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Wednesday #2
The Wednesday Daughters
Meg Waite Clayton, nationally bestselling author of The Wednesday Sisters, returns with a compassionate, wise, and enthralling new novel of mothers and daughters, best friends who become family, and secrets and dreams passed down through the generations.
It is early evening when Hope Tantry arrives at the small cottage in England’s pastoral Lake District where her mother, Ally, spent the last years of her life. Ally—one of a close-knit group of women who called themselves “The Wednesday Sisters”—had used the cottage as a writer’s retreat while she worked on her unpublished biography of Beatrix Potter, yet Hope knows nearly nothing about her mother’s time there. Traveling with Hope are friends Julie and Anna Page, two other daughters of “The Wednesday Sisters,” who offer to help Hope sort through her mother’s personal effects. Yet what Hope finds will reveal a tangled family history—one steeped in Lake District lore.
Tucked away in a hidden drawer, Hope finds a stack of Ally’s old notebooks, all written in a mysterious code. As she, Julie, and Anna Page try to decipher Ally’s writings—the reason for their encryption, their possible connection to the Potter manuscript—they are forced to confront their own personal struggles: Hope’s doubts about her marriage, Julie’s grief over losing her twin sister, Anna Page’s fear of commitment in relationships. And as the real reason for Ally’s stay in England comes to light, Hope, Julie, and Anna Page reach a new understanding about the enduring bonds of family, the unwavering strength of love, and the inescapable pull of the past.
It is early evening when Hope Tantry arrives at the small cottage in England’s pastoral Lake District where her mother, Ally, spent the last years of her life. Ally—one of a close-knit group of women who called themselves “The Wednesday Sisters”—had used the cottage as a writer’s retreat while she worked on her unpublished biography of Beatrix Potter, yet Hope knows nearly nothing about her mother’s time there. Traveling with Hope are friends Julie and Anna Page, two other daughters of “The Wednesday Sisters,” who offer to help Hope sort through her mother’s personal effects. Yet what Hope finds will reveal a tangled family history—one steeped in Lake District lore.
Tucked away in a hidden drawer, Hope finds a stack of Ally’s old notebooks, all written in a mysterious code. As she, Julie, and Anna Page try to decipher Ally’s writings—the reason for their encryption, their possible connection to the Potter manuscript—they are forced to confront their own personal struggles: Hope’s doubts about her marriage, Julie’s grief over losing her twin sister, Anna Page’s fear of commitment in relationships. And as the real reason for Ally’s stay in England comes to light, Hope, Julie, and Anna Page reach a new understanding about the enduring bonds of family, the unwavering strength of love, and the inescapable pull of the past.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2011
171 people are currently reading
5301 people want to read
About the author
Meg Waite Clayton
12 books1,601 followersMeg Waite Clayton is a New York Times and internationally bestselling author of 9 novels, including the forthcoming TYPEWRITER BEACH (Harper, July 1) — on Publishers Weekly’s list of 12 fiction “Hot Books of Summer,” which they call, in a starred review, “irresistible… Readers will be riveted.”
Her THE POSTMISTRESS OF PARIS was a Good Morning America Buzz pick, New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice, Costco Book Club pick, People Magazine, IndieNext booksellers, LoanStars librarians, USA Today, Book of the Month Club and Amazon Editors’ pick and Publishers Weekly notable book the San Francisco Chronicle calls "gripping … an evocative love story layered with heroism and intrigue — the film ‘Casablanca’ if Rick had an artsy bent … powerful.”
Her National Jewish Book Award finalist THE LAST TRAIN TO LONDON was praised by Kristin Hannah as “An absolutely fascinating, beautifully rendered story of love, loss, and heroism … A glowing portrait of women rising up against impossible odds.”
Prior novels include the #1 Amazon fiction bestseller BEAUTIFUL EXILES, the Langum-Prize honored national bestseller THE RACE FOR PARIS- and THE WEDNESDAY SISTERS, one of Entertainment Weekly's "25 Essential Best Friend Novels" of all time. Her THE LANGUAGE OF LIGHT was a finalist for the Bellwether Prize (now PEN/Bellwether Prize).
Her novels have been published in 24 languages throughout the world.
She has also written more than 100 pieces for major newspapers, magazines, and public radio. She has participated in the Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman sponsored The Writers Lab for screenwriting, mentors in the OpEd Project, and is a member of the National Book Critics Circle and the California bar. megwaiteclayton.com
Her THE POSTMISTRESS OF PARIS was a Good Morning America Buzz pick, New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice, Costco Book Club pick, People Magazine, IndieNext booksellers, LoanStars librarians, USA Today, Book of the Month Club and Amazon Editors’ pick and Publishers Weekly notable book the San Francisco Chronicle calls "gripping … an evocative love story layered with heroism and intrigue — the film ‘Casablanca’ if Rick had an artsy bent … powerful.”
Her National Jewish Book Award finalist THE LAST TRAIN TO LONDON was praised by Kristin Hannah as “An absolutely fascinating, beautifully rendered story of love, loss, and heroism … A glowing portrait of women rising up against impossible odds.”
Prior novels include the #1 Amazon fiction bestseller BEAUTIFUL EXILES, the Langum-Prize honored national bestseller THE RACE FOR PARIS- and THE WEDNESDAY SISTERS, one of Entertainment Weekly's "25 Essential Best Friend Novels" of all time. Her THE LANGUAGE OF LIGHT was a finalist for the Bellwether Prize (now PEN/Bellwether Prize).
Her novels have been published in 24 languages throughout the world.
She has also written more than 100 pieces for major newspapers, magazines, and public radio. She has participated in the Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman sponsored The Writers Lab for screenwriting, mentors in the OpEd Project, and is a member of the National Book Critics Circle and the California bar. megwaiteclayton.com
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November 8, 2022
Book number 2 from the TBR Takedown, and knocking off my oldest Netgalley book!
Two stars means "it's ok" and that's pretty much the way I feel about this one. I think that there are a couple of reasons why it didn't resonate with me.
The first is, I just finished The Wednesday Sisters and those characters were much more defined than the ones here. I couldn't remember whose daughter was whose for the most part, and I found myself missing those first characters, even though Ally's journal is a big part of this book.
The second is that it is kind of disjointed for me. Moving between the daughters and their choices and the men they meet in England AND the men they are in relationships with AND going back to the past and having Ally in imaginary conversations with Beatrix Potter AND stories about her life. I just got weary from all of the characters and their issues.
There are some interesting and engaging parts, but I thought it was too long and since it was written a few years after the first one I should have waited longer between them to read it. I listened to the audiobook, which did help me get through it more quickly, and the narrator does a great job with the various accents helping me to keep the characters straight.
If you like women's fiction, especially women's fiction set in England, this book might hit the spot. It can stand alone easily so you really don't need to read The Wednesday Sisters first.
Two stars means "it's ok" and that's pretty much the way I feel about this one. I think that there are a couple of reasons why it didn't resonate with me.
The first is, I just finished The Wednesday Sisters and those characters were much more defined than the ones here. I couldn't remember whose daughter was whose for the most part, and I found myself missing those first characters, even though Ally's journal is a big part of this book.
The second is that it is kind of disjointed for me. Moving between the daughters and their choices and the men they meet in England AND the men they are in relationships with AND going back to the past and having Ally in imaginary conversations with Beatrix Potter AND stories about her life. I just got weary from all of the characters and their issues.
There are some interesting and engaging parts, but I thought it was too long and since it was written a few years after the first one I should have waited longer between them to read it. I listened to the audiobook, which did help me get through it more quickly, and the narrator does a great job with the various accents helping me to keep the characters straight.
If you like women's fiction, especially women's fiction set in England, this book might hit the spot. It can stand alone easily so you really don't need to read The Wednesday Sisters first.
October 10, 2019
I’m going to admit I struggled with this book.
I hadn’t read book one, I didn’t realise it was a series and I felt like I’d missed something all the way through.
I see there are others that have struggled and found the book hard to read or connect with.
I really wanted to finish it, but halfway I decided to skim it....so my review is only based on the first half of the book.
I hadn’t read book one, I didn’t realise it was a series and I felt like I’d missed something all the way through.
I see there are others that have struggled and found the book hard to read or connect with.
I really wanted to finish it, but halfway I decided to skim it....so my review is only based on the first half of the book.
March 16, 2013
Dear Wednesday Sisters fans,
Thanks so much to the delightfully many of you who suggested I write this sequel of sorts that I never meant to write. It was such a warm pleasure to rejoin these old friends and their now-grown daughters, and I would never have thought to do it if not for you. I hope the daughters find as comfortable a place in your affections as their mothers did, and as you have found in mine.
Warmly,
Meg
Thanks so much to the delightfully many of you who suggested I write this sequel of sorts that I never meant to write. It was such a warm pleasure to rejoin these old friends and their now-grown daughters, and I would never have thought to do it if not for you. I hope the daughters find as comfortable a place in your affections as their mothers did, and as you have found in mine.
Warmly,
Meg
August 30, 2013
I loved the Wednesday Sisters and gave it 5 stars. I think the only reason I gave the Wednesday Daughters 2 stars was because of that.
This book was dreadful. The final chapters tied it all together and I would like to say you could read those and know what was going on, but there were bits of information threaded throughout the book.
The book was confusing. I thought I was losing my memory because I couldn't keep the characters straight, but see others had the same problem. It didn't help that they all had nicknames...I mean keep with one name for the people especially when a book is so confusing.
I had read the previous book but I don't think it helped except that I knew there were Wednesday Sisters. No real tie-in to those people that made a difference.
I maybe read one Beatrix Potter book about 40 years ago, and I am not a fan. The references to her and her books were not needed and made the book even more dreadful.
I would not recommend this book to anyone.
This book was dreadful. The final chapters tied it all together and I would like to say you could read those and know what was going on, but there were bits of information threaded throughout the book.
The book was confusing. I thought I was losing my memory because I couldn't keep the characters straight, but see others had the same problem. It didn't help that they all had nicknames...I mean keep with one name for the people especially when a book is so confusing.
I had read the previous book but I don't think it helped except that I knew there were Wednesday Sisters. No real tie-in to those people that made a difference.
I maybe read one Beatrix Potter book about 40 years ago, and I am not a fan. The references to her and her books were not needed and made the book even more dreadful.
I would not recommend this book to anyone.
June 10, 2013
The one star given is, appropriately, 'did NOT like it'.
Nor could I continue reading it. It remains unfinished.
As to the writing, much of the beginning was actually garbled. Constant confusion of voices and multiple characters. It continued with each chapter change of undesignated viewpoints.
The only writing I valued was the fictional discussions with Beatrix Potter, the deceased mother's unpublished work in progress. Each chapter opened with a Potter quote which was delightful. Unfortunately, the contrast of this juxtaposed against the baseness of the contemporary story served to highlight the incongruity.
The reality of this supposed close 'family' of friendships is nothing short of questionable. One of the Wednesday daughters, a surgeon, telling another, Julie, a twin [whose sister has died a year ago] and who has just filed divorce papers, she should screw the boatman who rowed them to the cottage they're visiting because it might do her some good?
That same twin, Julie, answering a late night caller in nothing but her husband's shirt, then cuddling outside under a blanket with her sister Jamie's husband who has come to deliver the news of Jamie's impending death? No mention of her going indoors to tell her husband of this life impacting news nor does he check who has shown up at that late hour when she doesn't return inside. Seriously? Wouldn't the grieving husband be at home with his wife, Julie, her sister, comforting and consoling each other in the moment? Why would these two be consoling each other? Totally inappropriate and unreal.
This is barely concealed fantasy and not a healthy one at that. Do I really want to read about women choosing to live with such a low level of intelligence and life's core values? Making such unwise, damaging choices? I think not.
With all the positive women's reading influence available, I have already invested too much of my reading time feeling uncomfortably like a voyeur.
*I received this book from Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for my review without obligation.
Nor could I continue reading it. It remains unfinished.
As to the writing, much of the beginning was actually garbled. Constant confusion of voices and multiple characters. It continued with each chapter change of undesignated viewpoints.
The only writing I valued was the fictional discussions with Beatrix Potter, the deceased mother's unpublished work in progress. Each chapter opened with a Potter quote which was delightful. Unfortunately, the contrast of this juxtaposed against the baseness of the contemporary story served to highlight the incongruity.
The reality of this supposed close 'family' of friendships is nothing short of questionable. One of the Wednesday daughters, a surgeon, telling another, Julie, a twin [whose sister has died a year ago] and who has just filed divorce papers, she should screw the boatman who rowed them to the cottage they're visiting because it might do her some good?
That same twin, Julie, answering a late night caller in nothing but her husband's shirt, then cuddling outside under a blanket with her sister Jamie's husband who has come to deliver the news of Jamie's impending death? No mention of her going indoors to tell her husband of this life impacting news nor does he check who has shown up at that late hour when she doesn't return inside. Seriously? Wouldn't the grieving husband be at home with his wife, Julie, her sister, comforting and consoling each other in the moment? Why would these two be consoling each other? Totally inappropriate and unreal.
This is barely concealed fantasy and not a healthy one at that. Do I really want to read about women choosing to live with such a low level of intelligence and life's core values? Making such unwise, damaging choices? I think not.
With all the positive women's reading influence available, I have already invested too much of my reading time feeling uncomfortably like a voyeur.
*I received this book from Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for my review without obligation.
March 25, 2013
A very memorable book. There isn't a tremendous amount of action in this novel, but there is substance. This book will at times make you laugh, make you reminisce and even make you shed a few tears.
This novel is very much about people and the unbreakable bonds that form among the women in a family from generation to generation. There are mothers, daughters, sisters and friends and you will find yourself thinking of them long after the last page has been turned. The characters in this book are you and I and everyone we have ever loved rolled up into a tidy bundle of amazing character development and intelligent plotting.
What I loved about this the most, was that the situations were so real that the label "fiction" is nearly forgotten. I got an overwhelming sense of familiarity and comfort from reading this book and it was the type of book that made an ordinary Sunday afternoon into something much better.
Through the author's storytelling ability the reader gets to explore the deepest recesses of the heart in an unforgettable journey. If you loved "the Wednesday Sisters" you must read this book. I would recommend this to anyone who loves a tender and well written book.
This review is based on a digital ARC from the publisher and provided by Netgalley.
This novel is very much about people and the unbreakable bonds that form among the women in a family from generation to generation. There are mothers, daughters, sisters and friends and you will find yourself thinking of them long after the last page has been turned. The characters in this book are you and I and everyone we have ever loved rolled up into a tidy bundle of amazing character development and intelligent plotting.
What I loved about this the most, was that the situations were so real that the label "fiction" is nearly forgotten. I got an overwhelming sense of familiarity and comfort from reading this book and it was the type of book that made an ordinary Sunday afternoon into something much better.
Through the author's storytelling ability the reader gets to explore the deepest recesses of the heart in an unforgettable journey. If you loved "the Wednesday Sisters" you must read this book. I would recommend this to anyone who loves a tender and well written book.
This review is based on a digital ARC from the publisher and provided by Netgalley.
July 27, 2013
Loved the Wednesday Sisters but thought this one was a huge mess. I felt like it started in the middle because I had no idea who anyone was (even though I read the first book!) and even after I figured out who was who, like many other reviewers, I had a hard time following it. Absolutely terrible. I'm not even sure why I'm going it two whole stars.
July 8, 2013
Dry, boring, monotone and confusing. I don't have a clue what I read. I was excited about it because I loved the wendsday sisters. The wendsday Daughters leave a lot to be desisted.
April 6, 2013
I loved “The Wednesday Sisters,” so I was pretty excited when “The Wednesday Daughters” came out. I wanted to love this book, but there were too many structural oddities that prevented it. If Clayton wanted to be omniscient, as she clearly did to craft the story as such, then why didn’t she choose third-person omniscient? It would have flushed out the almost head-hopping first chapters that felt scattered and frenetic. Fortunately, the pace did slow down later on. Telling the story from Hope’s perspective (first person) failed. There were several scenes in which Hope couldn’t have possibly known what her friends were thinking or doing. I would have thought the author’s editor would have fixed this. Ally’s diary dialogue with Beatrix Potter was fine, but using quotes from Potter’s books at the beginning of each chapter also disturbed me. The Wednesday Daughters were dealing with very adult issues (coming to terms with the death of a loved one, entertaining divorce, making real human connections), which seemed strange juxtaposed with quotes from children’s books of little animals. Maybe I missed something.
September 20, 2021
What an absolute mess. I've read 4 chapters and cannot continue. I've got whiplash from the way the narrative changes narrators and subjects and interjects non-sequiters into sequences. It's almost like a drunk person wrote this (where was her editor?). Characters' behavior made no sense (I don't get it - Anna Page invites the boat driver to meet her at midnight? Or is this just Julie's speculation? And why is Julie jealous...?).
And don't get me started on the diary chapters about a woman's 100% imaginary conversations with Beatrix Potter which seemed lunatic. The cutesy quotes about Mr. Beaver and Bunny So-and-so felt completely out of place against talk of breast cancer, death and divorce.
I have no idea where Clayton is going with this, but after 4 chapters I do not have the patience to find out. Such a shame as I really enjoyed The Wednesday Sisters.
And don't get me started on the diary chapters about a woman's 100% imaginary conversations with Beatrix Potter which seemed lunatic. The cutesy quotes about Mr. Beaver and Bunny So-and-so felt completely out of place against talk of breast cancer, death and divorce.
I have no idea where Clayton is going with this, but after 4 chapters I do not have the patience to find out. Such a shame as I really enjoyed The Wednesday Sisters.
October 19, 2013
I loved this book once I got into it. The descriptions of the locales are wonderful and they make the reader feel like they are there in the Lake District of England. The interactions of the characters are intriguing. The way that Beatrix Potter is woven in, gives the book an added dimension. I would definitely recommend this book!
October 23, 2014
The Wednesday Daughters by Meg Waite Clayton is a 2013 Random House /Ballantine publication. I was provided a copy of this book as a part of the Library Thing early review program in exchange for an honest review.
I will be honest and confess I did not read the first book- The Wednesday Sisters. I didn't even realize this book was a sequel. So, it goes without saying that you can read this one as a stand alone, but it might enhance this one for you if you had the back story.
The daughters of the “Wednesday Sisters” couldn't help but forge a bond while growing up considering the close relationship their mothers had with one another. They have congregated at the cottage of Hope's mother to go through her belongings and close up the cottage. When Hope happens upon a set of journals written in a code she is curious, worried that they were written in a gibberish she would never be able to decipher. It comes to light the journals Ally writes are conversations she had with Beatrix Potter, the famous children's book author long after the author had died, but they reveal a lot to Hope she never knew about her family.
The ladies are stunned to meet a certain gentleman while staying there who at first unnerves them but when they discover his identity, he takes them on a trip of the landscape around the cottage, showing the a side of Ally they never knew.
Each of the women are going through some kind of grief or turning point in their lives. Loss of loved ones and marital issues to name a few. Hope's mixed race is an prominent storyline as well as her relationship with her husband, Kevin. The other women, Julie and Anna Page equally have problems which are complex and deep.
I don't know if it was because of I didn't read the first book or if I was looking at the hype the first book received which gave me a higher expectation of it, but I couldn't really get into it like I had hoped to. I am of course familiar with Beatrix Potter, and thought the journal was kind of quirky as well as revealing, but the convoluted lives of the daughters were all difficult to follow or relate to. I never really warmed up to any of them. I'm not sure what the author was going for here, but it just lost me, I'm sorry to say. The story was just too uneven and disorganized, going back and forth in time and through childhood memories to the complications each woman was facing currently. Many times I just wondered where it was all going, and while I did enjoy seeing Hope find her way and Anna Page find love, the ending was anti-climatic. This one just didn't do it for me. 2 stars
I will be honest and confess I did not read the first book- The Wednesday Sisters. I didn't even realize this book was a sequel. So, it goes without saying that you can read this one as a stand alone, but it might enhance this one for you if you had the back story.
The daughters of the “Wednesday Sisters” couldn't help but forge a bond while growing up considering the close relationship their mothers had with one another. They have congregated at the cottage of Hope's mother to go through her belongings and close up the cottage. When Hope happens upon a set of journals written in a code she is curious, worried that they were written in a gibberish she would never be able to decipher. It comes to light the journals Ally writes are conversations she had with Beatrix Potter, the famous children's book author long after the author had died, but they reveal a lot to Hope she never knew about her family.
The ladies are stunned to meet a certain gentleman while staying there who at first unnerves them but when they discover his identity, he takes them on a trip of the landscape around the cottage, showing the a side of Ally they never knew.
Each of the women are going through some kind of grief or turning point in their lives. Loss of loved ones and marital issues to name a few. Hope's mixed race is an prominent storyline as well as her relationship with her husband, Kevin. The other women, Julie and Anna Page equally have problems which are complex and deep.
I don't know if it was because of I didn't read the first book or if I was looking at the hype the first book received which gave me a higher expectation of it, but I couldn't really get into it like I had hoped to. I am of course familiar with Beatrix Potter, and thought the journal was kind of quirky as well as revealing, but the convoluted lives of the daughters were all difficult to follow or relate to. I never really warmed up to any of them. I'm not sure what the author was going for here, but it just lost me, I'm sorry to say. The story was just too uneven and disorganized, going back and forth in time and through childhood memories to the complications each woman was facing currently. Many times I just wondered where it was all going, and while I did enjoy seeing Hope find her way and Anna Page find love, the ending was anti-climatic. This one just didn't do it for me. 2 stars
April 15, 2015
As beautiful as the writing in this book is, it almost makes me feel bad to say how much I did not enjoy the book. Almost. Too many characters introduced too quickly who's voices are all too similar. I spent the first half of the book thoroughly confused as to which woman I was reading about or who was talking because they all sound the same. They all quote the same classic authors and have all the same (non-funny) humor. Therefore, I found it very hard to care about them. I pretty much only sort of liked the last 50 pages.
May 9, 2013
Hope Tantry along with her friends, Anna and Julie visits the cottage where her mother spent the last years of her life. Hope’s mother’, Ally, had used this cottage as a retreat to finish her biography on Beatrix Potter. Hope knew very little about the time her mother spent here.
Hope soon realises that there’s a lot of things that she did not know about her mother – like the friendly neighbour next door and the encoded journal that ally left hidden in a drawer. Hope is overwhelmed by her grief, the unanswered questions and her doubts about her own marriage. She also realises that her friends have their own struggles – Julie is still grieving the loss of her twin sister and Anna’s facing her fear of commitments. As they try to find the answers regarding Ally, they take on a journey of their own that teaches them more about love and family.
Though Hope stands out in the novel, Anna and Julie are equally important parts of it. The characters are each unique in their own ways, yet it feels like as if the story would be incomplete even without any one of them. Well-developed characters are easy to connect to and these characters were no different. Even though I haven’t read Wednesday’s Sisters, the prequel to this one, I never felt completely lost. The intertwined lives of the characters were really interesting to read about.
The plot line is simple yet compelling. Bringing together the lives of the ‘Wednesday Sisters’ and the ‘Wednesday Daughters’, this book deals mostly about how each person’s past can influence their present and future. The book also explores the bonds of friendship and family and their effect on our lives. Even the secrets kept from the ones closest to us and betrayals – basically with the simplest concepts of each and every person’s lives. The author has managed to deliver it all in a beautifully wrapped package that is her very precise style of writing.
Though ‘Wednesday Daughters’ can stand alone, I wish I had read ‘Wednesday Sisters’ before reading this so as to be able to forge a relationship with both the generations from the very beginning.
Hope soon realises that there’s a lot of things that she did not know about her mother – like the friendly neighbour next door and the encoded journal that ally left hidden in a drawer. Hope is overwhelmed by her grief, the unanswered questions and her doubts about her own marriage. She also realises that her friends have their own struggles – Julie is still grieving the loss of her twin sister and Anna’s facing her fear of commitments. As they try to find the answers regarding Ally, they take on a journey of their own that teaches them more about love and family.
Though Hope stands out in the novel, Anna and Julie are equally important parts of it. The characters are each unique in their own ways, yet it feels like as if the story would be incomplete even without any one of them. Well-developed characters are easy to connect to and these characters were no different. Even though I haven’t read Wednesday’s Sisters, the prequel to this one, I never felt completely lost. The intertwined lives of the characters were really interesting to read about.
The plot line is simple yet compelling. Bringing together the lives of the ‘Wednesday Sisters’ and the ‘Wednesday Daughters’, this book deals mostly about how each person’s past can influence their present and future. The book also explores the bonds of friendship and family and their effect on our lives. Even the secrets kept from the ones closest to us and betrayals – basically with the simplest concepts of each and every person’s lives. The author has managed to deliver it all in a beautifully wrapped package that is her very precise style of writing.
Though ‘Wednesday Daughters’ can stand alone, I wish I had read ‘Wednesday Sisters’ before reading this so as to be able to forge a relationship with both the generations from the very beginning.
February 16, 2014
I liked the prequel to this book, The Wednesday Sisters, quite a bit, as well as The Four Ms. Bradwells, so of course was looking forward to this one. What a disappointment! First, the Beatrix Potter thing just does not work. It wasn't interesting, it made the plot confusing, and if you're not a Potter fan, it's just annoying. Then, I can appreciate the challenge of writing a sequel attuned to fine line between not boring the readers who read the prior book and not confusing the readers who haven't, but this book erred on providing too little info from the first book. Suddenly there was this whirlwind of characters with little introduction, referred to with such familiarity, and given that I read the prior book nearly two years ago (and it came out in 2008), there really needed to be more context for the sisters before jumping into the daughters' story. It took me about half the book to get all the characters straight, and if it takes that long, it generally means I don't end up caring about what happens to them very much.
April 22, 2015
I’m being generous with 3 stars.
I had high hopes for the sequel (or complement) to The Wednesday Sisters. Unfortunately, the book takes on the frenetic, chaotic rambling of too many undefined characters, with too many rushed details, with too many run-on sentences, to care about. There isn't a clear backstory, but even knowing the history (admittedly read a few years ago) I was terribly confused about where the storyline landed, and when.
At about the halfway mark, however, the books pace finally started settle into its proper pace. The ramblings finally became purposeful, and even the characters started to figure out who they were (and the reader finally figured out who they were…mostly). It was at this point that I became motivated to finish the story. And yet one is still not completely endeared to the characters...in fact, the only true hero in the story doesn't enter the scene until the very last part of the book (he really was wonderful).
The Beatrix Potter angle I'm sure was well-intended, but seemed overdone, and took over the story instead of adding to it. It would have worked better if it were the primary focus/theme of another story line. In short, it wasn't what readers came to expect after the the first book.
I had high hopes for the sequel (or complement) to The Wednesday Sisters. Unfortunately, the book takes on the frenetic, chaotic rambling of too many undefined characters, with too many rushed details, with too many run-on sentences, to care about. There isn't a clear backstory, but even knowing the history (admittedly read a few years ago) I was terribly confused about where the storyline landed, and when.
At about the halfway mark, however, the books pace finally started settle into its proper pace. The ramblings finally became purposeful, and even the characters started to figure out who they were (and the reader finally figured out who they were…mostly). It was at this point that I became motivated to finish the story. And yet one is still not completely endeared to the characters...in fact, the only true hero in the story doesn't enter the scene until the very last part of the book (he really was wonderful).
The Beatrix Potter angle I'm sure was well-intended, but seemed overdone, and took over the story instead of adding to it. It would have worked better if it were the primary focus/theme of another story line. In short, it wasn't what readers came to expect after the the first book.
March 24, 2013
It took me a little bit to get into this novel mainly because it had been so long since I had read The Wednesday Sisters and I was trying to familiarize myself with the characters again. Once I realized that those characters are just on the fringes of this novel I could relax into this one and lose myself in a new set of people. I really liked this book. Meg did a fantastic job of weaving people in and out of the story and I loved how different yet intertwined everyone was. Good read!!
December 6, 2021
I love how the friendship between mothers created friendship between their children. I love how the oldest daughter thoroughly loved the youngest daughter and wanted to help take care of her. I love how all the mothers and daughters learned how important their relationships with other people were. I didn't love the incredible sadness of losing several of the characters, but death is part of life and can't be hidden or ignored.
March 16, 2013
I got this as an advanced reading copy and loved it. The Wednesday Sisters was a terrific novel and this is equally charming and absorbing. Clayton gives us wonderful characters with heart who stay with you long after the novel is over.
September 9, 2015
A take off from Wednesday sisters. The daughters take a trip to England. Hope, Anna Page and Julie arrive in the Lake District to help Hope sort through her mothers things. It brought back bittersweet memories. Hope and her friends sort through their own problems. It draws them closer together.
April 11, 2020
It is rare that I don’t finish a book. This one is so boring and I don’t understand the Beatrix Potter bits. I don’t think I ever read any of her books. I give up.
July 21, 2018
During the late 1960s, five extraordinary young women - Frankie, Linda, Kath, Ally and Brett - forged an amazing friendship that endured for a lifetime. Although the ladies initially had little in common with each other beyond a shared love of literature and watching the ‘Miss America Pageant’ together, their casual bond quickly blossomed into a much stronger relationship than any of the women could ever have imagined. ‘The Wednesday Sisters’ as they began calling themselves, soon realized that they were seeking out each other’s company more and more - commiserating over the myriad issues experienced in marriage and young motherhood; as well as buoying each other through the triumphs and tragedies faced in real life. And while ‘The Wednesday Sisters’ friendship lasted for four decades, the unique closeness these ladies experienced has extended into the next generation.
During the fall of 2011, Hope arrives in the English Lakes District to close up her mother Ally’s holiday cottage. Although she doesn’t anticipate anything going wrong during her visit - especially with lifelong friends Anna Page and Julie along to help - she still isn’t quite prepared for what does happen. Soon after arriving at the cottage, Hope discovers a stack of her mother’s old journals written in some sort of indecipherable code. Equally perplexing is the mysterious stranger who knocks at the door, claiming that the women are actually trespassing on private property.
The wealthy Englishman is Ally’s nearest neighbor, although she never mentioned him - either to her daughter or to anyone else. Calling himself Graham, the man invites Hope, Anna Page and Julie to take a tour of the English Lakes - in order to get a more intimate glimpse of the forests, fells, and waterfalls that inspired Beatrix Potter’s childhood classic Peter Rabbit and the poetry of William Wordsworth. However, what begins as a chance for Hope to learn more about the relationship between Ally and her eccentric English friend, quickly turns into something else entirely - something infinitely sweeter and much more meaningful to all three women. These guided tours become journeys through the emotional landscapes of their mothers’ choices in life - as well as their own.
As the daughters begin to uncover the true reasons behind Ally’s frequent trips to England - reasons that are as intricate and as personal as the secret puzzlebox that Hope carries with her - they reach a deeper understanding of the complexities of romance, the bonds of family, and the inescapable pull of the past.
First of all, let me say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Wednesday Sisters: A Novel by Meg Waite Clayton when I read it back in November of 2015. It only took me four days to read that book, and I was so looking forward to reading its sequel. To be perfectly honest, while I certainly enjoyed reading The Wednesday Daughters: A Novel by Meg Waite Clayton very much, I think that my expectations for this book were almost too high. In my opinion, the contemporary storyline was perhaps the most enjoyable of the two - although I appreciated that the historical storyline was also included.
I understand that Beatrix Potter was a prolific children’s author - and that she has ardent fans of her work - but I must admit that I have never read any of her books myself. As a result, I didn’t really follow the historical storyline all that well. Having said that, I would still give this book a definite B+!
During the fall of 2011, Hope arrives in the English Lakes District to close up her mother Ally’s holiday cottage. Although she doesn’t anticipate anything going wrong during her visit - especially with lifelong friends Anna Page and Julie along to help - she still isn’t quite prepared for what does happen. Soon after arriving at the cottage, Hope discovers a stack of her mother’s old journals written in some sort of indecipherable code. Equally perplexing is the mysterious stranger who knocks at the door, claiming that the women are actually trespassing on private property.
The wealthy Englishman is Ally’s nearest neighbor, although she never mentioned him - either to her daughter or to anyone else. Calling himself Graham, the man invites Hope, Anna Page and Julie to take a tour of the English Lakes - in order to get a more intimate glimpse of the forests, fells, and waterfalls that inspired Beatrix Potter’s childhood classic Peter Rabbit and the poetry of William Wordsworth. However, what begins as a chance for Hope to learn more about the relationship between Ally and her eccentric English friend, quickly turns into something else entirely - something infinitely sweeter and much more meaningful to all three women. These guided tours become journeys through the emotional landscapes of their mothers’ choices in life - as well as their own.
As the daughters begin to uncover the true reasons behind Ally’s frequent trips to England - reasons that are as intricate and as personal as the secret puzzlebox that Hope carries with her - they reach a deeper understanding of the complexities of romance, the bonds of family, and the inescapable pull of the past.
First of all, let me say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Wednesday Sisters: A Novel by Meg Waite Clayton when I read it back in November of 2015. It only took me four days to read that book, and I was so looking forward to reading its sequel. To be perfectly honest, while I certainly enjoyed reading The Wednesday Daughters: A Novel by Meg Waite Clayton very much, I think that my expectations for this book were almost too high. In my opinion, the contemporary storyline was perhaps the most enjoyable of the two - although I appreciated that the historical storyline was also included.
I understand that Beatrix Potter was a prolific children’s author - and that she has ardent fans of her work - but I must admit that I have never read any of her books myself. As a result, I didn’t really follow the historical storyline all that well. Having said that, I would still give this book a definite B+!
July 16, 2013
So, I'm not going to lie. When I received The Wednesday Daughters in the mail, I anxiously picked it right up and started reading, having loved Meg Waite Clayton's two previous novels. Then I thought for a moment that I was reading something a little too familiar. I felt like The Wednesday Daughters was treading too similar waters, that the characters from The Wednesday Sisters had been dropped into the setting of The Four Ms Bradwells, where friends go off to a cottage in the woods to deal with a major life change. Well, I was wrong. Yes, it does seem at first as if the Daughters borrow heavily from her previous two novels, but that's not really the case. At all.
The book opens with three of the Wednesday Daughters, Julie, Anne Page, and Hope, arriving at Ally's (Hope's mother) writing cottage shortly after Ally's death. They've come here to help Hope sort through her mother's belongings, and almost immediately on their arrival, Hope begins to discover there is an entire portion of her mother's life that she didn't know about. What follows is a lovely story on the discovery of family ties and friendships, and how those ties can bind, even through the years and beyond death.
Intermixed in the story is a biography of sorts of Beatrix Potter. Ally had been working on this biography when she died, and how Clayton has her go about working on it is actually quite clever.
Quite frankly, once I really got into the story, I couldn't put it down. I actually read the entire book in two sittings, and I'm honestly embarrassed by my initial reaction to the book. Meg Waite Clayton has clearly had some amazing female friendships in her lifetime, as she knows how to write about them and create realistic and believable characters and the experiences and emotions, both good and bad, that flow between friends who are more family and who have known each other their entire lives. I liked how Daughters isn't a direct sequel to Sisters. Yes, there is mention of the Wednesday Sisters from the first book, and there are even guest appearances, but this isn't really their story. This story deals directly with the Wednesday Daughters, and the challenges that their generation can face in the real world. You don't need to read Sisters to enjoy Daughters, but being familiar with the first book does enhance the reading experience for Daughters.
I love Meg Waite Clayton's writing. She writes in such a familiar fashion that is so easy to read, and moves the story along with such beautiful imagery. I enjoy her characters, I enjoy her pacing, I enjoy her language. So basically, ignore everything I said at the beginning of this review and pick up the book. If you've read her previous novels, you'll be reminded why Clayton is such a great writer, and if you are new to her writing, you'll be pleasantly surprised.
Highly recommended and happy reading!
The book opens with three of the Wednesday Daughters, Julie, Anne Page, and Hope, arriving at Ally's (Hope's mother) writing cottage shortly after Ally's death. They've come here to help Hope sort through her mother's belongings, and almost immediately on their arrival, Hope begins to discover there is an entire portion of her mother's life that she didn't know about. What follows is a lovely story on the discovery of family ties and friendships, and how those ties can bind, even through the years and beyond death.
Intermixed in the story is a biography of sorts of Beatrix Potter. Ally had been working on this biography when she died, and how Clayton has her go about working on it is actually quite clever.
Quite frankly, once I really got into the story, I couldn't put it down. I actually read the entire book in two sittings, and I'm honestly embarrassed by my initial reaction to the book. Meg Waite Clayton has clearly had some amazing female friendships in her lifetime, as she knows how to write about them and create realistic and believable characters and the experiences and emotions, both good and bad, that flow between friends who are more family and who have known each other their entire lives. I liked how Daughters isn't a direct sequel to Sisters. Yes, there is mention of the Wednesday Sisters from the first book, and there are even guest appearances, but this isn't really their story. This story deals directly with the Wednesday Daughters, and the challenges that their generation can face in the real world. You don't need to read Sisters to enjoy Daughters, but being familiar with the first book does enhance the reading experience for Daughters.
I love Meg Waite Clayton's writing. She writes in such a familiar fashion that is so easy to read, and moves the story along with such beautiful imagery. I enjoy her characters, I enjoy her pacing, I enjoy her language. So basically, ignore everything I said at the beginning of this review and pick up the book. If you've read her previous novels, you'll be reminded why Clayton is such a great writer, and if you are new to her writing, you'll be pleasantly surprised.
Highly recommended and happy reading!
June 26, 2014
Meg Waite Clayton's book The Wednesday Daughters is absolutely wonderful book about families - immediate and extended families - about friends, about love, about lovers and spouses, about children and parents, about books and authors, about old and new memories, about losses and grief, about finding things you didn't know were lost and things you thought you lost forever, and most of all about not losing the love of the loved ones, who are no longer with us.
It was really deep and emotional book. I believe that somebody who does not have a stone heart as I do would have read this whole book through tears, even I teared up quite often. We all grow older with each passing day, we all face the possibility to lose the important people around us, and do we want it or not, we have to find a way to accept the loss and find the way to move on.
Besides this really sweet and emotional farewell story, there is a lot of talk about Beatrix Potter, about her books, her life, the things she loved, the people she loved. I grew up listening Joel Chandler Harris's Uncle Remus stories and first time I heard anything about Miss Potter, was when the movie came out, so I do not know her books. But as I can recite some things from Uncle Remus stories by heart, I understand how those who grew up with Beatrix Potter's books know her books by heart.
The Wednesday Daughters is an amazing book that could rip your heart out and same time it gives you the sense that even if things are really difficult, you got to stay true and all will work out just fine.
It was really deep and emotional book. I believe that somebody who does not have a stone heart as I do would have read this whole book through tears, even I teared up quite often. We all grow older with each passing day, we all face the possibility to lose the important people around us, and do we want it or not, we have to find a way to accept the loss and find the way to move on.
Besides this really sweet and emotional farewell story, there is a lot of talk about Beatrix Potter, about her books, her life, the things she loved, the people she loved. I grew up listening Joel Chandler Harris's Uncle Remus stories and first time I heard anything about Miss Potter, was when the movie came out, so I do not know her books. But as I can recite some things from Uncle Remus stories by heart, I understand how those who grew up with Beatrix Potter's books know her books by heart.
The Wednesday Daughters is an amazing book that could rip your heart out and same time it gives you the sense that even if things are really difficult, you got to stay true and all will work out just fine.
December 31, 2013
A compassionate story of mothers and daughters, best friends, and secrets.
Hope is devastated when her mother, Ally passes away without warning. This sudden loss has left her numb and her grief has prevented her from sorting through her mother's belongings. However, she doesn't have the luxury of stalling when it comes to dealing with the material items that her mother left behind in a small cottage in the Lake District of England, where she spent much of her later life writing a biography of Beatrix Potter.
Julie and Anna Page accompany her on this journey and they have been there for one another for years. They are born to a group of women who call themselves the Wednesday sisters; therefore now they are called the Wednesday Daughters.
Each woman is struggling with a demon of her own. Julie lost her twin sister to breast cancer the previous year, and Hope misses her mother and struggling with her marriage. Anna (the eldest) connects with men on a sexual level but never an emotional one. The women band together to say their farewells to Alley and come to face some hard truths about themselves.
Ally used the cottage as a writer’s retreat while she worked on her unpublished biography of Beatrix Potter, yet Hope really knows little of her mother’s time there. Hope finds some of Ally’s old notebooks in a hidden drawer written in a mysterious code. They begin to decipher her writings and the reason for Ally’s stay in England comes to light.
The journals divulge the secrets of an age-old family history and she soon realizes she did not know her mother as well as she thought. A heartwarming story of a group of women who still love one another despite their shortcomings.
Hope is devastated when her mother, Ally passes away without warning. This sudden loss has left her numb and her grief has prevented her from sorting through her mother's belongings. However, she doesn't have the luxury of stalling when it comes to dealing with the material items that her mother left behind in a small cottage in the Lake District of England, where she spent much of her later life writing a biography of Beatrix Potter.
Julie and Anna Page accompany her on this journey and they have been there for one another for years. They are born to a group of women who call themselves the Wednesday sisters; therefore now they are called the Wednesday Daughters.
Each woman is struggling with a demon of her own. Julie lost her twin sister to breast cancer the previous year, and Hope misses her mother and struggling with her marriage. Anna (the eldest) connects with men on a sexual level but never an emotional one. The women band together to say their farewells to Alley and come to face some hard truths about themselves.
Ally used the cottage as a writer’s retreat while she worked on her unpublished biography of Beatrix Potter, yet Hope really knows little of her mother’s time there. Hope finds some of Ally’s old notebooks in a hidden drawer written in a mysterious code. They begin to decipher her writings and the reason for Ally’s stay in England comes to light.
The journals divulge the secrets of an age-old family history and she soon realizes she did not know her mother as well as she thought. A heartwarming story of a group of women who still love one another despite their shortcomings.
July 31, 2013
This was a great book it is about 3 women who are the Wednesday daughters and they come together after Hope’s mother dies. They bring her ashes to leave them in England’s Lake District where her mother went to write. I liked the characters in this book, they were real people to me. I enjoyed the excerpts from the Beatrix Potter stories at the beginning of each chapter. I found it a little weird at first that the ghost of Beatrix Potter was following Hope’s mom around all the time, but you get used to it after awhile. I did not find this book confusing. I felt it was pretty clear when it skipped back and forth from one character’s story to another. It has characters that grow and develop through out the book and has a happy ending. The women learn about themselves and grow and Hope discovers secrets about who her mother really was. This book brings to light all of the private sides and thoughts of the women and they grow closer.
Okay, yes it did remind me of the Ya Ya Sisters. Is it better? I don’t know. I liked it for what it was. Yes the background of the girls is similar in that their mothers are all friends, but the events in the girl’s lives are different and there is the addition of the Beatrix Potter elements. I think that my mom will love this book. She likes mother daughter stories. This book kept my attention and it contained enough action to hold my interest. I give it 5 out of 5 stars
Okay, yes it did remind me of the Ya Ya Sisters. Is it better? I don’t know. I liked it for what it was. Yes the background of the girls is similar in that their mothers are all friends, but the events in the girl’s lives are different and there is the addition of the Beatrix Potter elements. I think that my mom will love this book. She likes mother daughter stories. This book kept my attention and it contained enough action to hold my interest. I give it 5 out of 5 stars
February 13, 2014
What I liked most about Meg Clayton Waite’s new novel The Wednesday Daughters is its gentleness. Maybe because so much of what we read or hear about these days is grim, grim, grim, I felt eased into a softer world every time I opened the book. There’s sadness and loss recounted in the story, of course, but there are also short passages of description of England’s Lake District or the well realized details of a sunset that are captivating. Much of the book involves a reimagined Beatrix Potter, and I didn’t know much about Potter, sadly. So I watched the movie Miss Potter, did a little background reading, and was soon swept up in the imagined companionship between Bea and one of the characters. The conflicts and reconciliations among the women and between the male and female characters keeps the book moving as well. This novel is a worthy sequel to the author’s popular The Wednesday Sisters. I highly recommend it, especially if you don’t require a novel full of wild action and exclamated (I know there isn’t such a word, but there should be) dialogue. If telling stories is, as one of the characters in the book says, a way of showing our love, then Ms. Clayton Waite must have a generous heart.
February 18, 2014
I honestly hated this book. I picked it up to read because I enjoyed the Wednesday Sisters well enough (although I think I remember being annoyed with many parts of that book too). I thought the characters were caricatures of themselves, which is how I felt about the first book too - the sweet girl who quotes Beatrix Potter constantly and says, "Heavens to Betsy" constantly - ugh. I also HATED the constant Beatrix Potter quotes that started every chapter. I just found the whole thing rather annoying. On top of, I listened to this one and also HATED the way the parts were read. I only finished because I have a hard time starting a book and not finishing it, and I will say the end was sort of ok, if you can get through the first annoying half.
January 26, 2014
I absolutely LOVED THE WEDNESDAY SISTERS and awaited receiving a copy of THE WEDNESDAY DAUGHTERS and voraciously began reading my copy as soon as it was downloaded! Unfortunately only moments had passed when I realized that this sequel WAS NOT of the same quality as the previous publication. Whereas THE WEDNESDAY SISTERS showed depth of characters, the sequel was severely lacking in this area . In fact, the story line throughout was SHALLOW. I had looked forward to reading more of Meg Waite Clayton 's work, but I am so very disappointed in this poorly written novel that I have shelved that idea.
September 15, 2014
I found this very difficult to read. What I found particularly disconcerting is how the narrator grapples with her identity. Hope's (Asha's) mother is white and her father is from India. How do terms like mulatto, quadroon, octoroon even make it into a book like this?? And supposedly part of Hope's issues with the possibility of having children is as she states "I don't want to be mistaken for my child's nanny". I really could not understand how this made it past an editor. The ending is only so cleanly tied up with all three Wednesday daughters paired up with their soul mate like partners.
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