All This Heavenly Glory

by Elizabeth Crane (Goodreads author!)
All This Heavenly Glory  
published 2006 by Back Bay Books
binding Paperback
isbn 0316014214   (isbn13: 9780316014212)
pages 256
description In All This Heavenly Glory, Elizabeth Crane's second collection of interconnected stories, readers are taken on an amusing, if slightly disjoin...more
date added
02-18-07



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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 109)



Trish
Trish rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
12/09/07

Read in June, 2006
These stories are more tightly coupled than those in When The Messenger is Hot -- in fact, Glory might even be a novel. Each story/chapter deals with the life of Charlotte Anne Byers, who is probably mostly Elizabeth Crane: New Yorker, transplanted to Chicago, former alcoholic, divorced parents, opera singer mother who dies of cancer, hapless in matters of romance ... These are also the characteristics shared by the protagonist(s) in When the Messenger.

This time, the writing s...more
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Marcy
Marcy rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
01/08/08

bookshelves: book-club
Read in January, 2008
This book did not go over well with my book club. I think I was the only one who actually read the whole thing. I surmise that the style of writing and lack of an obvious plot line was frustrating for the other clubbers. I also found myself having to stop and take a breath while I was reading many of the passages. It was an exhausting read for me due to Ms. Crane's writing style and copious use of semi-colons, parentheses, and brackets, but I found that I identified with Charlotte in several...more
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Jenna
Jenna rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
07/31/07

Read in July, 2007
You have to love Charlotte Anne Byers, or at least identify with her trials. Her life isn't pretty, and at times can feel a bit contrived, but I buy it all, because the narrator's voice is so convincing. I never use the term chick lit, even disparagingly, but if I could assign a book for any woman who is struggling with who she is and where she is going, All This Heavenly Glory would be it. I can't wait to read Crane's first collection, which is apparantly debuting on stage at Steppenwolf nex...more
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Liz
Liz rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
05/13/08

Read in May, 2008
I had a really hard time getting into this story because it is stream-of-conscience writing. The first chapter is one long thought and sentence, I almost put it down after that. But, I powered through and liked it by the time I got toward the middle. The character is quirky and honest and struggles. Who doesn't relate to that!?
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Kim
01/26/08

bookshelves: 06books, short-stories
Read in March, 2006
She is doing what Wallace and Saramago do with the interminable sentences, but not as well and with less of a story to tell. The main character is pretty irritating. We really don't need to see that. It's also kind of hard to feel compassion for a Manhattan-bred poor little rich girl.
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Megan
Megan rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
09/16/07

Read in September, 2007
at first, i didn't think i would ever feel connected to this story simply because of elizabeth crane's writing style (run-on sentences, no dialogue, etc.), but then i started loving and identifying with charlotte, the main character.
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AC
AC rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
04/12/08

Read in March, 2006
Sometimes a little too absorbed with sounding like a confessional for the sake of pity, overall the book succeeds well and there are some good moments that are without affectation and whose power grows the more you consider them.
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stillme
stillme rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
02/16/08

Read in February, 2008
When I opened this, I thought it was short stories, but the stories ended up being more like not-so-continuous chapter. It was really quite enjoyable to read. I liked the main character a lot, especially as a child.
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Sheila
09/29/07

Read in September, 2007
Liked her style and want to read 'When the Messenger...' but not sure the plot is completely fulfilling. The characters can come across as really warm or really cold, so it can be disjointing.
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Josh
Josh rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
03/02/08

Read in March, 2008
I can't tell if I liked it despite or because of the fact that it's written almost entirely in run-on sentences. But it's good, and I'm getting another of her story collections.
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Jennifer
Read in August, 2007
For some reason, this book just spoke to me. I loved it. I especially enjoyed the train of thought, running on and on sections. It was funny and touching.
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Danielle
Danielle rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
01/28/08

bookshelves: fiction
Read in March, 2007
I loved this- but nearly as much as "When the Messenger is Hot." She reminds me of Lorrie Moore.
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Heidi
Heidi rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
02/26/08

Read in November, 2007
recommended to Heidi by: Betsy in a round about way
recommends it for: All people that know how to read
The beauty comes in the imagining of that last story especially.
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Justin
Justin rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
06/23/07

Read in February, 2007
it's official. i'm addicted to Elizabeth's writing.
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Adam
05/12/08

bookshelves: someday-i-may-finish-these-
The first 20 minutes of this book are terrible.
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Vanessa
Vanessa rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
08/16/07

Read in July, 2007
Second time round was even more glorious.
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Molly
Molly rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
03/13/07

Read in January, 2007
hilarious!
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Lori
Lori rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
12/05/07

 

Cayt
08/16/07

bookshelves: contemporarywriters
Read in January, 2005
 


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book data (includes all editions)

avg rating (all editions): 3.89 (66 ratings)
avg rating (this edition): 4.02 (50 ratings)
number of reviews: 17






other editions

All This Heavenly Glory (Hardcover)









quote

"Charlotte is the sort of person who's inclined to feel guilty imagining so much as a kiss between her and someone who's already involved, the sort of person who can't really even manage a fantasy about a movie star who might be married, much as she finds, let's say, Andy Garcia to be worth imagnining, Charlotte is the sort of person who will have to get Andy Garcia divorced, within the fantasy but having nothing to do with having met her, he has to be divorced prior to having met her in order for her to think about kissing him, and so Charlotte tends to find it easier to just fantasize about celebrities she knows are single than to go to all that trouble. " more quotes »