The Summer Place by Jennifer Weiner

A special thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Simon & Schuster Canada for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

When her twenty-two-year-old stepdaughter announces her engagement to her pandemic boyfriend, Sarah Danhauser is shocked. But the wheels are in motion. Headstrong Ruby has already set a date (just three months away!) and spoken to her beloved safta, Sarah’s mother Veronica, about having the wedding at the family’s beach house in Cape Cod. Sarah might be worried, but Veronica is thrilled to be bringing the family together one last time before putting the big house on the market.

But the road to a wedding day usually comes with a few bumps. Ruby has always known exactly what she wants, but as the wedding date approaches, she finds herself grappling with the wounds left by the mother who walked out when she was a baby. Veronica ends up facing unexpected news, thanks to her meddling sister, and must revisit the choices she made long ago, when she was a bestselling novelist with a different life. Sarah’s twin brother, Sam, is recovering from a terrible loss, and confronting big questions about who he is—questions he hopes to resolve during his stay on the Cape. Sarah’s husband, Eli, who’s been inexplicably distant during the pandemic, confronts the consequences of a long ago lapse from his typical good-guy behavior. And Sarah, frustrated by her husband, concerned about her stepdaughter, and worn out by challenges of life during quarantine, faces the alluring reappearance of someone from her past and a life that could have been.

When the wedding day arrives, lovers are revealed as their true selves, misunderstandings take on a life of their own, and secrets come to light. There are confrontations and revelations that will touch each member of the extended family, ensuring that nothing will ever be the same.

With a house as the central character, Weiner's latest offering returns readers to the Cape for another binge-worthy summer read.

Through multiple points of view, The Summer Place explodes with its soapy secrets and exceptional characterizations. The multi-generational family is dynamic and complicated—Weiner is a master at creating authentic, witty, self-depreciating characters. And Shakespeare fans will love the nod to A Midsummer Night Dream. 

Riveting and unputdownable, The Summer Place is a testament to family, forgiveness, and sacrifice. 

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JENNIFER WEINER is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of sixteen books, including Good in Bed, In Her Shoes, and her memoir, Hungry Heart: Adventures in Life, Love, and Writing.

She is a graduate of Princeton University and a contributor to the New York Times Opinion section.

Weiner lives with her family in Philadelphia.

That Summer by Jennifer Weiner

A special thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Daisy Shoemaker loves to cook and has made a thriving business out of it. She volunteers in her spare time and lives in a beautiful home in the suburbs with her family. At first glance she seems to have it all. But her teenage daughter is sullen, her husband doesn't seem to notice her, and while she has lots of acquaintances, she doesn't have any real connections. Still, compared to most, Daisy knows she’s got it good. So why is she up all night and can't sleep?

For the last little while, Daisy has been receiving emails that are meant for a woman named Diana Starling—her email address is just one punctuation mark away from her own. While Daisy’s driving carpools, Diana is chairing meetings. While Daisy’s making dinner, Diana’s making plans to reorganize corporations. Diana’s glamorous, sophisticated, single-lady life is miles away from Daisy’s simpler existence. And well...isn't the grass always greener on the other side? 

When an apology leads to an invitation, the two women meet and become fast friends. But, as they get closer, we learn that their connection was not completely accidental. Who IS this other woman, and what exactly does she want with Daisy?

Do not let the cover fool you. That Summer is not a breezy light beach read, this book has teeth. The #MeToo movement plays a paramount role in this thought-provoking story that is penned with Weiner's acerbic wit and strong characterization. Set in a manicured subdivision in Philadelphia, bustling New York City, and gorgeous Cape Cod, That Summer is more of a contemporary character-driven novel versus chick lit. 

My only criticism it that it was a bit bulky and could've been tightened up. All-in-all, a good read and compelling story that is both gutting and powerful. That Summer is not just a twisty tale full of secrets and lies, but a story about the power of female relationships.

BUY NOW

JENNIFER WEINER is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of sixteen books, including Good in Bed, In Her Shoes, and her memoir, Hungry Heart: Adventures in Life, Love, and Writing.

She is a graduate of Princeton University and a contributor to the New York Times Opinion section.

Weiner lives with her family in Philadelphia.

Jennifer Weiner: Mrs. Everything Tour

Photo credit: Girl Well Read and Simon & Schuster Canada.  Do not use without written permission.

Blue Heron Books and Simon & Schuster Canada celebrated the release of Jennifer Weiner's newest novel, Mrs. Everything. Jennifer was interviewed by Marissa Stapley—whose own new novel, The Last Resort, has just landed on all the hot summer reading lists for 2019. Marissa asked Jennifer about her writing process, inspiration, and themes of her newest work.  A question and answer period, as well as a book signing followed.

Jennifer Weiner’s most personal novel yet, Mrs. Everything, is a book that has been percolating for ten years, and is one that she's always wanted to write. Inspired by her mother and grandmother, it is a universal female story—being a woman, you don't come out unscathed.

It is a version of Weiner's own mother's story, and she modelled Jo after her. Jennifer's mother, Fran, came out as a lesbian in her 50s after raising her four children. Jennifer had a lot of questions for her mother about her marriage to her father that Fran wouldn't answer so she imagined it, “because that's what writers do.” Mrs. Everything was also born from the ashes of the 2016 election—where we are as women, where we have been, and where we could go back to.

Mrs. Everything has a good girl and a bad girl who both end up in pain. "Do you know women who live without pain, that everything works out?" Jennifer asked.

On the term "women's fiction"

We don't accord it to the same respect when we call it "women's fiction." When Jonathan Franzen’s Freedom earned him glowing praise as well as the cover of Time, Weiner coined the term "Franzenfreude," the divide between how white male authors are treated with such regard while successful female authors are dismissed.

Inspired by Little Women, her Jo's ambitions are more acceptable (except sexuality), and her Bethie not only lives, but Weiner writes about what happens to good girls, what the world does to good girls.

What did her mom say?

"My daughter has a very active imagination."  Her mother also thought that Bethie was her.

Weiner said that writers are cannibals, nobody is safe—family members are material. "Well-intentioned cannibals...kindables."

Response to Mrs. Everything

The response to Weiner's work has been "great, but scary." Jennifer is interested to hear what young readers think. "Some things have changed quickly, some slowly, and with the #MeToo movement, not at all," she says.

There is a lot about privilege, hierarchy, colour, freedoms, etc. If you're on top of a mountain and someone is climbing that mountain, they are perceived as a threat when in actuality, they are trying to be equal—it's all a matter of perspective.

Jennifer's writing process

Weiner mused that writing a book is like packing a suitcase with all the things you love, and you leave the suitcase on a corner. The smart thing to do is pack another suitcase. Stapley asked if she was packing another suitcase, and readers will be happy to hear that the answer was YES! Jennifer's next novel will take place over a weekend in Cape Cod, a far cry from a 70 year span that was Mrs. Everything. The heroine is a bridesmaid that was estranged from the bride. When something bad happens, she needs to clear her name. (Eep! Can't wait!)

After getting her daughters off to school, Jennifer walks her dog with her husband and it is during this time that she works through plot and characters. After they get back, she goes to an exercise class, showers, does her social media, and then writes between the hours of 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. or 12 p.m. to 4 p.m., "that's the sweet spot!" Weiner's writing takes place in her "cloffice" which is her walk-in closet that also functions as her office. Jennifer's desk is a vanity with her dog, Moochie, at her feet.

How did she break into writing?

Weiner started her career in advertising and then as a journalist. She worked her way up from a small paper, to a medium paper, and then to a large paper. She got dumped and then wrote Good in Bed.

Can I just say how fantastic it was to be sitting in the audience and soaking it all in? Jennifer is HI-LAR-I-OUS, warm, and smart. She graciously posed for pictures and chatted while signing copies of her books. Thank you, Jennifer, for coming to Canada on your Mrs. Everything tour.

Marissa was a wonderful interviewer and it was lovely to chat with her about her exciting book and baseball.

Mrs. Everything

Growing up in 1950s Detroit, sisters Jo and Bethie Kaufman lived in a picture-perfect house. Jo was a passionate tomboy, with a love of books; Bethie was the pretty, good girl, with aspirations of being a star. She enjoys the privilege that comes with beauty.

Things rarely end up how you imagine them to be. The sisters survive unspeakable trauma and life's tragedies. Coming of age in the time of free love, Vietnam, and women's lib, Bethie embraces the more free, hippy lifestyle, balking traditional roles. Instead it is Jo that becomes a mother, stuck on the sidelines of her life. Neither sister has the future they envisioned, but is it too late for them to live an authentic and purposeful life?

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JENNIFER WEINER is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of sixteen books, including Good in Bed, In Her Shoes, and her memoir, Hungry Heart: Adventures in Life, Love, and Writing.

She is a graduate of Princeton University and a contributor to the New York Times Opinion section.

Jennifer lives with her family in Philadelphia.

Mrs. Everything by Jennifer Weiner

A special thank you to NetGalley and Atria books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Growing up in 1950s Detroit, sisters Jo and Bethie Kaufman lived in a picture-perfect house. Jo was a passionate tomboy, with a love of books; Bethie was the pretty, good girl, with aspirations of being a star. She enjoys the privilege that comes with beauty.

Things rarely end up how you imagine them to be. The sisters survive unspeakable trauma and life's tragedies. Coming of age in the time of free love, Vietnam, and women's lib, Bethie embraces the more free, hippy lifestyle, balking traditional roles. Instead it is Jo that becomes a mother, stuck on the sidelines of her life. Neither sister has the future they envisioned, but is it too late for them to live an authentic and purposeful life?

Jennifer Weiner's newest work is her most ambitious to date and it is a risk that pays off. When a novel spans decades—in this case from the 1950s to present—there is a risk of the author losing the plot and also getting swallowed up in pop culture references, but Weiner doesn't suffer these fates. What happens instead is a remarkable journey of self discovery through the ages. Her writing is rich and fluid with deeply developed, layered characters.

What is so remarkable is that in our ever-changing society, decade after decade, women are still facing the same issues. Especially with how we decide to live our lives—women are constantly berated for their own life choices whether it be to get married, to have children, or work outside the home when they are a mother. These are things that women are consistently being judged for and they are nobody's business. Let me repeat that for those of you in the back...your choices are nobody's business.

Told in dual narratives, Weiner explores the complexities of female relationships, the difficulties woman face, as well as the expectations placed on women. She tackles some heavy issues: sexuality, racism, abortion, religion, drug abuse, etc., and because of this, both Jo and Bethie's stories are engaging and important.

Jennifer, I applaud you for telling stories that so many can relate to. I understand that this book was also personal in that there is a little bit of your mother in Jo. This novel is not only timely, but incredibly moving and poignant. Appropriately titled Mrs. Everything, this book is a bit of everything for every woman. 

BUY NOW

JENNIFER WEINER is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of sixteen books, including Good in Bed, In Her Shoes, and her memoir, Hungry Heart: Adventures in Life, Love, and Writing.

She is a graduate of Princeton University and a contributor to the New York Times Opinion section.

Jennifer lives with her family in Philadelphia.