Hello and welcome to another edition of the BBRBF Book Club! This month we read "What Alice Forgot" by Liane Moriarty and we also recruited another awesome member, Lyndsey of Dressed in Mascara. Welcome, Lyndsey!
From GoodReads:
"Alice Love is twenty-nine, crazy about her husband, and pregnant with her first child.
So imagine Alice’s surprise when she comes to on the floor of a gym and is whisked off to the hospital where she discovers the honeymoon is truly over — she’s getting divorced, she has three kids and she’s actually 39 years old. Alice must reconstruct the events of a lost decade, and find out whether it’s possible to reconstruct her life at the same time. She has to figure out why her sister hardly talks to her, and how is it that she’s become one of those super skinny moms with really expensive clothes.
Ultimately, Alice must discover whether forgetting is a blessing or a curse, and whether it’s possible to start over."
So imagine Alice’s surprise when she comes to on the floor of a gym and is whisked off to the hospital where she discovers the honeymoon is truly over — she’s getting divorced, she has three kids and she’s actually 39 years old. Alice must reconstruct the events of a lost decade, and find out whether it’s possible to reconstruct her life at the same time. She has to figure out why her sister hardly talks to her, and how is it that she’s become one of those super skinny moms with really expensive clothes.
Ultimately, Alice must discover whether forgetting is a blessing or a curse, and whether it’s possible to start over."
Truthfully, I did not expect to like this book as much as I did. I do enjoy contemporary family dramas, but I've been reading a lot of those lately and I could feel myself itching for something a little more scintillating. Something with mystery, or murder, or magic. Yet this book, with it's breezy writing style and emotional power plays, hit me right in the heart. With three kids of my own, I am well on my to becoming 39 year old Alice. My son is 6 years old and from those first moments of finding out I was pregnant to wrestling three kids into car seats while everyone is screaming and fighting and everyone is bored and hungry, the years have just been accelerating wildly. It's crazy, it's chaotic. It's moving way too fast and all I can think about is the stress and the exhaustion. It's entirely possible to lose the sparkle. You don't appreciate your spouse, you don't appreciate your kids, and all you can think about is getting to those moments when you feel like you are more than just a vending machine spitting out snacks for whiny kids.
From the very beginning I knew exactly how Alice became the cold, hard person that had disconnected from everyone in her life. I knew it because I am living it. Children are the hardest thing on a marriage. They're the hardest thing on friendships. But, Alice allowed herself to become completely lost to any of the joy. It was so satisfying to watch as Alice saw her life anew without the haze of the monotony and the bone deep exhaustion to hide all the wonder of those three tiny lives.
The realization of her marriage falling apart, trying to figure out why, and how she can save it was the bulk of the book. It was painful to experience a 29 year old Alice coming face to face with the future of her marriage. The author did an excellent job of creating this reality where ten years of hardship and resentment had just fallen away from one spouse while the other was still filled with years of painful memories and hurt pride. Sometimes I didn't know if I should root for them or accept that the rift was beyond repair, but I certainly appreciated the way the resolution was handled.
There are several book covers for this book and I kind of cheated and picked the cover that matched my wardrobe. You'll forgive me, right? As well as picking up the theme and colors from the cover, I also wanted to a portray a more youthful look to pay homage to 29 year old Alice. The Alice that was still young and playful and wore her daughter's dress up scarf just because she liked it.
I also tried to accomplish a good twirling shot because this skirt was made for it. But, in a completely apropos turn of events my daughter decided to interject with her own twirling skills. That's motherhood though and I would much rather twirl with my baby than get the perfect picture.
On a scale of Total Pile to Masterpiece, I'd give this book a Heartbreaking yet Heartwarming Reminder to Enjoy Life.
If you've read "What Alice Forgot" let me know what you thought in the comments and make sure to pay a visit to Sara and Kristina for their outfits and reviews!
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