false 37 431 331 true 5771692 read 6 true 2952262 currently-reading 94 true 2952261 to-read 75 false 6892617 classique 50 false 6522658 juvenile-and-ya 33 false 5212567 humor 30 false 6121766 theater 28 false 5212566 dystopian 24 false 5212607 theology 24 false 7640851 fantasy-and-sci-fi 22 false 5612986 memoirs-and-biographies 16 false 7599470 historical-fiction 13 false 6295511 homo-lit 10 false 6475205 feminist-action 0 false 9102019 wishlist http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/79669243 The Lacuna: A Novel (Hardcover) by Barbara Kingsolver
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/77923710 The Widows of Eastwick (Hardcover) by John Updike
bookshelves: currently-reading
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/45926171 Choke (Paperback) by Chuck Palahniuk
bookshelves: currently-reading
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/68948196 to: The Help (Hardcover) by Kathryn Stockett
bookshelves: historical-fiction
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/67403590 Bel Canto (Paperback) by Ann Patchett
bookshelves: currently-reading
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/79408981 Flesh And Blood (Paperback) by Michael Cunningham
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/75236853 to: The Witches of Eastwick (Hardcover) by John Updike
I had some major issues with this novel. I grew up watching the filmed version with Jack Nicholson, and besides finding it amusing I admired the strong relationships between the women (not to mention the ending when all three women take control over their lives without the presence of a man).

In the novel, I found the relationships embedded with jealousy, mistrust, back-biting, and criticism. The witches were never truly close or emotionally intimate, nor were they the strong characters I expected to find. Updike's portrayal of them is stereotypical backlash...misogynistic out the wazoo! The women only "grow" through the influence of a morally ambiguous, sadistic man. Their behavior is reprehensible and murderous, and while the male lead is dismissed for his negative influence the female characters are held accountable and portrayed as bitches, not witches.

Still, one cannot deny the beauty of Updike's prose. He has an amazingly stirring command of language, not to mention psychological insight. I felt that I really got to KNOW the characters and their motivations; I only regret my disappointment in the manner in which they are portrayed.

Perhaps in some way this novel is socially dated. While I do view Updike as a bit of a chauvinist, I do admire his genious.

I do prefer the movie, nevertheless. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/79130626 Go Ask Alice (Paperback) by Beatrice Sparks
bookshelves: to-read
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