Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.
Title: Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough
Author: Ruth Pennebaker
Narrator: Barbara McCulloh
Format: Unabridged
Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
Language: English
Release date: 09-06-11
Publisher: Recorded Books
Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 5 votes
Genres: Fiction, Contemporary
Publisher's Summary:
A prolific writer and blogger, Ruth Pennebaker has also contributed to the New York Times, the Dallas Morning News, Redbook, and other publications. Her adult fiction debut, Women on the Verge stars divorcée Joanie Pilcher. Already stressed to the limit, Joanies life is further complicated when her now cash-strapped mother comes to live with her and her teenaged daughter.
Members Reviews:
A fun read!
I'm a fan of Ruth Pennebaker's dry wit and love her blog, so I was anxious to read this multi-generational story. It didn't disappoint!
Pennebaker tackles the lives of three generations of women living unexpectedly under one roof (imagine!) with humor and tenderness. I especially loved the teenager, Caroline, and was impressed with the author's portrayal of this angst-y girl.
While the characters seem to be very distant from one another, each wallowing in her own troubles, they just want to be loved and accepted for who they are - no matter their age. If you're a mom or a daughter, you'll absolutely relate to the relationships between these three women. Give yourself the gift of a few hours of down-time and immerse yourself in this book. You'll be glad you did.
An exercise in perspectives. Brava!
Based on her other writing, I knew I could count on Pennebaker for a respite from and a laugh about real life. I've had a hard time reading lately because I'm so distracted with family medical dramas and eldercare pressures, so if a book can hold MY attention, that's saying something.
Pennebaker's book does NOT disappoint.
It's funny and aggravating at the same time, as three generations of women live in the same house (not by choice) and muddle the best they can through their individual and collective dramas.
An exercise in perspectives -- generational, mother-daughter, and otherwise -- Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough reveals the grace and humor, frustration and (yes) anger, that consumes us ... especially at times of big transitions.
Insight into all generations
I really enjoyed this book. I'm the middle of the three generations profiled in this book, more or less (though I don't have teenagers - yet) and I really enjoyed remembering what it was like to be an awkward adolescent, knowing what it's like to be someone my age, and looking ahead to the years that lie ahead. There was plenty of poignancy and sadness, but also dry wit and humor. The characterization was simply spot on, too. As a writer myself, I was in awe of the craft that went into making these characters so vivid and real. I know it's not at all easy.
Perceptive, funny, irreverent -- a great read for book club
The author artfully tells a tale from three perspectives and generations. Each perspective is realistic, and even though all of the women in the book are deeply flawed and neurotic, they are also wonderfully likable. An irreverent sense of humor runs through the book. Some of the lines are classic and memorable and I found myself wanting to read with a highlighter. One scene toward the end of the book made me laugh so hard the dog jumped off the bed.
