Congratulations to the winners of the drawing for a copy of Sway, and thanks so much to everyone who stopped by to visit and left a comment. I only wish I could have given away a copy to each one of you! Perhaps next time...
Which reminds me, I'm planning a special and unprecedented event here at Just One More Page...Or Two. Christine Weiser, the author of Broad Street, which I read, enjoyed, and reviewed back in 2008, has agreed to be my guest for my first-ever interview! Christine's written a new novel ~ the first of a series, perhaps? ~ that will be coming out soon, and she recently sent me a galley copy to read and review (to be posted shortly). I have to say, I loved it!
The Mom Squad is again set in Philly, and the main character is a rock band singer/guitarist named Maya, but there are big differences between the protagonists of The Mom Squad and Broad Street. For one thing, Maya is no longer a part of the band scene. Instead, she is the fond but slightly bored and definitely stressed stay-at-home mom of what I like to think of as a "strong-willed child" (scarily reminiscent of my own darling daughter when she was that age) and the reluctant step-mom of a rebellious, resentful teenage girl (eerily reminiscent of my own darling daughter when she was that age, except for the goth look and the fact I wasn't really her step-mom, no matter what she might have wished). Maya's posse consists of two other stay-at-home moms, and the three of them get all tangled up in dirty politics and murder. wOOt! That's one way to beat the baby-blahs.
Okay, enough said. I'll be posting the review in the next day or two, and soon after hope to set the date for the interview with Christine.
Showing posts with label Christine Weiser. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christine Weiser. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Broad Street by Christine Weiser
As I may have mentioned before, I'm not a fan of chicklit, but, having read and enjoyed Broad Street, that may change.
For a debut novel, Ms. Weiser's Broad Street is very readable, with good character development and characters for whom I came to care a great deal, an interesting and in-parts quite amusing story, and a writing style that was at times almost elegant. It could have used one more go-through by a copy editor, but otherwise was tightly written but for one minor yet puzzling glitch early on that threw me right out of the story until I decided to ignore it and went on reading. Also, I thought that the very last paragraph (prior to the Epilogue) kind of fizzled (though I won't say more about either because I don't want my review to contain any spoilers).
Other than that, I found a lot to like in the story of Kit Greene, heartbroken and filled with self-loathing after her long-time philandering boyfriend dumps her for another woman. It isn't a spoiler to say that the ex, Dale, a singer in a rock band, is a pretty sleazy character from whom she is well parted, though she isn't quite ready to realize that yet. At a party to which a well-meaning friend persuades her to go, she meets the beautiful Margo, whose current boyfriend Pete is also a singer in a rock band, as well as being about as irritatingly immature and sleazy as Dale. Kit and Margo get drunk together while engaging in a sad bit of male-bashing, and make a pact to start an all-girls rock band of their own, though neither of them are musicians.
What happens in the following months might seem predictable, but it's still fun to follow Kit, who turns out not to be as helpless and self-pitying as she seemed, as she and Margo form their band, scrape together money to hire a place where they can practice, and then find gigs. It would have been particularly fun if I either lived in or came from Philly, where all the action takes place. In fact, I've never been to Philadelphia before, but, after Broad Street, I almost feel as if I know the city.
I won't go further so as not to spoil this for anyone who hasn't read it yet, but I will say that it's well worth the time it took to read, and I will be be looking for more by Christine Weiser in the future. Oh, yeah, and I'll be loaning my copy to my 25-year old daughter who currently lives in NYC and is in theater.
Finally, congratulations to Elizabeth who is the winner of the drawing for a copy of Broad Street. Thanks to everyone who commented and entered the giveaway; I only wish I had enough copies to give to all of you! (But, if you are interested in reading this, you can request it by joining Early Reviewers at http://www.librarything.com.
For a debut novel, Ms. Weiser's Broad Street is very readable, with good character development and characters for whom I came to care a great deal, an interesting and in-parts quite amusing story, and a writing style that was at times almost elegant. It could have used one more go-through by a copy editor, but otherwise was tightly written but for one minor yet puzzling glitch early on that threw me right out of the story until I decided to ignore it and went on reading. Also, I thought that the very last paragraph (prior to the Epilogue) kind of fizzled (though I won't say more about either because I don't want my review to contain any spoilers).
Other than that, I found a lot to like in the story of Kit Greene, heartbroken and filled with self-loathing after her long-time philandering boyfriend dumps her for another woman. It isn't a spoiler to say that the ex, Dale, a singer in a rock band, is a pretty sleazy character from whom she is well parted, though she isn't quite ready to realize that yet. At a party to which a well-meaning friend persuades her to go, she meets the beautiful Margo, whose current boyfriend Pete is also a singer in a rock band, as well as being about as irritatingly immature and sleazy as Dale. Kit and Margo get drunk together while engaging in a sad bit of male-bashing, and make a pact to start an all-girls rock band of their own, though neither of them are musicians.
What happens in the following months might seem predictable, but it's still fun to follow Kit, who turns out not to be as helpless and self-pitying as she seemed, as she and Margo form their band, scrape together money to hire a place where they can practice, and then find gigs. It would have been particularly fun if I either lived in or came from Philly, where all the action takes place. In fact, I've never been to Philadelphia before, but, after Broad Street, I almost feel as if I know the city.
I won't go further so as not to spoil this for anyone who hasn't read it yet, but I will say that it's well worth the time it took to read, and I will be be looking for more by Christine Weiser in the future. Oh, yeah, and I'll be loaning my copy to my 25-year old daughter who currently lives in NYC and is in theater.
Finally, congratulations to Elizabeth who is the winner of the drawing for a copy of Broad Street. Thanks to everyone who commented and entered the giveaway; I only wish I had enough copies to give to all of you! (But, if you are interested in reading this, you can request it by joining Early Reviewers at http://www.librarything.com.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Broad Street - Pre-Review and Giveaway
I'm so excited! A couple of weeks ago, I was asked by PS Books if I would be interested in reviewing Broad Street by Christine Weiser, the first novel published by PS Books, a new division of the literary magazine, Philadelphia Stories. Being somewhat new to this book blog business, I jumped at the chance, though I admit I was a bit trepidatious about what I was getting myself into. I'd never heard of Philadelphia Stories magazine or Christine Weiser and would hate for my first publisher-solicited review to be negative, but it was too good an opportunity to pass by.
I received the book (and a second copy) today, and already started reading it. Nine pages in, I have to say that I am impressed! Ms. Weiser managed to hook me, not only by the story but by her elegant writing. If the rest of the book is as good as the first bit, I am in for a treat!
A brief synopsis of the book from the publisher: Kit Greene has just been dumped by her philandering rock musician boyfriend. A friend persuades her to go to a party where she meets Margo Bevilacqua, who is currently dating another philandering rock musician. At the party, the two women make a drunken pact to form a band with the sole purpose of outshining the musical men in their lives. This is where I left off, and I must say I can't wait to get back to the story and find out more about them and about their struggle for success in the male-dominated, mid-90s Philadelphia rock scene.
A little about the author, also courtesy of the publisher: Christine Weiser is a professional writer and editor and co-publisher of the literary magazine Philadelphia Stories (founded in 2004). She is co-author of Ask Mr. Technology, Get Answers (Lindwood 2007) and is managing editor for Tech & Learning magazine. She was the bass player for Philly girl band Mae Pang, and her current band, The Tights, can be h eard in clubs in and around the Philly area. Broad Street is her first novel.
If you would like to share the experience of reading Broad Street with me, leave a comment by the end of the day October 6. I will raffle off a copy of the book on October 7. Be sure to leave your email address or link to your blog if you want to be entered in the raffle. If you mention my pre-review in your blog and link to it, you'll be entered twice.
I received the book (and a second copy) today, and already started reading it. Nine pages in, I have to say that I am impressed! Ms. Weiser managed to hook me, not only by the story but by her elegant writing. If the rest of the book is as good as the first bit, I am in for a treat!
A brief synopsis of the book from the publisher: Kit Greene has just been dumped by her philandering rock musician boyfriend. A friend persuades her to go to a party where she meets Margo Bevilacqua, who is currently dating another philandering rock musician. At the party, the two women make a drunken pact to form a band with the sole purpose of outshining the musical men in their lives. This is where I left off, and I must say I can't wait to get back to the story and find out more about them and about their struggle for success in the male-dominated, mid-90s Philadelphia rock scene.
A little about the author, also courtesy of the publisher: Christine Weiser is a professional writer and editor and co-publisher of the literary magazine Philadelphia Stories (founded in 2004). She is co-author of Ask Mr. Technology, Get Answers (Lindwood 2007) and is managing editor for Tech & Learning magazine. She was the bass player for Philly girl band Mae Pang, and her current band, The Tights, can be h eard in clubs in and around the Philly area. Broad Street is her first novel.
If you would like to share the experience of reading Broad Street with me, leave a comment by the end of the day October 6. I will raffle off a copy of the book on October 7. Be sure to leave your email address or link to your blog if you want to be entered in the raffle. If you mention my pre-review in your blog and link to it, you'll be entered twice.
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