it attempts to examine the kind of problems that just get worse when you are growing old and can't go back and be absolutely devastating like the famous old philosophers expected their students to be eventually. Students? I can't believe I actually said that. If this book is about learning something, most reviewers seem like the kind of people who don't want to know.
Rating: 
Summary: A kid's idol, and adult's letdown
Review: I wondered why there were 8 copies of this book at the used bookstore. As soon as I read it, though, I knew, becuase mine went right back there to be traded in for something good.Blume tried too hard with this book. I understand that in some cases, things like mothers turning abusive and going insane do occur, but the book didn't seem to capture my sympathies for the characters. I didn't care if the family got along, if the couple wound up together, I just wanted the book to be over.
Rating: 
Summary: Stick to the kids' point of view
Review: In reading this and her other "adult" novels, it is apparent that Judy Blume writes more freely and less self-consciously when she is creating characters who are in their teens or younger, as opposed to adults. She seems to have more of a grasp on teenagers' feelings and reactions in certain situations, while her adults' dialogue and reactions seem contrived, lifted from TV movies-of-the-week. The two main characters, Margo and B. B., are divorced women who have just turned forty. However, they spend most of the book weeping, throwing tantrums and making impulsive decisions in their personal lives, from sex to career to marriage. They come off as young, inexperienced twentysomethings with no ambition other than to find a man. Their careers are merely decorative. As mothers, they are, at best, immature. B. B., who is apparently falling apart at the seams because her ex-husband is moving to town, spends most of the book screaming irrationally at her daughter Sar! ! a for trivial reasons, or retreating to her "sickbed" to be pampered. Soon, B. B.'s condition worsens, because, like a child, she lives in a state of constant denial. Margo is not much better. She allows her daughter, Michelle, to walk all over her and puts up with her sassy mouth for so long that one wonders who, if anybody, is home in Margo's head. Neither Margo nor B. B. show any discrimination in their "man-hunts", often choosing self-centered men, ne'er-do-wells, and even abusive sociopaths. It's truly discouraging to think that their kids have such boneheaded mothers for role models. Blume's treatment of the kids is much better. For example, Michelle and Sara are portrayed much more realistically than their mothers. They have a difficult time adjusting to their new situation, since they've been virtually thrown together by Margo's affair with B. B.'s ex, Andrew. Twelve-year-old Sara is the most genuine character, in her devotion to her father, her alt! ! ernating feelings of love, hate, confusion and guilt to her! mother, and her naive hope that eventually they'll fall in love again. Her loneliness and self-consciousness in Margo's household is touchingly real, as opposed to Margo and Andrew's bantering, bawdy comments and overwrought, emotional quarrels. Michelle is also a good character, once you understand why she makes her hurtful comments. She's simply a typical sixteen-year-old who wants to set the world (and men) on fire, like gorgeous B. B. and instead feels like a nobody. The chapter containing her reaction to Margo's casual announcement that Andrew is moving in is a masterpiece. Too bad the novel didn't have more scenes like those. Stuart, Margo's son, is more comic relief than a character, but he captures perfectly that outwardly laconic teenage attitude. "We're going to be late for school," he casually informs Michelle after the two of them watch Margo, overcome with emotion after an argument, sobbing in the kitchen. Stuart, too, goes through his trials and tribul! ! ations (he gets his girlfriend pregnant and his high school graduation is approaching). Judy Blume is so unaffected portraying them, that it's a virtual chore to return to the artificial, self-consciously libidinous lives of their frivolous mothers.
Rating:
Summary: REB's review of Smart Women
Review: In this book Judy Blume deals with the stresses of divorced families. Her story of single moms dealing with ex husbands, new boy friends, and raising kids is a true and realistic depiction of what divorced families are like. As somebody whose parents just went through a separation, I appreciated reading about all the emotions that come from having divorced parents. I felt like I could relate to the book and it made me feel better about my reaction to my parents separating. I liked how she wrote from all the different view points of all the characters. Although it was confusing at times, it did help see how both parents and children dealt with situations. These situations included getting along with your kids, dating, and remarrying. There were also other situations that the book dealt with that really kept the reader interested. I would recommend this book to divorced moms and teenagers of divorced parents.
Rating:
Summary: Good read
Review: It was a little hard to follow in the beginning but once I got into the book I couldn't put it down.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book from a Great Author!
Review: Judy Blume was always my favorite YA writer. After reading Wifey and Forever, I didn't realize she had written Smart Women. Boy, was this book great! Classic '80's women, kids and houses! I especially loved Sara and Michelle. Although from totally different worlds they came together to form a family unit. Some of B.B.'s hissy fits were a bit much, but this book was great!
Rating:
Summary: Like revisiting an old friend
Review: Reading Smart Women is like catching up with an old friend you haven't seen in a while--Judy Blume. If you, like me grew up reading Are You There God, It's Me, Margaret and Forever, and loved those books, then you will love Smart Women. Judy Blume's writing style is so fabulous, so comfortable. There is no one else writing like her today. This is a terrific book about contemporary women and the crises they face after divorce, and, as with all other Judy Blume books, she does not disappoint. Enjoy this one, it is so easy to read, yet it's not "light reading" because it makes you think.
Rating:
Summary: More than mere summer reading from a Smart Woman
Review: Smart Women is perhaps Judy Blume's most accomplished work. Indeed, the text is almost a synthesis of familiar themes and character types from Blume's earlier work. The novel deals with children coping with divorced parents, teenagers searching for self-identity, adults who are on a similar quest, and, as always, a search for love and self validation. As Blume portrays, love and life are never easy, but with patience, perserverance, and time, new beginnings can always be made. The novel almost serves as a text that tells what may have happened to Blume's other characters had we been able to see them develop outside their own texts. However, the novel is more than a mere rehashing of familiar themes. Blume effectively uses themes that she knows best and incorperates them in the novel. Blume is undoubtedly the best Children's and YA novelist this century, but her "adult" novels are where Blume is able to shine. We can only hope that Blume doesn't take as long as a hiatus working on her next adult novel as she did between Smart Women and Summer Sisters. Why Smart Women was ever out of print is a mystery. Read the novel and enjoy. The characters stick under your skin long after the last page is turned.
Rating:
Summary: Not Bad
Review: Smart Women was a good book yet it lacked the flowing nature of Summer Sisters. I couldn't get myself into it and in the end did not feel satisfied that i spent time reading it. Margo's character seemed to be blah and we didn't hear enough from Andrew's point of view. In Summer Sister's you could relate to the characters because she did certaing pages dedicated to their thoughts. It was a good book however there are better ones of Judy Blumes. I look forward to her next book.
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