Status
Available
Genres
Publication
New York : Little, Brown and Company, 2016.
Description
Eleanor knows she's a mess. But today, she will tackle the little things. She will shower and get dressed. She will have her poetry and yoga lessons after dropping off her son, Timby. She won't swear. She will initiate sex with her husband, Joe. But before she can put her modest plan into action--life happens. Today, it turns out, is the day Timby has decided to fake sick to weasel his way into his mother's company. It's also the day Joe has chosen to tell his office--but not Eleanor--that he's on vacation. Just when it seems like things can't go more awry, an encounter with a former colleague produces a graphic memoir whose dramatic tale threatens to reveal a buried family secret. A hilarious, heart-filled story about reinvention, sisterhood, and how sometimes it takes facing up to our former selves to truly begin living.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member maneekuhi
2 LAUGHS OUT LOUD, 4 SMILES, AND A BIG DISAPPOINTMENT.
Yes, there are the familiar sharp one-liners, but this ain't no "Bernadette". This is dull. The first few pages are fine then suddenly we're into flashback, Eleanor's bio, with a heavy emphasis on her strange and estranged sister. And a bit of a
Yes, there are the familiar sharp one-liners, but this ain't no "Bernadette". This is dull. The first few pages are fine then suddenly we're into flashback, Eleanor's bio, with a heavy emphasis on her strange and estranged sister. And a bit of a
Show More
nasty tone creeps in here and there. I wonder if some of Semple friends find a bit o themselves in this book - and not in a nice way - and how do they feel. so much of this seemed like a bad first draft. I was waiting so long for the Bernadette followup, only to get this.....Save your time and money. I won't automatically buy her next one; I'll road test a few chapters first. Fool me once.... Show Less
LibraryThing member BALE
With all the great writers in this world, one must ask how a book like this winds up being published.
LibraryThing member kcshankd
I greatly enjoyed spending a day about Seattle with Eleanor and crew, and her baggage. I was wrong in my guess about Joe's big secret, but not far off. A fun, quick read. Perfect airplane/bus book.
LibraryThing member melissarochelle
Read from October 16 to 18, 2016
I'm finding it very difficult to write reviews lately. This one is no different, but I'm going to make myself do it now before I forget (I have books I've finished still marked "currently reading" because I'm unmotivated to write reviews).
I liked this one. It had
But I didn't find it memorable. In fact I finished it last night and tonight when I picked up my iPad to go back to it I didn't even remember I'd finished it!
Spoilers ahead...
There was also a serious lack of resolution. This is one day in this woman's life and it seems that it was different than before but the cause of her shitty days is still there. She's still lost her sister and will not have a relationship with her niece and nephew. Ugh.
But at least she still has her husband who took a sharp right turn to God and her sweet boy with a terrible name.
I'm finding it very difficult to write reviews lately. This one is no different, but I'm going to make myself do it now before I forget (I have books I've finished still marked "currently reading" because I'm unmotivated to write reviews).
I liked this one. It had
Show More
funny moments and poignant moments. It had crazy mom antics and a surprising relationship between sisters.But I didn't find it memorable. In fact I finished it last night and tonight when I picked up my iPad to go back to it I didn't even remember I'd finished it!
Spoilers ahead...
There was also a serious lack of resolution. This is one day in this woman's life and it seems that it was different than before but the cause of her shitty days is still there. She's still lost her sister and will not have a relationship with her niece and nephew. Ugh.
But at least she still has her husband who took a sharp right turn to God and her sweet boy with a terrible name.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Citizenjoyce
Ditzy narcissist tries to save her marriage to a saint.
LibraryThing member Susan.Macura
This is a neat book about Eleanor’s plan to make today be a perfect day but that plan does not quite work out. Instead Eleanor finds herself in a number of mix-ups that are amusing to read about as we have all been there! It was a light and fun read.
LibraryThing member hemlokgang
I did not like this novel. I think I have lost interest in flip sarcasm. The writing is witty....just not enough to hold my interest.
LibraryThing member Laura400
The book seems a little bipolar, and the author seems deeply ambivalent about the book's subject, or maybe about the character of the narrator. But I think it's excellent work and a good read.
Semple is excellent at pace, tone and dialogue. She tells this story in a complicated way -- unpeeling
Semple is excellent at pace, tone and dialogue. She tells this story in a complicated way -- unpeeling
Show More
layers -- but it still flows beautifully. That's hard to do, and she does it really well. The book is funny and sad, and the minor characters pop. The book's core, though, is The Flood Sisters, which is great. Show Less
LibraryThing member bookczuk
I am completely behind on reviews, but need to get this off my currently reading list. Hopefully, I can come back and add a real review at some point.
LibraryThing member thewanderingjew
Today Will Be Different, Maria Semple, author; Kathleen Wilhoite, narrator
This amusing tale about what seems to be a perfect family will make the reader laugh out loud as the main character, Eleanor, bounces from crisis to crisis, many of her own making, many caused by her own rash decisions.
When the book begins, Eleanor declared that today would be different. She would get up, dress properly and behave when she met people. She would be kind; she would be responsible. She would be relaxed, and do the things everyone did, without a problem. She would be more interactive with friends and her husband. However, she had no filter and often lost her temper and lashed out impetuously, without thinking first. Afterward, often she would calm down, think more rationally and try to move on with her life more thoughtfully. Still, she was very judgmental; she often made rude remarks and then second guessed what she had said later on, when it was too late. At first she seemed totally consumed with herself and her own needs, but after her background was revealed, it was somewhat understandable and she became a more sympathetic character. There were relatives in her past who were “ghosts” in her closet. Joe was the calming element in her life; he was the one who kept her centered.
Ten years had passed, and Eleanor noted that nothing had been said about moving back to New York City. Her angst was building. She was well aware of the fact that although she was still very much in love with Joe, and he was still in love with her, their relationship had settled into a comfortable routine. She vowed to change this.
How Eleanor spent this momentous day that she vowed would be different is actually hilarious. She goes from crisis to crisis with her third grader son, whom she had to pick up early from school because he didn’t feel well. However, on this day, she also discovered that she had double booked a lunch date. She decided to bring Timby to his dad’s medical office, hoping to leave him there so she could keep her appointment and straighten out her schedule. What she discovered when she got to Joe’s office was very troubling for her. He was not there, and she had no idea where he had gone. Now she knew that there were secrets between the, that she had been unaware of, and she sets out to find Joe, or at least, to find out what he is up to that had caused this need to be secretive. As she investigated, she got herself into difficult situations, and she jumped to some pretty radical conclusions before she calmed herself down. In several situations, Timby often assumed the role of the adult in the room. He attempted to calm her down when she overreacted and he soothed her when she got hurt. He was relaxed while she was frenzied.
After Eleanor found Joe, she learned that he had recently had a surprising epiphany that he had not shared with her. It was life changing. Her reaction was typical. She jumped to conclusions without thinking. However, true to form, she calmed down and became more rational, and enabled a conversation rather than an over-reaction. However, it was her over-reactions that were so funny and unbelievable.
Although it was an easy read, it was not as engaging as her book, Where’d You Go Bernadette?” The highlight of the book was Timby. He will win every reader’s heart with his innocent comments and his sincere attempts to comfort and guide his mother. He seemed so sweet and innocent that there will be nary a reader who will not want to hug Timby and wish he belonged to them! He had no guile and often appeared far more clear-headed and level-headed than Eleanor! It was Timby who drew me in and kept me involved in the book. The narrator imbued him with so much innocence and heart that he became irresistible. His mother, however, sometimes became a bit tiresome invoking the opposite reaction, possibly making the reader want to throttle her for the way she sometimes spoke to Timby and went off the deep end, more often than not, creating a crisis where there was none. Timby seemed to have greater insight into his mother’s personality than she had into his. He rose above each situation while she became overwhelmed with it. He was adaptable and well-behaved. He was like the perfect child in spite of her!
Written with humor that was sometimes laugh out loud and that had a somewhat sarcastic edge, Eleanor came to life with her little boy beside her. The reader will wonder when they turn the last page, was this day different for Eleanor? Will the next day be different? Who is the real Eleanor, and should she change? Is her charm part of her natural personality or the one she wishes she had? What was it in Eleanor’s past that shaped her defensive and impetuous behavior? Where would she go from here?
This amusing tale about what seems to be a perfect family will make the reader laugh out loud as the main character, Eleanor, bounces from crisis to crisis, many of her own making, many caused by her own rash decisions.
Show More
Eleanor had been the animation director of a very successful television program called Looper Wash. Her husband Joe was a renowned hand surgeon. They moved to Seattle with the expectation that they would live there for ten years, and then, they would move back to New York City for ten years. Joe wanted to live in Seattle; Eleanor wanted to live in New York City. They had a child, Timby, who was simply delightful. They lived in a nice house, had a nice dog and were relatively happy together. They seemed content with their lives, but beneath the surface, trouble was brewing for each of them, and it plays out, with humor and a bit of sarcasm for each reader to enjoy.When the book begins, Eleanor declared that today would be different. She would get up, dress properly and behave when she met people. She would be kind; she would be responsible. She would be relaxed, and do the things everyone did, without a problem. She would be more interactive with friends and her husband. However, she had no filter and often lost her temper and lashed out impetuously, without thinking first. Afterward, often she would calm down, think more rationally and try to move on with her life more thoughtfully. Still, she was very judgmental; she often made rude remarks and then second guessed what she had said later on, when it was too late. At first she seemed totally consumed with herself and her own needs, but after her background was revealed, it was somewhat understandable and she became a more sympathetic character. There were relatives in her past who were “ghosts” in her closet. Joe was the calming element in her life; he was the one who kept her centered.
Ten years had passed, and Eleanor noted that nothing had been said about moving back to New York City. Her angst was building. She was well aware of the fact that although she was still very much in love with Joe, and he was still in love with her, their relationship had settled into a comfortable routine. She vowed to change this.
How Eleanor spent this momentous day that she vowed would be different is actually hilarious. She goes from crisis to crisis with her third grader son, whom she had to pick up early from school because he didn’t feel well. However, on this day, she also discovered that she had double booked a lunch date. She decided to bring Timby to his dad’s medical office, hoping to leave him there so she could keep her appointment and straighten out her schedule. What she discovered when she got to Joe’s office was very troubling for her. He was not there, and she had no idea where he had gone. Now she knew that there were secrets between the, that she had been unaware of, and she sets out to find Joe, or at least, to find out what he is up to that had caused this need to be secretive. As she investigated, she got herself into difficult situations, and she jumped to some pretty radical conclusions before she calmed herself down. In several situations, Timby often assumed the role of the adult in the room. He attempted to calm her down when she overreacted and he soothed her when she got hurt. He was relaxed while she was frenzied.
After Eleanor found Joe, she learned that he had recently had a surprising epiphany that he had not shared with her. It was life changing. Her reaction was typical. She jumped to conclusions without thinking. However, true to form, she calmed down and became more rational, and enabled a conversation rather than an over-reaction. However, it was her over-reactions that were so funny and unbelievable.
Although it was an easy read, it was not as engaging as her book, Where’d You Go Bernadette?” The highlight of the book was Timby. He will win every reader’s heart with his innocent comments and his sincere attempts to comfort and guide his mother. He seemed so sweet and innocent that there will be nary a reader who will not want to hug Timby and wish he belonged to them! He had no guile and often appeared far more clear-headed and level-headed than Eleanor! It was Timby who drew me in and kept me involved in the book. The narrator imbued him with so much innocence and heart that he became irresistible. His mother, however, sometimes became a bit tiresome invoking the opposite reaction, possibly making the reader want to throttle her for the way she sometimes spoke to Timby and went off the deep end, more often than not, creating a crisis where there was none. Timby seemed to have greater insight into his mother’s personality than she had into his. He rose above each situation while she became overwhelmed with it. He was adaptable and well-behaved. He was like the perfect child in spite of her!
Written with humor that was sometimes laugh out loud and that had a somewhat sarcastic edge, Eleanor came to life with her little boy beside her. The reader will wonder when they turn the last page, was this day different for Eleanor? Will the next day be different? Who is the real Eleanor, and should she change? Is her charm part of her natural personality or the one she wishes she had? What was it in Eleanor’s past that shaped her defensive and impetuous behavior? Where would she go from here?
Show Less
LibraryThing member Perednia
Family letting you down, micro-aggressions, President John Tyler's progeny, letting the days slip by and whether you love someone enough to move to Spokane with them are among the ideas in Maria Semple's warm, funny and seriously good Today Will be Different.
In her second novel, following the
Eleanor realizes she has first-world problems. Her husband is a successful surgeon prized by the Seahawks. In Seattle, this practically makes one royalty. (The scene in Costco of people swarming around 12th Man cupcakes decorated with blue and green frosting is repeated across the state. It's not just Seattle. It's not just Costco.) Their son attends a prized, private school. She takes personalized poetry lessons from an aspiring writer. Her worst nightmare is going to lunch with a woman she views as boring.
Through the course of a day that is at times over the top, filled with flashbacks and takes more twists and turns than a hiking trail in the North Cascades, Eleanor shows the reader why she has been spinning her wheels, how much it could cost her and what really matters to her.
One person who really matters to Eleanor is her sister, Ivy. After their mother died, Eleanor took care of Ivy while their father drank away the rest of his life. Her drawings of those times about the two Flood Girls are the foundation of the work she is trying to create now.
The strength of Semple's storytelling is that the following wisdom is not plunked in the middle of finding out what the current situation is with Eleanor and Ivy, but it resonates with this and what happens after the reader finds out what the current situation is:
"If you were raised by a drunk, you're above all the adult child of an alcoholic. It means you blame yourself for everything, you avoid reality, you can't trust people, you're deeply insecure and hungry to please."
This is what has made Eleanor tick. That this truth is not the sole basis of what happened makes the novel even stronger. Whether it's a spouse's evolving belief system, whether it's holding onto the past well past its sell-by date, or whether it's realizing that, like Dorothy, there's no place like home (even if it means moving home to Spokane or Scotland or even New York City), Today will be Different has a strong heart beating under the madcap antics of Eleanor on her wild ride of a day.
"Today there will be an ease about me." Eleanor starts her story promising this. By the end, we see that it may well come to be.
In her second novel, following the
Show More
brilliant Where'd You Go, Bernadette?, Semple again focuses on a Seattle mother of a precocious young child and an accomplished husband. Our heroine this time was behind a cult hit of an animated series years ago. She has had an advance for a book based on the characters but gotten nowhere. Eleanor has been spinning her wheels for years. Her morning mantra that "today will be different" and that she might, say, get dressed and go to yoga after taking her son to school shows how encapsulated her life has become.Eleanor realizes she has first-world problems. Her husband is a successful surgeon prized by the Seahawks. In Seattle, this practically makes one royalty. (The scene in Costco of people swarming around 12th Man cupcakes decorated with blue and green frosting is repeated across the state. It's not just Seattle. It's not just Costco.) Their son attends a prized, private school. She takes personalized poetry lessons from an aspiring writer. Her worst nightmare is going to lunch with a woman she views as boring.
Through the course of a day that is at times over the top, filled with flashbacks and takes more twists and turns than a hiking trail in the North Cascades, Eleanor shows the reader why she has been spinning her wheels, how much it could cost her and what really matters to her.
One person who really matters to Eleanor is her sister, Ivy. After their mother died, Eleanor took care of Ivy while their father drank away the rest of his life. Her drawings of those times about the two Flood Girls are the foundation of the work she is trying to create now.
The strength of Semple's storytelling is that the following wisdom is not plunked in the middle of finding out what the current situation is with Eleanor and Ivy, but it resonates with this and what happens after the reader finds out what the current situation is:
"If you were raised by a drunk, you're above all the adult child of an alcoholic. It means you blame yourself for everything, you avoid reality, you can't trust people, you're deeply insecure and hungry to please."
This is what has made Eleanor tick. That this truth is not the sole basis of what happened makes the novel even stronger. Whether it's a spouse's evolving belief system, whether it's holding onto the past well past its sell-by date, or whether it's realizing that, like Dorothy, there's no place like home (even if it means moving home to Spokane or Scotland or even New York City), Today will be Different has a strong heart beating under the madcap antics of Eleanor on her wild ride of a day.
"Today there will be an ease about me." Eleanor starts her story promising this. By the end, we see that it may well come to be.
Show Less
LibraryThing member cburnett5
3.5 stars
Today Will Be Different is an interesting read. Semple’s last book, Where’d You Go, Bernadette, was laugh-out-loud funny and very entertaining. I was hoping that Today Will Be Different would be the same. While it is entertaining, laugh-out-loud funny it is not. There are certainly
I found the book fairly sad and wished that some of Eleanor’s issues had been resolved more, particularly one she has with a family member. I was glad I read today Will Be Different, but Where’d You Go, Bernadette remains my favorite by far.
Today Will Be Different is an interesting read. Semple’s last book, Where’d You Go, Bernadette, was laugh-out-loud funny and very entertaining. I was hoping that Today Will Be Different would be the same. While it is entertaining, laugh-out-loud funny it is not. There are certainly
Show More
some funny parts, such as her child being named Timby because her iPhone corrected Timothy to Timby and it stuck (my iPhone is constantly correcting things I meant to type to random, bizarre words that make no sense so I could certainly relate to that). I also love the concussion app that Timby found when he was worried his mother Eleanor had a concussion – every five minutes it randomly asks a new question meant to check a person’s alertness. These questions were interjected at odd and usually comical times.I found the book fairly sad and wished that some of Eleanor’s issues had been resolved more, particularly one she has with a family member. I was glad I read today Will Be Different, but Where’d You Go, Bernadette remains my favorite by far.
Show Less
LibraryThing member shazjhb
It will make many lists but deserves the praise. After finishing it, it was a shock to realize it actually only covered one day. Maybe another day or two is in the works.
LibraryThing member froxgirl
This "day in the life" crams decades full of backstory into 24 little hours. Eleanor Flood is: late for her meet up with "her poet" Alonzo, mad at son Timby for faking another stomach ache to get out of school, looking for her missing famous hand surgeon husband, blowing off and on her obnoxious
Show More
suburban friend for lunch, and exiled from her sister Ivy. Each important person in her life becomes a chronicle - mostly hilarious and many her fault. One of the most charming aspects of the novel is Eleanor's career as the supervisor of a notorious animated TV series about malicious ponies. And Eleanor's "The Flood Girls", an unpublished memoir, is included in full and it's glorious (credit to artist Eric Chase Anderson). My only criticism, making it a 4 instead of 5 star rated book, is the fact that there are so many characters, and the action is so frenetic, that I had to read it twice to gain the full impact. Show Less
LibraryThing member Alphawoman
Timby reminds me of Bobby from the Hank Hill Show. I don't think males would like this book. I could be wrong.
LibraryThing member JanJanFreeman
Eleanor Flood is a distracted mother who moved from the bustling New York City to Seattle with her husband, Joe, ten years ago and is itching for a change. Her son, Timby, named after an autocorrect mistake, has a recurring stomachache that interrupts the poetry lesson that she has weekly. One day
This is my second book that I have read by Maria Semple and I will be looking for her other books to read as well. I was very happy to read that she was (is? Season 5 announced!) a writer for Arrested Development, one of my all-time favorite tv shows. Much like the characters in that show, the main character in this book, Eleanor Flood, was self-centered, aloof, sometimes deep, and yet hilarious. This is also like the main character in Where'd You Go, Bernadette? Where she is not the stereotypically warm and overly coddling mother, quite the opposite. An example of this is when she leaves her son, Timby, with a stranger just so she can run off to solve a misunderstanding. Another example is when she leaves her dog, Yo-Yo, in a Costco parking lot for hours. I can see where some readers may not enjoy this consistency of personality, however, I appreciate it. I also liked the unique career that she has of an animator of The Flood Girls, as well as how that comes into play with her relationship with her sister, Ivy. Lastly, I enjoyed the unexpected turn that the book went in towards the resolution. I actually listened to this on AudioCD, read by Kathleen Wilhoite, who was simply fantastic. She gave distinctive voices to each character and at one point even sang beautifully. I do hope to be able to listen to more audiobooks narrated by her as she made them more interesting and unique.
I did not give the full 5 stars because the storyline was choppy. Some scenes ended abruptly and unapologetically that it was just assumed that the reader could figure out the rest on their own. I would not recommend this book for readers who do not enjoy foul language, atheism, family drama, or marital distress.
However, I would recommend this book for fans of Arrested Development and her other book Where'd You Go, Bernadette? I would also recommend this book for those who love Seattle as there is a lot of mention of it as well as it is where the book is set.
Show More
she takes him to the doctor for it and this is the day that a majority of the book is centered around. This is the day of misunderstandings, random adventures with former employees, and a day of reckoning her pain from the fall out with her sister, Ivy. This is my second book that I have read by Maria Semple and I will be looking for her other books to read as well. I was very happy to read that she was (is? Season 5 announced!) a writer for Arrested Development, one of my all-time favorite tv shows. Much like the characters in that show, the main character in this book, Eleanor Flood, was self-centered, aloof, sometimes deep, and yet hilarious. This is also like the main character in Where'd You Go, Bernadette? Where she is not the stereotypically warm and overly coddling mother, quite the opposite. An example of this is when she leaves her son, Timby, with a stranger just so she can run off to solve a misunderstanding. Another example is when she leaves her dog, Yo-Yo, in a Costco parking lot for hours. I can see where some readers may not enjoy this consistency of personality, however, I appreciate it. I also liked the unique career that she has of an animator of The Flood Girls, as well as how that comes into play with her relationship with her sister, Ivy. Lastly, I enjoyed the unexpected turn that the book went in towards the resolution. I actually listened to this on AudioCD, read by Kathleen Wilhoite, who was simply fantastic. She gave distinctive voices to each character and at one point even sang beautifully. I do hope to be able to listen to more audiobooks narrated by her as she made them more interesting and unique.
I did not give the full 5 stars because the storyline was choppy. Some scenes ended abruptly and unapologetically that it was just assumed that the reader could figure out the rest on their own. I would not recommend this book for readers who do not enjoy foul language, atheism, family drama, or marital distress.
However, I would recommend this book for fans of Arrested Development and her other book Where'd You Go, Bernadette? I would also recommend this book for those who love Seattle as there is a lot of mention of it as well as it is where the book is set.
Show Less
LibraryThing member librarygeek33
This book is a detailed look at the exploits of Eleanor Flood over the course of one day as she navigates her overflowing angst over her relationships with her sister Ivy, her husband Joe, her son, Timby (who says he got his name from an iPhone) and herself. The radically shifting story line had me
Show More
confused at first and I found some scenes to be reminiscent of "I Love Lucy" episodes (= silly slapstick). That said, this story was greatly enhanced by the reading of Kathleen Wilhoite. I doubt I would have had the patience to get through it if I had to actually sit down and read it. The ending was odd and a little forced but I found it just amusing enough to whet my curiosity about "Where'd You Go, Bernadette," which is reported to be much better. Show Less
LibraryThing member bookworm12
This one fell flat for me. I loved Bernadette, but this felt disjointed. The narrative switched from first to third person, there were too many unbelievable coincidences, it seemed to jump the shark at the end. So while there were definitely some funny lines, the overall plot just didn't work for
Show More
me. Show Less
LibraryThing member porch_reader
"Today will be different. Today I will be present. Today, anyone I speak to, I will look them in the eye and listen deeply. . . Today I will be my best self, the person I'm capable of being. Today will be different."
So begins Eleanor Flood's day, a day like many others in her life in Seattle, where
So begins Eleanor Flood's day, a day like many others in her life in Seattle, where
Show More
she lives with her husband and eight-year-old son Timby. Since leaving her job as an animator in NYC, she has struggled a bit to figure out her life. Today, like many others, she begins the day with a plan that is quickly set aside when she gets a call from Timby's school to pick him up, find that her husband is not at his office, and get surprised by an old employee for lunch. As Eleanor and Timby run from place to place, we learn more about Eleanor's backstory and even get a glimpse at a graphic novel that Eleanor has written about her childhood. The plot is engaging, but the best part of the book are Semple's spot-on observations about the Eleanor's life. She had me nodding and laughing throughout the story. I think that [Where'd You Go, Bernadette] is still my favorite Semple book, but I enjoyed spending time with Eleanor Flood. Show Less
LibraryThing member nivramkoorb
This book had ended up on some lists and was advertised as funny so I gave it a try. Semple is very clever and the book was funny but in a sitcom sort of way. It was a good diversion from some of the heavier stuff that I read. It takes a day in the life of Eleanor Floor who is an upper middle class
Show More
50 ish wife and mother(10 year old?) who goes from one frantic situation to another. It does a good satirical view of Seattle life. The book did enough flash back to give it more substance and did a good job of introducing her past life in terms of family, work, etc. I just heard that this may be a limited TV series with Julia Roberts. I also discovered that Semple was a veteran of sitocm(arrested development) so eccentric characters and wild behavior made sense. If you want a good read and to be entertained for 250 pages, then I think you will like this book. I may give her first book a look see. Show Less
LibraryThing member brangwinn
I liked Where’d You Go, Bernadette much better. Eleanor Flood just seems scattered and ditzy as the story peels back the layers of her life.
LibraryThing member indygo88
This is basically a day in the life of Eleanor Flood, with some background interspersed throughout. Eleanor lives in Seattle with her husband and son. She's a little bit scattered, but no more so than the rest of us.
I went into this with somewhat low expectations, given all of the negative reviews
I went into this with somewhat low expectations, given all of the negative reviews
Show More
I'd seen. But it started out good -- the humor hit home with me & I was enjoying the story. But then it started getting disjointed. Flashbacks to the past which didn't really add much to the story and that were never really resolved. The ending felt rushed and just...weird. It's a relatively quick read, and I read this on audio, which I would probably recommend over written copy, as the reader (Kathleen Wilhoite) is really what saved this from being a bigger disappointment for me. Show Less
LibraryThing member campingmomma
I, like many loved Semple's previous book Where'd You Go Bernadette and was hoping for something as engaging; a quick, light read. While it was quick and light at the beginning, by the middle of the book I found myself so completely befuddled by what was going on and where it was going I put the
Show More
book down and never picked it up again. Things started out slow and easy but quickly became so confusing and chaotic I had a difficult time understanding what was happening and soon decided I didn't care anymore. So in all fairness to the author is don't know if she was able to bring it all together in the end or not. Show Less
LibraryThing member cyderry
I was disappointed by this book. I truly enjoyed this author's previous effort in Where'd you go Bernadette and expected another light-hearted and amusing offering but unfortunately, that is not what I read in this book. The main character Eleanor had sworn to herself that she would do things that
I think if the author had stuck to the "difficulties" of facing a bad day with her usual wit and humor the book would have been better than going down a "dark and lonely path" with a sister who no longer communicated and a husband who had major secrets.
Show More
she had let slide for her personally as well as for her family and with determination she would change that, however, all good intentions aside, we know that just saying so doesn't make it so.I think if the author had stuck to the "difficulties" of facing a bad day with her usual wit and humor the book would have been better than going down a "dark and lonely path" with a sister who no longer communicated and a husband who had major secrets.
Show Less
LibraryThing member nbmars
The author had a hard act to follow after her terrific first book Where’d You Go, Bernadette, and at first, I thought she might rise to the occasion. This book has a great start, with Semple’s satirical humor describing the narrator Eleanor’s state of mind, in which she vows this day (as you
“You’re trying to figure out, why the agita surrounding one normal day of white-people problems?"
(She might have more accurately said “non-upper-class problems” but at least she is aware that what she complains about are things which only those with privilege, leisure, and money would consider to be "miserable".)
Eleanor and her husband Joe, a famous hand surgeon, live in Seattle. Both 49, they have been married 15 years and have one son, 8, named Timby. (She explains that when she was texting possible names to her husband, her IPhone autocorrected “Timothy” to “Timby” and they couldn’t resist using it as the name.) Timby is possibly the best character in this book. Precocious beyond his years, his ease with life and adaptability helps ground his mother.
The main drama of this book revolves around Eleanor’s relationship with her estranged sister Ivy. Like the “multimedia” approach Semple employed in her first book, in the middle of this one there is a 16-page, full-color graphic memoir about the childhood of Eleanor and Ivy, supposedly created by Eleanor, a former animator. [In actuality, the charming illustrations were done by the artist Eric Chase Anderson.]
Eleanor is four years older than Ivy and basically raised Ivy by herself, which is the only explanation to this reader why she continued to put up with Ivy's reprehensible behavior. Although this entire novel takes place in one day, throughout it Eleanor has cause to reflect upon past events, which is how we gradually learn what happened with Ivy and why they no longer communicate.
The ending gives Timby the last word on how their life may turn out after this very full day.
Discussion: As with Semple’s first book, she goes off on very clever riffs parodying many aspects of her life in Seattle, from the private schools to Costco to the evolution of marriage:
“Somewhere along the way… my marriage turned into an LLC. . . . Joe and I became two adults joined in the business of raising a child. When we first met, I’d have gone anywhere with the guy. . . We got married,and of course I thought, This is what life is. But it wasn’t life. It was youth. And now it’s Joe going to jazz by himself and me cracking jokes about how cold and erratic I’ve become.”
She gives a quick and cogent analysis of what it’s like to be the adult child of an alcoholic, as Eleanor is:
“…it means you blame yourself for everything, you avoid reality, you can’t trust people, you’re hungry to please. Which isn’t all bad: perfectionism makes the straight-A student; lack of trust begets self-sufficiency; low self-esteem can be a terrific motivator; if everyone were so gung-ho on reality, there’d be no art.”
Eleanor fears Joe is having an affair, and provides a good summary of the emotions one might feel in that situation. She talks about how underneath the anger is fear, and underneath fear is love: “Everything came down to the terror of losing what you love.”
Evaluation: This book isn’t as amusing as the first book; there is more focus on unhappiness, and on the hypocritical and fickle nature of humankind. Nevertheless, it is imaginative, and often funny. But because Eleanor is so self-absorbed (one of the traits she hopes to correct when she promises “Today will be different. Today I will be present”), it’s hard to warm up to her. Further, her devotion to Ivy requires a belief that the primacy of blood bonds can overcome the most egregious of hurtful practices, which is a bit hard to swallow in this case.
Show More
can imagine she does every day), she will be different. She asks:“You’re trying to figure out, why the agita surrounding one normal day of white-people problems?"
(She might have more accurately said “non-upper-class problems” but at least she is aware that what she complains about are things which only those with privilege, leisure, and money would consider to be "miserable".)
Eleanor and her husband Joe, a famous hand surgeon, live in Seattle. Both 49, they have been married 15 years and have one son, 8, named Timby. (She explains that when she was texting possible names to her husband, her IPhone autocorrected “Timothy” to “Timby” and they couldn’t resist using it as the name.) Timby is possibly the best character in this book. Precocious beyond his years, his ease with life and adaptability helps ground his mother.
The main drama of this book revolves around Eleanor’s relationship with her estranged sister Ivy. Like the “multimedia” approach Semple employed in her first book, in the middle of this one there is a 16-page, full-color graphic memoir about the childhood of Eleanor and Ivy, supposedly created by Eleanor, a former animator. [In actuality, the charming illustrations were done by the artist Eric Chase Anderson.]
Eleanor is four years older than Ivy and basically raised Ivy by herself, which is the only explanation to this reader why she continued to put up with Ivy's reprehensible behavior. Although this entire novel takes place in one day, throughout it Eleanor has cause to reflect upon past events, which is how we gradually learn what happened with Ivy and why they no longer communicate.
The ending gives Timby the last word on how their life may turn out after this very full day.
Discussion: As with Semple’s first book, she goes off on very clever riffs parodying many aspects of her life in Seattle, from the private schools to Costco to the evolution of marriage:
“Somewhere along the way… my marriage turned into an LLC. . . . Joe and I became two adults joined in the business of raising a child. When we first met, I’d have gone anywhere with the guy. . . We got married,and of course I thought, This is what life is. But it wasn’t life. It was youth. And now it’s Joe going to jazz by himself and me cracking jokes about how cold and erratic I’ve become.”
She gives a quick and cogent analysis of what it’s like to be the adult child of an alcoholic, as Eleanor is:
“…it means you blame yourself for everything, you avoid reality, you can’t trust people, you’re hungry to please. Which isn’t all bad: perfectionism makes the straight-A student; lack of trust begets self-sufficiency; low self-esteem can be a terrific motivator; if everyone were so gung-ho on reality, there’d be no art.”
Eleanor fears Joe is having an affair, and provides a good summary of the emotions one might feel in that situation. She talks about how underneath the anger is fear, and underneath fear is love: “Everything came down to the terror of losing what you love.”
Evaluation: This book isn’t as amusing as the first book; there is more focus on unhappiness, and on the hypocritical and fickle nature of humankind. Nevertheless, it is imaginative, and often funny. But because Eleanor is so self-absorbed (one of the traits she hopes to correct when she promises “Today will be different. Today I will be present”), it’s hard to warm up to her. Further, her devotion to Ivy requires a belief that the primacy of blood bonds can overcome the most egregious of hurtful practices, which is a bit hard to swallow in this case.
Show Less
Awards
NPR: Books We Love (2016)
The New York Times Notable Books of the Year (Fiction & Poetry — 2016)
Christian Science Monitor Best Book (Fiction — 2016)
Globe and Mail Top 100 Book (Fiction — 2016)