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Open House
Open House
Author: Elizabeth Berg
In this superb novel by the beloved author of Talk Before Sleep, The Pull of the Moon, and Until the Real Thing Comes Along, a woman re-creates her life after divorce by opening up her house and her heart. — Samantha's husband has left her, and after a spree of overcharging at Tiffany's, she settles down to reconstruct a life...  more »
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ISBN-13: 9780375506031
ISBN-10: 0375506039
Publication Date: 7/2000
Pages: 256
Rating:
  • Currently 3.7/5 Stars.
 240

3.7 stars, based on 240 ratings
Publisher: Random House
Book Type: Hardcover
Other Versions: Paperback, Audio Cassette, Audio CD
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

MOI avatar reviewed Open House on + 37 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 9
In less than two pages of reading, I was in love with the main character of this novel. There she was, no flaw unexposed, in all her shame and self-invalidation, and I loved her for it. Her journey from scorned wife to triumph and self-love rings with the truth of life, and her foibles will resonate with anyone who has ever had a bad hair day. If for some unfathomable reason, someone were to write my biography when I die, I want it to be Elizabeth Berg.
reviewed Open House on
Helpful Score: 7
Not like Oprah's list is the be-all, end-all...but I was surprised after finishing this that it was recommended. Another far-fetched, self-absorbed story of a divorcee. She's actually quite funny, but I thought the way it all wrapped up was ridiculous. And much less about the people that roomed there, which makes the title a misnomer.
reviewed Open House on + 6 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 5
Anyone who has ever thought they can't go on without the one they love will adore this story. It is all about going on in the face of rejection and winning!
reviewed Open House on + 53 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 5
A great novel, a nice break from your typical chic lit. This book takes you through the life of Samantha following the break up of her marriage. It takes you through the journey of separation, disappointement, mothering,being mothered, and finding love again. It makes you want to laugh, and cry. It explores with amazing honesty and insight the pain of divorce and the pain of being yourself.
CharleneY avatar reviewed Open House on + 80 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4
It seems to me Elizabeth Berg's books are just pleasant pieces of fluff which i cannot remember a day after i'm through. So I don't read them anymore. I will never even get through all the AMAZING books in the world, so why bother with the pointless ones?
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smileen avatar reviewed Open House on + 266 more book reviews
My second book by Elizabeth Berg, which someone suggested to me. It was a good story, but it didn't blow me away. Too many books lately are so amazing. This was run of the mill. Woman is shocked her husband wants a divorce, and she is trying to maintain her home with her teenage son, so she takes in roomates. There's also the best friend-female, and the best friend male-where sparks start to fly, the meddling mother, and asssorted other characters. It was an enjoyable book.
reviewed Open House on + 24 more book reviews
I loved this book. I have been divided for three years so I can totally relate. I think people who have not been divorced or have not gone through a major change in their life may not appreciate it.
reviewed Open House on + 10 more book reviews
A very easy book to read that made me laugh often. Her interactions with her mother are so hilarious. I read through this book in a very short amount of time because the vocabulary and story lines are very easy to follow. While it does show that life can happen after divorce, even if you are about 40, the hope the book shares is dependent on having another person in her life. This can really leave a single person with the opposite of hope if they have no one.
reviewed Open House on + 10 more book reviews
Quick summary statement - Open House is a love story about what can blossom between a man and a woman and within a woman herself.
reviewed Open House on + 51 more book reviews
What a great way to pass the weekend!
reviewed Open House on + 11 more book reviews
Good and interesting read about a newly separated woman and mother.
reviewed Open House on + 46 more book reviews
This is the sweetest little book. Has a lovely ending, and (spoiler) and I really liked the hero in the end, despite his physical characteristics...
reviewed Open House on + 9 more book reviews
For me, most of Oprah's books are too depressing but this was a wonderful read. Although Sam got socked in the stomach with the news that her husband wants a divorce, I was there cheering her on with every step she took to recover and in turn find her true self.
reviewed Open House on
from the blurb...

"When Samantha Morrow's husband leaves her and their eleven-year-old she is faced with the terrifying prospect of having to recreate her whole life.

After a few faltering steps she starts to put the pieces into place. She fends off her mother, whose idea of getting over a failed marriage is to get a pedicure and get out there dating. She opens her house to a`series of lodgers, each of them, in their own eccentric ways, helps her to see herself.

And she makes a friend, King, a graduate turned handyman, who shows her that she holds the key to her own future and happiness"
reviewed Open House on
This book started out terribly depressing, and the first half made me sad. To date it is probably the most depressing book I have ever read. However, the more I read, the more I became addicted to it, and I ended up reading it in one day. I LOVED the character of King, I wanted to crawl into the book and marry him.

Book Wiki

People/Characters
Samantha (Primary Character)
King (Major Character)
Veronica (Major Character)
Lydia (Average Character)
Travis (Average Character)
(Show all 9 People/Characters)

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