Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood: A Novel

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It's a hit!

This was the first Ya-Ya book I read and was the finest. Comic genius embedded in a culture particular to itself. It was like watching my people ge... (show more)

This was the first Ya-Ya book I read and was the finest. Comic genius embedded in a culture particular to itself. It was like watching my people getting dressed up in their finest going to after church potluck, and I, myself, just wanting to either eat my way into oblivion or drop the glass baking tray and run. Some of the complexity of the prequal would have been quite nice here to balance out the palate. I felt like the device of disownment to reconciliation weren't necessarily well done and were trite. As if a scoop of icecream couldn't exist on its own, but required cookies on each side. But the humor and horror (mock humor) of the characters was bust out laughing funny. Unfortunately, the pre-history was so awful, Viv was rendered un-rescuable. And the men, destroyed. True family horror happens. But it was like the publishers let the first volume sit while the second scraped in the bucks. (show less)

 

 

by Damon-Eugene Rich

No, it's a flop!

A friend of mine recommended “The Devine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood” because he had enjoyed the film & knew of my love for books. Having never... (show more)

A friend of mine recommended “The Devine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood” because he had enjoyed the film & knew of my love for books. Having never seen the movie and reading a bit of the synopsis, I decided to give it a try. Unfortunately, I was sorely disappointed.

This book is definitely for people who do not require much depth in their plot. The vocabulary was juvenile and the timeframe kept jumping around at such a schizophrenic pace, it was difficult to decipher which characters were in which timeline. The dialogue between the mother, Vivi, and HER mother, Buggy, was actually very interesting and held my attention at points. It was when we started to ramble on about the daughter’s wedding that I didn’t have enough information to care about that I sort of got lost in the mix. If it weren’t the unnecessary sexualized points in the story, I would have felt like I was reading a young adult novel.

Fluff does not even begin to describe this mess. Maybe I need to see the film to appreciate the story. Because, from what I see, this felt very mediocre. (show less)

 

 

by Timothy Springer

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  I think I had my hopes up too high for this book. I did like it, but it wasn't all that I'd hoped it would be. I think mothers or daughters with any sort of strained relationship might like this book a little more. It's mostly about that tension, and it does offer hope of healing. Anyone who knows my mom knows it's practically impossible for anyone to have a strained relationship with her! She's just honestly that sweet and genuine. So, while I'm scared that I'll never be as great of a ... (show more)

  I think I had my hopes up too high for this book. I did like it, but it wasn't all that I'd hoped it would be. I think mothers or daughters with any sort of strained relationship might like this book a little more. It's mostly about that tension, and it does offer hope of healing. Anyone who knows my mom knows it's practically impossible for anyone to have a strained relationship with her! She's just honestly that sweet and genuine. So, while I'm scared that I'll never be as great of a mom as she was (and I could relate to Sidda's fears of motherhood on that level), I found that I just didn't relate very well to the book as a whole. I might recommend this to someone, but it's not a book I'm booking back on the "I know I'll read this again soon" list. :)
  " (show less)

   

   

  by Facebook User on Oct 01, 2009 at 12:05AM

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  Another in my top 3 of all time, and a go-to book for comfort, insight and a cure-all for what can plague a female soul. Wells' writing in this novel should make her destined to become an all-time great writer, but her other novels consistently fall short of the mark - including the ones that are also about the Ya-Ya's.
  While I find that the themes and vision in this novel are universal to females, it tends to be a "loved it, or hated it" topic when I bring it up, and therefore I ... (show more)

  Another in my top 3 of all time, and a go-to book for comfort, insight and a cure-all for what can plague a female soul. Wells' writing in this novel should make her destined to become an all-time great writer, but her other novels consistently fall short of the mark - including the ones that are also about the Ya-Ya's.
  While I find that the themes and vision in this novel are universal to females, it tends to be a "loved it, or hated it" topic when I bring it up, and therefore I find myself keeping it as my own precious tome.
  Please don't bother to watch the movie "version" if you are interested in this story - it is like drinking flat, warm seltzer compared to a fresh, icy cold soda-fountain soft drink. There is no body, no taste, no depth to the movie at all. (show less)

   

   

  by Facebook User on Sep 24, 2009 at 07:27PM

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