Helpful Score: 18
Oh, I loved this! This is a follow up to Good In Bed, only it takes place 13 years later. Main character Cannie is just as witty as she's been, and she's even more comfortable in her plus size body. Daughter Joy who was just born at the end of Good in Bed is now a pre-teen and struggling through that awkward time of life. I love that we've gotten to see these characters again.
This book is about women and family and relationships and pushing through the hard times and doing the best that you can with what you've got. Read it!
This book is about women and family and relationships and pushing through the hard times and doing the best that you can with what you've got. Read it!
Helpful Score: 11
First, let me say that I loved "Good in Bed", "In Her Shoes", "Little Earthquakes" and "Goodnight Nobody"...so I was really looking forward to this new book! But I found "Certain Girls" to be very disappointing. It was not a page turner for me at all, though I did finish it. I didn't find the end to be very satisfying either. I found Cannie's character to be annoying and just over the top. I agree with another reader who said that the story seemed too forced. Maybe this was Weiner's attempt to ride the coat tails of "Good in Bed"...knowing that readers loved that book and would jump at the chance to read more. Unfortunately, many will be grossly disappointed.
Helpful Score: 6
This was definitely an enjoyable read, however I was a bit disappointed. Since the book featured the witty & funny character Cannie from "Good in Bed" I had high expectations. Cannie's character in "Certain Girls" was almost bordering annoying, as she presented as an overprotective, neurotic, mini-van driving mom. Despite my disappoint in the characters change in personality, I would recommend this book. Also, since I read "Good in Bed" about 4 or 5 years ago, it was difficult for me to remember some of the references made in the book to the first novel...my advice, if you haven't read "Good in Bed" recently I would recommend reading that again first.
Helpful Score: 6
I enjoyed this book a lot, but to me, it felt a little bit forced, and wasn't as enjoyable as "Good In Bed." Weiner does a good job of illustrating the difficulties that teenage girls and their mothers encounter, but I felt like Cannie's feelings weren't explored as fully as they might have been. It was a good book, but it pales when compared with "Good In Bed."
Helpful Score: 5
I love Jennifer Weiner's novels and this latest is no disappointment. I disagree with other reviews indicating that the book is predictable as I found it anything but predictable. The book did not take a conflict and tie everything up in a nice cute bow to make everyone happy. There are good times but there are a lot of difficult and incredibly tragic elements as well. I like enjoyable fun books and while this book was overall an uplifting experience, there were a lot of sad and very real elements in the book which made me connect with the characters. As a mother, I could relate to a lot of what the protagonists felt and it gave me a little heads up to raising a teenager...yikes! If you enjoy thought provoking and entertaining material, you will love this book
Helpful Score: 4
A follow up to "Good in Bed". I had a hard time getting into this book. I was at first disappointed that it took place 13 years later, but after reading it, I guess I understand. I didn't really care for the first person knowing that you had to keep reading to find out if it was Cannie or Joy. But after about half way, I couldn't put the book down. Overall a good book. Not as good as the first though.
Helpful Score: 4
Again we see Cannie Shapiro. A little later in life and finally in a happier place. I loved almost all of this book, but when I got to the "plot twist" I wanted to throw things - partially because I was angry for Cannie and partially because I was angry that Weiner would do that to her readers and her characters. But, that is the way she writes. She's not always a happy ending kind of girl, but you understand where she is coming from.
Helpful Score: 4
I agree with alot of what other's have said about this book. After Good In Bed, this was a disappointing follow up.
The book seemed forced, the changing in characters in chapters was confusing, then became annoying. I was saddened to see Cannie's character become such a nuerotic, over protective minivan driving mom. She lost alot of appeal in this second book.
All THAT said, this was still a good book. I read it beginning to end in half a day. But the ending was a COMPLETE blow to the head, NEVER saw it coming and I am still drying the tears from this one! Not a book I would read over and over, but glad to have read it once.
The book seemed forced, the changing in characters in chapters was confusing, then became annoying. I was saddened to see Cannie's character become such a nuerotic, over protective minivan driving mom. She lost alot of appeal in this second book.
All THAT said, this was still a good book. I read it beginning to end in half a day. But the ending was a COMPLETE blow to the head, NEVER saw it coming and I am still drying the tears from this one! Not a book I would read over and over, but glad to have read it once.
Helpful Score: 3
Awesome book Loved it so much I stayed up half the night to read it
Helpful Score: 3
It takes a few sentences in each chapter to recognize which person is talking because both Cannie and her daughter Joy speak. I think it is that combination that makes this book different and not as appealing as the first book. It is worth reading, but not as good as the 1st one, The ending makes it worth reading. BTW Bruce (the father of Joy) is still a LOSER!
Helpful Score: 3
I really enjoyed this. I did find the constant flipping back and forth between the mother and daughter to get slight confusing to figure out who was talking now. That being said, Jennifer Weiner always develops her characters and the story line so well that you are instantly pulled in. The ending caught me off guard, but it really was a masterful finish.
Helpful Score: 2
While there were some touching and shocking moments in this book, overall, it was just not Weiner's best work. The writing is slow and kind of plods along.
She switches back and forth between the mother and daughter's first person voices, but this change of perspective adds little or nothing to the story. A third-person perspective would have worked just as well.
While "Good in Bed" is a great novel, this "sequel" falls woefully short. If you loved "Good in Bed," keep Cannie, Joy, and Peter magically in the past and don't bother to find out what happens to them. It's not worth the ride.
She switches back and forth between the mother and daughter's first person voices, but this change of perspective adds little or nothing to the story. A third-person perspective would have worked just as well.
While "Good in Bed" is a great novel, this "sequel" falls woefully short. If you loved "Good in Bed," keep Cannie, Joy, and Peter magically in the past and don't bother to find out what happens to them. It's not worth the ride.
Helpful Score: 2
This book is the sequel to Good in Bed. I must say that I really enjoyed that book, but this one I ended up skimming about 1/4 of the way through. You will easily figure out what happens in the end if you pay attention to the first chapter. The writer gave too much away. Overall I thought it could have been better, but if you want to know what happened to the characters in Good In Bed, you will by reading this book...I gave it 2 1/2 stars.
Helpful Score: 2
This book was very slow and hard to get into. As the book came to an end it got more interesting.
Helpful Score: 1
This is a cute, light read but the ending was so ridiculous (intentionally anti-pat, and still pat) that it made the entire book much less enjoyable.
Helpful Score: 1
Not only did I LOVE this book even more than Good In Bed, but I love the way you are reading two different books (life through Cannie's eyes vs. life through Joy's). Then I love how they weave together like a quilt at the end. I want more!!!!
Helpful Score: 1
Great sequel to GOOD in BED!! Cannie is such a great character, she is funny and sensible and a identifiable woman. Everyone can relate, even younger females. This tells her story of being a mom, a career woman and a wife. I read it in 6 hours during a storm... I couldn't put it down.
Helpful Score: 1
Fast-forward light years into the life of Cannie Shapiro, star of the debut novel Good In Bed. A little awkward to catch up initially but then moves on and loops us into total recall of the events of book one. A great beach read and gives meaning to "Mirror, mirror on the wall, I've become my mother after all".
Helpful Score: 1
Cannie Shapiro is at it again.. This is the story of Cannie and her daughter. The chapters alternate from the perspective of Cannie to the perspective of her daughter. Good book--I liked Book 1 more though.
Helpful Score: 1
Reading Jennifer Weiner's "Certain Girls" was kind of like bumping into an old friend from high school or college on Facebook, getting excited about the possibility of rekindling a relationship with someone you thought was uber-cool in the past, and then being totally befuddled and oddly disappointed about the path their life has taken.
Cannie Shapiro, Weiner's heroine from her best-selling book "Good In Bed" has always been at the top of my list of fictional characters I'd love to be friends with if they ever decided to jump from the page. She was a feisty 20-something writer and self-proclaimed "big girl" that really touched a cord in me as a reader.
Needless to say, I was thrilled to pick up "Certain Girls" and rejoin Cannie on her journey 12 years down the road from where I left her. Unfortunately, Cannie seems to have kind of lost herself. After the thrilling success of her mostly autobiographical and largely scandalous book, "Big Girls Don't Cry," Cannie has taken herself out of the limelight to quietly raise her daughter, Joy, with her husband, Peter. She writes science fiction books under a pseudonym. She smothers her almost-teenage daughter. She's let herself go physically. Honestly, about halfway through the book (when I had conviced myself that I was too far in to quit now) I had a pretty vivid fantasy of physically shaking some sense into her.
Cannie and Joy are in the thick of the mother/daughter angst that most of us deal with as we're growing up. The book is written in a split point-of-view, alternating chapters in Joy and Cannie's voices. I liked this element, because I think it provided a good perspective of the complex issues facing mothers and daughters and how hard it is to communicate with almost-teenagers. But these exchanges were also hard for me to read. My little girl is only three, and my stomach still turned when I thought about dealing with similar issues with her in the future. "Certain Girls" was just an early reminder that, yes, someday soon, my pink-loving princess that adores me now will hate me with a venom I may not deserve, and will definitely not be prepared for.
As the final nail in the coffin, Weiner throws in an extremely sad event out of the blue at the end of the novel that completely took me off guard and honestly, didn't really seem necessary. I just didn't get it. Other than making readers cry (which I did - buckets) what was the purpoose? Did it advance the characters or the plot? Not really. And it kind of made me wish I had quit halfway through the book, when I was just annoyed and not yet depressed over Cannie's story.
I have to also note, the book is also spends a lot of time discussing Jewish life events, traditions, and uses a lot of traditional Jewish vernacular. Since I've had little exposure to this culture, a lot of that content was lost on me.
After this review, I'm puzzled about my own decision to give this book three stars. The bottom line is, I didn't really like this story, but I love Jennifer Weiner. I like her voice as a writer, and even though I think she might need a life coach and a good swift kick in the tush, I still love Cannie Shapiro, too. If you like chick lit or have a teenage daughter, you'll probably enjoy this book. Maybe I'll enjoy it more if I reread it in 10 years.
Cannie Shapiro, Weiner's heroine from her best-selling book "Good In Bed" has always been at the top of my list of fictional characters I'd love to be friends with if they ever decided to jump from the page. She was a feisty 20-something writer and self-proclaimed "big girl" that really touched a cord in me as a reader.
Needless to say, I was thrilled to pick up "Certain Girls" and rejoin Cannie on her journey 12 years down the road from where I left her. Unfortunately, Cannie seems to have kind of lost herself. After the thrilling success of her mostly autobiographical and largely scandalous book, "Big Girls Don't Cry," Cannie has taken herself out of the limelight to quietly raise her daughter, Joy, with her husband, Peter. She writes science fiction books under a pseudonym. She smothers her almost-teenage daughter. She's let herself go physically. Honestly, about halfway through the book (when I had conviced myself that I was too far in to quit now) I had a pretty vivid fantasy of physically shaking some sense into her.
Cannie and Joy are in the thick of the mother/daughter angst that most of us deal with as we're growing up. The book is written in a split point-of-view, alternating chapters in Joy and Cannie's voices. I liked this element, because I think it provided a good perspective of the complex issues facing mothers and daughters and how hard it is to communicate with almost-teenagers. But these exchanges were also hard for me to read. My little girl is only three, and my stomach still turned when I thought about dealing with similar issues with her in the future. "Certain Girls" was just an early reminder that, yes, someday soon, my pink-loving princess that adores me now will hate me with a venom I may not deserve, and will definitely not be prepared for.
As the final nail in the coffin, Weiner throws in an extremely sad event out of the blue at the end of the novel that completely took me off guard and honestly, didn't really seem necessary. I just didn't get it. Other than making readers cry (which I did - buckets) what was the purpoose? Did it advance the characters or the plot? Not really. And it kind of made me wish I had quit halfway through the book, when I was just annoyed and not yet depressed over Cannie's story.
I have to also note, the book is also spends a lot of time discussing Jewish life events, traditions, and uses a lot of traditional Jewish vernacular. Since I've had little exposure to this culture, a lot of that content was lost on me.
After this review, I'm puzzled about my own decision to give this book three stars. The bottom line is, I didn't really like this story, but I love Jennifer Weiner. I like her voice as a writer, and even though I think she might need a life coach and a good swift kick in the tush, I still love Cannie Shapiro, too. If you like chick lit or have a teenage daughter, you'll probably enjoy this book. Maybe I'll enjoy it more if I reread it in 10 years.
Helpful Score: 1
Huge Jennifer Weiner fan, for some reason I just did not love this book of hers, i thought I would fly through it, but for me it dragged on a bit, and i was not hooked. Not terrible, she is better than most authors so even an okay JW book is better than other books!
Helpful Score: 1
Oh my, oh my!! What a wonderful book! I couldn't wait to get back to reading it (when I had to put it down)! A great sequel to Good In Bed, I thought it was just wonderful all around.
Helpful Score: 1
I really enjoyed this book. A good story that is not a typical "chick lit" book. Good story of a mom and her relationship with her teenage daughter. I recommend this book to anyone.
Helpful Score: 1
I loved "In Her Shoes" and "Good in Bed" but I have to agree with others - while this book was good and a fast read I was disappointed. Didn't seem to have the depth of character the first 2 books had. Seemed to me a bit forced - like the author was in need of cranking out a book and wrote "Certain Girls". Still a good read and I would read more by this author. Carol
Helpful Score: 1
Well... I liked it, but I don't know... it seemed bitter and lost all of the humour of the first one. And, stylistically speaking, to have two characters narrating, both using the first tense, it might not have been a bad idea to at least put the character name at the chapter headings. The ending seemed unnecessary too. That and there was a lot of religion in it... I don't know if it was just any one of those things, or everything all together... But it just wasn't as good as I had expected.
Devoured this over a snowy three day weekend. A quick, entertaining read, with much heavier subject matter than you'd expect. Jennifer Weiner just has a gift with writing about the relationships between female family members.
No good. Boring and predictable. About a Mom and her daughter - coming of age story. Read for Back to the Book bookclub.
I didn't care for this one as much as Book 1. It was a slow read.
I enjoyed "Good in Bed" and was happy to continue the story. This book was entertaining, funny and even made me cry a little bit.
This book is unlike any i have ever read, it is intelligent and hilarious!
The first Cannie Shapiro book is much better than this one. In the first book I was very attached to the Cannie's character. In this book I kept skimming pages because I found myself not really caring. Also - the ending is terrible.
Sweet and funny. Great read about mother-daughter relationships involving a teen.
Decent book. Very easy read, but nothing too stimulating.
Loved this book! I could not put it down. The story is told by mother and daughter POV switching each chapter. Well written.
Not bad, but not as good as the first one. A very different type of book--more heavy, an less lighthearted comedy.
Another excellent book by Weiner! I'm not a mom but I can really get in to her characters. My sister has teenage daughers and I can still remember what it was like to be 'almost' a teen. Great book for mothers and for their daughters! I laughed out loud, I cried, and my husband now thinks I'm nuts. And what a twist at the end! Never saw THAT coming!
I have always been a fan of Jennifer Weiner and I truly believe she is a talented writer. Some of her books were more enjoyable than others, but this does not change my opinion of her as an author. I might be wrong, but I am not sure if someone who is not of the Jewish faith could truly relate as well to this book as someone with a Jewish upbringing. "Certain Girls" was a well written book with many interesting main characters. Great book about love, loss and the determination to get through difficult situations with the support of those who truly care.
This book was a fun read! If you like Jennifer Weiner you will enjoy!
This is my first Jennifer Weiner book.. I found it very hard to get into it for the first 100 pages or so.. I don't know if it was the writing or that I had just seen "New Moon" & was totally obsessed with that for a bit. But, I picked it up last night & finished it. Stayed up way too late & couldn't put it down.. I will definitely read her other books now.
This is a follow up to the book Good in Bed. It is years later and we meet up with Cannie Shapiro. Her daughter is now a teenager and from the outside it looks like things are perfect. The book reminds me of a sweater that has a couple of threads sticking out. You start to pull one and the whole sweater unravels.
It was not one of her best. Sometimes I felt like I was trudging along through the book. It was very predictable. In the end a rainbow will be found.
It was not one of her best. Sometimes I felt like I was trudging along through the book. It was very predictable. In the end a rainbow will be found.
I love most of Jennifer Weiner's books and this was no exception. A great story teller and a great story.
This book is a sweet suprise with more depth that I was expecting. It is chik-lit plus!
I just really enjoy Weiner's sense of humor. Her books are great summer reading.
I enjoyed this sequel to the first book of this series, "Good In Bed". I found it interesting how the author switched between chapters, who is telling the story. First by Cannie, then her daughter Joy. I think that this switch in characters telling the story made it more interesting than if Cannie would have just told the story. It was a nice read.
Certain Girls by Jennifer Weiner is the sequel to Good in Bed. In this book, we meet up with Canny Shapiro when her daughter, Joy, is getting ready for her bat mitzvah. Joy is growing up and is arguing with her mother while also trying to find her place in the world. Joy reads her mother's book and begins to question everything that she held true from her childhood. Does her mom even want her? Was her grandfather such a bad man? Did Bruce care about her, or was she totally unwanted by both parents? As Joy struggles with her identity, Canny and Peter have tough decisions to make as well. Canny's publisher wants her to do another book as herself. The public wants to have another Candace Shapiro best seller. Peter also wants to have a baby. Should the two of them go through the process of getting a surrogate mother because Canny can not have any more children?
I really enjoy Jennifer Weiner. I started out reading her books with a bit of hesitation, but each story seems to catch my interest and her characters are always endearing. Joy reminds me of my students. She is questioning everything that adults tell her and finding her own way. She goes through some extremes, but she is constantly learning and reevaluating life. Her character is written beautifully. Weiner has captured the adolescent spirit perfectly. Canny is as sharp-witted as she is in the first novel, but she does not shine as brightly in this novel. She seems to be more subdued as a mother. The only part that I did not like is the ending. As things were starting to get better in the novel and I was preparing myself for a happy ending, Weiner through in a twist that shattered my heart. It was an extremely shocking ending and I can't really say that I liked it. That could just be because I like happy endings, but it through a wrench in what I expected. I'm not used to being surprised in books. I am sure that a lot of people enjoy this type of thing, it just didn't work for me.
4/5 stars
I really enjoy Jennifer Weiner. I started out reading her books with a bit of hesitation, but each story seems to catch my interest and her characters are always endearing. Joy reminds me of my students. She is questioning everything that adults tell her and finding her own way. She goes through some extremes, but she is constantly learning and reevaluating life. Her character is written beautifully. Weiner has captured the adolescent spirit perfectly. Canny is as sharp-witted as she is in the first novel, but she does not shine as brightly in this novel. She seems to be more subdued as a mother. The only part that I did not like is the ending. As things were starting to get better in the novel and I was preparing myself for a happy ending, Weiner through in a twist that shattered my heart. It was an extremely shocking ending and I can't really say that I liked it. That could just be because I like happy endings, but it through a wrench in what I expected. I'm not used to being surprised in books. I am sure that a lot of people enjoy this type of thing, it just didn't work for me.
4/5 stars
i really really really enjoyed this book. such a great, touching story.
Loved it.
great book love this author this one was a tear jerker in the end
I was disappointed and the middle but the ending was great.
I dont know what took me so long to read this one since I loved the first book, but this one was just as good. Great story, easy to relate to as the mother of a teenaged daughter. It was great to catch back up with Cannie!
This book was okay but certainly not as good as her previous books. It wouldn't be one that I would recommend. I was disappointed.
I got bored with this one and didn't finish it.
I loved it, it wasnt as good as her previous novel, Good In Bed, but I still had trouble putting this book down to go shower.lol
good book
Love this author! Quickly going through her book list!
