Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1134 in Books
• Published on: 2008-02-01
• Binding: Paperback
• 304 pages

Sunday Times 100 best holiday reads
'Wisdom and waspish humour abound in this sharp portrayal'

Daily Mail
'This is the wickedly funny and poignant story of a Jewish family in crisis, beautifully observed and painfully authentic.'

Sunday Telegraph
`Charlotte Mendelson's portrait of a Jewish family in crisis is both extremely funny and acutely painful...'

Customer Reviews

I loved this book
I only really review books I enjoy and this one was great. The family complexity and the challenges of a mother forced to relinquish control, as well as the beautiful cultural experience - it is a very well written novel. The author strikes a great balance between creating a profound sense of loss, worry and complex family worries but it is tightly held together with love, and laughter and is very funny in parts. I would recommend you to read this book.

When we were bad
I was disappointed with this novel. Although the writing is good, the characters are exaggerated and their actions not very plausible. I didn't find myself caring about what becomes of them. It draws heavily on caricature and farce rather than being a more meaningful story about the family.

average
Not entirely sure why this book was up for awards as there is nothing special about the story or the writing (which isn't saying either aspect was awful).
The family drama seemed a little over-the-top as everybody ended up having their personal crises, temptations etc at the same time. How likely is that?! The characters themselves are believable and I found myself capable of picturing each of them stuck in their 'roles' - dutiful daughter/son, black sheep of the family, head of the house etc etc etc.
The family dynamics make for an interesting read but as I said before - nothing special! Don't go into this expecting too much because of the hype and you probably won't be disappointed.