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92nd out of 299 books
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523 voters
Good Harbor
Anita Diamant whose rich portrayal of the biblical world of women illuminated her acclaimed international bestseller "The Red Tent, " now crafts a moving novel of contemporary female friendship.Good Harbor is the long stretch of Cape Ann beach where two women friends walk and talk, sharing their personal histories and learning life's lessons from each other. Kathleen Levin...more
Published
(first published 1980)
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This is the story of two women who become friends. Kathleen Levine has lived in Gloucester, Massachusetts all her life. She converted from Catholocism to Judaism before her marriage, and raised her family here. She is a librarian at the local school, and has an affinity for pairing children with the right book to get them to read. Joyce Tabachnik is a freelance writer, who uses the money from her first novel, under a nom de plume, to buy a small house in Gloucester as a place to write and a vaca...more
There's someone who reviewed this who wondered if they read this before and forgot about it because it seemed so familiar ...which was the exact reaction I had. There's a good chance a read it after I loved Red Tent so much, I mighht have looked for other titles by her. Nothing particularly stands out about this book, unlike Red Tent, so it could easily have been read and forgotten and then picked back up. It was near another book I was looking for at the library and I thought...oh, I should rea...more
Good Harbor is at best a mediocre book. I was greatly disappointed, since I expected more from the author of one of my favorite novels, The Red Tent.
Two women meet at this harbor on Cape Ann. Katherine is a children's librarian, married and the mother of grown sons, and recently diagnosed with breast cancer. Joyce is younger, the mother of a ten year old daughter, married, and a writer. She buys a bungalow near the harbor and proceeds to paint and fix it up while her husband remains behind an...more
Two women meet at this harbor on Cape Ann. Katherine is a children's librarian, married and the mother of grown sons, and recently diagnosed with breast cancer. Joyce is younger, the mother of a ten year old daughter, married, and a writer. She buys a bungalow near the harbor and proceeds to paint and fix it up while her husband remains behind an...more
Anita Diamant whose rich portrayal of the biblical world of women illuminated her acclaimed international bestsellerThe Red Tent,now crafts a moving novel of contemporary female friendship.Good Harbor is the long stretch of Cape Ann beach where two women friends walk and talk, sharing their personal histories and learning life's lessons from each other. Kathleen Levine, a longtime resident of Gloucester, Massachusetts, is maternal and steady, a devoted children's librarian, a convert to Judaism,...more
Essentially, this story is about the power of friendship, no matter the age it is forged and how friendships can help you through some of the most difficult periods. I loved both characters in the story. I identified with Kathleen because she was steady and mature but most of all she was strong. Even in her most difficult times, she did not complain or show signs that she was hurt. I loved Joyce because she was the wise crack; the sarcastic friend who always knew what to say to make you laugh. T...more
I read this as an unabridged audiobook. Not having read The Red Tent I had nothing to compare Good Harbor to for good or bad. Overall I all enjoyed listening to this in the morning but it wasn't nearly as emotional as I'd expected it to be which is good, I guess, because I expected it to make me a runny mess. On the downside, this is a book I won't remember come next week . . .
It was a nice, gentle tale about the distance that can develop between couples that often goes unnoticed but it was also...more
It was a nice, gentle tale about the distance that can develop between couples that often goes unnoticed but it was also...more
This was my first book of 2012 and the first for the What's in a Name Reading Challenge (for the topographical feature category). I would really give this a 3 1/2 stars if that was possible. I did like the two main characters and their evolving friendship, and the descriptions of the North Shore (MA) coastline made me miss it so much! Oh, to live near an east coast shoreline...
What I didn't like so much was that I had this weird feeling I'd read it before (which is not really the book's fault -...more
What I didn't like so much was that I had this weird feeling I'd read it before (which is not really the book's fault -...more
This one was just okay. The narrative moves back and forth, chapter by chapter, between two women. Kathleen is a school librarian recently diagnosed with breast cancer and undergoing a lumpectomy and subsequent radiation treatment. Joyce’s troubles seem more mundane: she’s uninspired by her work and troubled by the uneasy feeling that she’s drifting away from her workaholic husband and moody, adolescent daughter. The two women meet, instantly bond, and help each other through a few rough months....more
Joyce is a romance writer who recently purchased a vacation home near Good Harbor, Massachusetts. Kathleen is a children's librarian living in the area who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. The two meet at Synagogue one week (both are Jewish, though Kathleen converted from Catholicism before getting married) and become fast friends. Together they journey through many changes in their marriages, children, and selves. It's beautifully written, and has instilled in me a desire to see this...more
I was not a fan of The Red Tent, but I saw this book in the bargain bin and thought I'd give this author another try. Now I see why this book was in the bin.
I'll admit to being predisposed to dislike this book, because I dislike cancer stories. I should have read the dust jacket first, I guess.
But beyond that, I find Diamant's writing clumsy and belabored. For instance, she had her character explain numerous times why she had an Irish first name and a Jewish last name. Really, one explanation w...more
I'll admit to being predisposed to dislike this book, because I dislike cancer stories. I should have read the dust jacket first, I guess.
But beyond that, I find Diamant's writing clumsy and belabored. For instance, she had her character explain numerous times why she had an Irish first name and a Jewish last name. Really, one explanation w...more
I tend to agree with another reviewer who felt used, like the author had a deadline to meet for her editor and didn't give the ending the time necessary to make it decent. I also agree with another reviewer that I found Joyce to be dull--I guess maybe she was more petulant than dull, but still not appealing. I would definitely not have been able to maintain a friendship with her. I also thought that Joyce's affair was ridiculously pathetic, and while it was a way to get Kathleen to reveal her ow...more
Well, it's OK, I guess. I admired the writer and the research she put into The Red Tent, but this is too cutsy, somewhat too PC, dragged out, and sort of didactic. We get the idea very early that one of the female main characters is afraid to death of breast cancer (and many other things including guilt over the death of a todler son), and that is legitmate. Then her newfound best friend is in a kind of crisis with a resentful daughter, her only child; a husband who seems over-absorbed in his wo...more
If a married woman were to list the significant personal relationships in her life, it would be assumed that the most significant, most deeply felt, most comforting, most interactive would be with her spouse. Love those men (or women) as we may, oftentimes they would not fill the role as adequately as a trusted female friend. I had (have) such a friend. For 18 years I spoke every day with her about the significant and the mundane details of my life. The experience was never finished until I told...more
I interviewed Diamant when The Red Tent hit it big and this book was the answer to the question, "What's next?" She was ready to write something different and modern after three years of marketing her historical novel and driving it to the best seller lists. This book continues some themes - women's relationships, family and loss - and is a fast easy read. The story centers around the relationship between Kathleen, a fifty-seven-year-old children's librarian with breast cancer and Joyce a forty-...more
I've always wanted to read some Anita Diamant, but perhaps this was not a good choice. It's the story of a friendship that grows between a woman who has recently been diagnosed with Stage 1 breast cancer and a woman who is profoundly lonely in her marriage. I found the portions devoted to the disease and treatment of the cancer patient interesting, but that's mostly for personal reasons (a family history of the disease, and my own desire to become a nurse). I found the portions devoted to the ot...more
This story centers around the friendship of two women with an age gap of 10 years or so. They meet in a Jewish synagogue but neither is religious. The older woman is dealing with the discovery and treatment of breast cancer and the younger gal is struggling with a general malaise in her marriage relationship and career. I think the author strives to show how valuable friendship is for women, but the main characters are not developed to the point where I really cared about either one. She scratch...more
This book started out slow and I was really unsure if I'd be able to finish it. I knew I loved "The Red Tent" by the same author, so I made myself keep going. The story revolves around two friends that meet at the beach and help each other go through trials in their lives. It was actually a great book. I would have loved to be AT the beach when reading it, but it really makes me look forward to Florida that much more. The main characters captivated my attention as they make choices, albeit not t...more
This was a very quick read from an author I have loved, on themes I was mostly not versed in. Though the women's circumstances were thankfully unfamiliar to me, I would recommend this book to anyone who has struggled to make friends during a transition or a tough personal time, and who knows (or wants to know) the blessing of walking and talking with good company. The harbor of the book's title is not only Joyce and Kathleen's favorite stretch of beach, but a metaphor for the haven they become f...more
Found this for fifty cents at a library book sale and since I'd just left the Andrea Gail folks in The Perfect Storm, I had to have another book set in Gloucestar, MA. This is what I call a "chick flick" kind of book--can't see it appealing to the testosterone-laden. It starts and keeps going pretty slow until the very last section which finally got some decent plot twists. But the ending felt so abrupt after them, that I felt unresolved and a little used. Almost like the editor's deadline was u...more
I loved Anita Diamant's other novels, but this one definitely didn't measure up to the others. The storyline had a lot of potential, but the execution was poor. I felt no liking for the main characters. Despite what was taking place in their lives, they both came across as selfish, whiny and incapable of talking to their partners. I had more sympathy for their husbands than for them. Joyce, was especially annoying and her transgression seemed rather silly in terms of who was involved and what oc...more
Oct 03, 2011
Jodi
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
women
Recommended to Jodi by:
Jorene Ring
Shelves:
book-club-books,
chick-lit
I enjoyed reading about the relationship between the two women in the book - everyone needs a good friend to talk to when things are tough. I had to giggle at the one character who is secretly writing romance novels under the name Cleo Lehigh after her first pet and the street she lived on - I guess that would make me Pee Wee Bexley! Eek!
Although I enjoyed the relationship between the women, I was sad that the book made the affairs both women had at different points in their life seem all right....more
Although I enjoyed the relationship between the women, I was sad that the book made the affairs both women had at different points in their life seem all right....more
Basically, a very well-written story about the importance of female friendships. Women can talk to other women so much better than they can the males in their life. This is especially true when, as in this story, two women are having the perils of real life bring about crises. Walking and talking just is so very healing to women. Made me realize how much I am missing a really good friend to talk with about things that are occurring in my life. This is a completely warm and heartfelt story of two...more
LOVED it!!!! I would recommend this book to anyone who has ever had a best friend with whom they have been able to share their hopes, dreams, expectations, and regrets. Anita Diamant explores the gift of friendship in an honest, enlightening, and hopeful spirit. Joyce and Kathleen are 2 women with whom I would love to share a walk on the beach at Good Harbor!It's a story of love, forgiveness, loss, and the amazing resilience of the human spirit. A wonderful read for women! A wonderful read for b...more
Oct 08, 2010
Sharon Archer
added it
After I was into the book, realized I had read it before. Now thanks to Goodreads, won't make that error again!..Anita Diamant is wonderful at capturing the essance of communication between women. There was a wonderful line that went something like, we love our men but love to talk with women more.
There was a very poignant part...Right after a tragic event, a father says he doesn't want to talk about it. He didn't mean "forever" but that is the way it was taken by his family. And so for twenty...more
There was a very poignant part...Right after a tragic event, a father says he doesn't want to talk about it. He didn't mean "forever" but that is the way it was taken by his family. And so for twenty...more
I have read 'The Red Tent' by this author and have always recommend it to people, so I was looking forward to this one, as it had also been recommended many times to me. I wasn't disappointed, what a wonderful book of true friendship between two woman who meet by chance and help each other through the turmoil of coping with breast cancer, while the other deals with her teenage daughter and distancing relationship with her husband. It made me laugh and cry, while they deal with all the modern day...more
A wonderfully written story about a friendship between two women.
Despite a 17 year age difference, Kathleen and Joyce become friends and share each other's pain and experiences. Kathleen is dealing with a diagnosis of breast cancer and the impending treatments and Joyce a writer, is dealing with a dead end marriage, a daughter approaching the teenage years and the guilt of a quick affair. Kathleen and Joyce develop a friendship that enables them to confide and confront the difficulties in their...more
Despite a 17 year age difference, Kathleen and Joyce become friends and share each other's pain and experiences. Kathleen is dealing with a diagnosis of breast cancer and the impending treatments and Joyce a writer, is dealing with a dead end marriage, a daughter approaching the teenage years and the guilt of a quick affair. Kathleen and Joyce develop a friendship that enables them to confide and confront the difficulties in their...more
The story involved breast cancer – DCIS – which I have had, and it was somewhat interesting to read about that. However, I didn’t get it at all when the woman’s first and only reaction to the mastectomy option was horror…wouldn’t even consider it. That seemed unrealistic to me, that she didn’t at least acknowledge the worth of mastectomy.
Um, it was good, I guess. I mean, I stayed interested and all, but it just seemed a little too simple, contrived; made use of too many tired stereotypes. The f...more
Um, it was good, I guess. I mean, I stayed interested and all, but it just seemed a little too simple, contrived; made use of too many tired stereotypes. The f...more
Mom brought this book over for me to read because I'd asked her if she had liked "The Red Tent," which is by the same author and had been recommended to me by another friend.
"Good Harbor" is a solid, easy, enjoyable and moving read. The two lead characters -- women who find friendship in one another -- are incredibly "real," from the things that they do to the things that they say to the way that they think. This book makes heavy topics like breast cancer, marriage, the death of a child, raisin...more
"Good Harbor" is a solid, easy, enjoyable and moving read. The two lead characters -- women who find friendship in one another -- are incredibly "real," from the things that they do to the things that they say to the way that they think. This book makes heavy topics like breast cancer, marriage, the death of a child, raisin...more
I bought this book because I had read The Red Tent. This book is different, no comparison. I have two sisters who live in Gloucester, so I loved the setting and the female themes. Women just need other women to talk things through. Fast read, but very enjoyable. I liked the characters, although I always find myself frustrated, I must admit, with female characters who don't have to work...who take time off for soul searching or to raise kids. It's so far from my point of reference that I question...more
I don't know why a lot of the readers rated this with 3-4 stars. This is my 4th Diamant book and she has again pleased me. Diamant writes her women characters so well. I feel I can identify with each woman in some fashion or another. I love each character and want to know more about them than is contained in the stories. No book will EVER be another "Red Tent", so readers should not go into her novels expecting a repeat. That would lessen the impact that The Red Tent has. But her other novels ar...more
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Anita Diamant is a prizewinning journalist whose work has appeared regularly in the Boston Globe Magazine and Parenting magazine. She is the author of six books about contemporary Jewish practice, one collection of autobiographical essays (Pitching My Tent) and three prior novels. The Red Tent, her first novel, was a national bestseller and the Booksense Book of the Year. Good Harbor and The Last...more
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“I like the way he danced. And then I like the way we danced together.”
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5 people liked it
“Mind your business" had been the motto of her childhood. But now that seemed like a failing in a friend.”
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