After almost fifty years as a wife and mother, Enid Lambert is ready to have some fun. Unfortunately, her husband, Alfred, is losing his sanity to Parkinson's disease, and their children have long since flown the family nest to the catastrophes of their own lives. The oldest, Gary, a once-stable portfolio manager and family man, is trying to convince his wife and himself, despite clear signs to the contrary, that he is not clinically depressed. The middle child, Chip, has lost his seemingly secure academic job and is failing spectacularly at his new line of work. And Denise, the youngest, has escaped a disastrous marriage only to pour her youth and beauty down the drain of an affair with a married man-or so her mother fears. Desperate for some pleasure to look forward to, Enid has set her heart on an elusive goal: bringing her family together for one last Christmas at home.

****

It was originally registered by eastergirl71 on march 17th, 2011 but I was unable to journal it when I got it in April 2011, in a bookbox that I won and sent by her (see below when I got the box). So now I'm registering it so it can be track down later on... I think the original bcid number was actually the isbn number of the book!

----------
Journal Entry -- by carelaisa at Québec, Québec Canada on Saturday, April 09, 2011

Book no5 from easterngirl71's fiction bookbox bundle

looking forward to read this one!
------------

I couldn’t get all the hype from the blurbs on the books or even on the internet about this book. I get it’s about a dysfunctional family and how they’re trying to survive in this modern world, but I don’t see the need writing a 575-page book about it. The torments of each the character goes on and on, lingering on insignificant details, in my opinion, which sometimes lead to nothing. I find this book overrated and way too long. I don’t dismiss books about dysfunctional families but this one goes on too long about it, making it a chore to read. I’m definitely not recommending it for a read and have no plans to read other books by this American author.

Reserved for aunt-sophie.

I got this from carelaisa - thanks! I was also curious to read it, with all the hype, but I finally gave up after a few pages.

Since the first BCID doesn't work, I'm registering it under this one, so we can at least keep track of the book.

...