About this title: Santmyer's novel about a book club in a small Ohio town has become a classic for its warm and humorous evocation of American life in the mid-20th century.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780399129650ISBN:0399129650
Description: Good in good dust jacket. Good, In good dust jacket. Signed by Author. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 1176 p. Previous Owner's Inscription. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780399129650ISBN:0399129650
Description: Good in good dust jacket. Good, In good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 1176 p. Ex-Library expected imperfections. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780399129650ISBN:0399129650
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 1176 p. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780399129650ISBN:0399129650
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 1176 p. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780399129650ISBN:0399129650
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 1176 p. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780399129650ISBN:0399129650
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 1176 p. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780399129650ISBN:0399129650
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 1176 p. Previous Owner's Inscription. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780399129650ISBN:0399129650
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 1176 p. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780399129650ISBN:0399129650
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 1176 p. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780399129650ISBN:0399129650
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 1176 p. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780399129650ISBN:0399129650
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Very Good, In very good dust jacket. Sewn binding. Cloth over boards. With dust jacket. 1176 p. read more
"Although the length of this book (the edition I read had over 1100 pages) might scare some readers away, I actually quite enjoyed it. The plot line, centered around a small Ohio town from the mid 1800s to the early 1900s, leaves you feeling like you were there and the characters are real and compelling. The author does an excellent job of getting in each character's head with a personal honesty and a historical honesty. The characters flaws make them more real. At the same time, she presents view points (women's roles and rights, for example) that were common at the time without overly apologizing for them. She just presents things as they were, including views that we now consider out-dated and even prejudiced. She showed how this happened with good people--things were just different then. I really appreciated that.
Interestingly, it's not the plot details that make this book so long, but the historical details. The author goes in to some depth about politics and the attitudes of the nation directly after the Civil War, leading up to WWI and right after WWI. For me personally, the history got a bit long. But it was interesting and it definitely created context.
By the end of the book, I truly felt like I had watched this town go through a whole generation and like I understood a lot of what the citizens were feeling. The great span of years covered had a big impact on me--more than I was expecting. I closed the book having been reminded that life is short, that our time with our loved ones in this life can often be too short, and that children grow up so fast. I appreciated the resolve of one of the main characters to cherish the life given to her and to be happy in spite of the sorrows that came her way. A good example of the power of the mind and of our attitude."
"I read this book in the 1980's and was quite sad when I finished it. I so thoroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end.
The story spans several generations of ladies and details life just prior to and after the Civil War. It begins when the first generation of girls are nearing the end of school and follows their intertwined lives as well as the general lifestyle of the era.You can't help but become emotionally attached to these girls as they become young ladies until their golden years and into the following generations.
The author was quite old when she wrote this book and delved into the era to great extent. I believe this was her first published novel. For example, part of the story deals with the local Cordage Company. This is dealt with in great detail through the process of making cord and roping. You would swear that the person writing this is someone who either worked in the manufacturing plant or knew of someone close who did.
I remember sitting at the beach with my youngest son day after day getting lost in the lives of the 'ladies'.
I really should try to get this novel again to reread."
It was a fairly interesting story for about the first thousand pages and then I think I just lost interest.
I think this woman spent something like forty years writing this, too. Maybe she should have stopped at twenty.
It is basically the story of life in this small town in Ohio starting after the Civil War told against the backdrop of a Ladies Literary Society. They read books, present papers, put on pageants ("plateaus"?), live their lives.
Immigrants come, bigotry rears its ugly head, suicides, politics.
As I said, it was fairly interesting but after a certain amount my interest just waned. Maybe I just didn't like the way these people's lives were going."
"Read this book many years ago, and it is still a favorite. The enormous book (over 1,000 pages?) covers the life of two young girls who are graduating from high school in the late 1900's. Their story begins after graduation when they join a local ladies' book club. You are introduced to the other members of the club, but the focus is on the two youngest members. The book covers their lives - love, marriage, children, hardships - for over 50 years. Considering the time period, you can imagine how much the world changes during their lives."
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