What do you think?
Rate this book
Daughter's Keeper
When Olivia falls victim to the maelstrom surrounding the war on drugs, she and her self-sufficient mother, Elaine, find themselves embroiled in a courtroom drama. 50,000 first printing.
Hardcover
First published September 17, 2003
70 people are currently reading
1600 people want to read
About the author
Ayelet Waldman
29 books40.3k followersAyelet Waldman is the author of A Really Good Day: How Microdosing Made a Mega Difference in My Mood, My Marriage, and My Life, Love and Treasure, Red Hook Road and The New York Times bestseller Bad Mother: A Chronicle of Maternal Crimes, Minor Calamities and Occasional Moments of Grace. Her novel Love and Other Impossible Pursuits was made into a film starring Natalie Portman. Her personal essays and profiles of such public figures as Hillary Clinton have been published in a wide variety of newspapers and magazines, including The New York Times, Vogue, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal. Her radio commentaries have appeared on "All Things Considered" and "The California Report."
You can follow Ayelet on Facebook and Twitter.
Love and Treasure is available for purchase here.
You can follow Ayelet on Facebook and Twitter.
Love and Treasure is available for purchase here.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 205 reviews
November 21, 2010
I really hope Ayelet Waldman sticks to writing literature. As her first stand-alone novel, Daughter's Keeper will keep you addicted from start to finish, with Waldman's experience as a defense attorney really coming to light in a very creative way. Having read 100% of Waldman's work to date, I highly recommend bypassing her "Mommy-Track" cozy mystery series and dedicating your time and energy to not only reading Daughter's Keeper, but Love and Other Impossible Pursuits (2005) and Red Hook Road (2010).
Daughter's Keeper is about a young and once-highly ambitious woman named Olivia who supports her boyfriend and illegal alien Jorge as he can rarely obtain work as a day-laborer. Fluent in Spanish and incredibly educated, Olivia even questions her own loyalty to this seemingly worthless-boyfriend. When Jorge becomes involved in a major drug-deal to help support them better, both Olivia and Jorge are busted in an undercover operation set up by the DEA. Adament about her detached involvement in the drug-trafficking, Olivia must face trial and the possibility of spending several years in prison.
In addition to this general plot detailed above, there is much, much more to Daughter's Keeper. Supporting characters include Olivia's mother Elaine, who has a distant and detached relationship with her daughter; Arthur, Elaine's boyfriend and fiancee of several years; and Izaya, Olivia's ambitious and successful defense lawyer.
With this particular ensemble of characters, we learn more about how our emotions, feelings and passions for "doing the right thing" overcomes all else in life, and how one must weigh in the little things when grander, more important events and struggles are taking place.
Waldman takes a fascinating approach to common perceptions and human rights in regards to multiple nationalities. We learn every side of the story as told by white Olivia, hispanic Jorge, and half-black/half-jewish Izaya. As a reader, I've taken away more knowledge on how the government systems work and also gained more insight on the struggles a young, educated hispanic man will face crossing the border from Mexico into America illegally.
For younger adults specifically, Daughter's Keeper will appeal to readers struggling with making the right decisions, and this novel is the perfect example of the bad consequences that befall those who are misguided. It's such a sad story that Olivia makes, with her being unsure why she's supporting Jorge when she doesn't necessarily love him. It makes one question why we insist on trying to convince ourselves we're happy when we're genuinely not.
I'm happy to say I enjoyed Daughter's Keeper so much that I devoured it within a ten-hour time period, given I took a break to sleep. I highly recommend this and other works by Waldman!
Read more book reviews at http://dreamworldbooks.com.
Daughter's Keeper is about a young and once-highly ambitious woman named Olivia who supports her boyfriend and illegal alien Jorge as he can rarely obtain work as a day-laborer. Fluent in Spanish and incredibly educated, Olivia even questions her own loyalty to this seemingly worthless-boyfriend. When Jorge becomes involved in a major drug-deal to help support them better, both Olivia and Jorge are busted in an undercover operation set up by the DEA. Adament about her detached involvement in the drug-trafficking, Olivia must face trial and the possibility of spending several years in prison.
In addition to this general plot detailed above, there is much, much more to Daughter's Keeper. Supporting characters include Olivia's mother Elaine, who has a distant and detached relationship with her daughter; Arthur, Elaine's boyfriend and fiancee of several years; and Izaya, Olivia's ambitious and successful defense lawyer.
With this particular ensemble of characters, we learn more about how our emotions, feelings and passions for "doing the right thing" overcomes all else in life, and how one must weigh in the little things when grander, more important events and struggles are taking place.
Waldman takes a fascinating approach to common perceptions and human rights in regards to multiple nationalities. We learn every side of the story as told by white Olivia, hispanic Jorge, and half-black/half-jewish Izaya. As a reader, I've taken away more knowledge on how the government systems work and also gained more insight on the struggles a young, educated hispanic man will face crossing the border from Mexico into America illegally.
For younger adults specifically, Daughter's Keeper will appeal to readers struggling with making the right decisions, and this novel is the perfect example of the bad consequences that befall those who are misguided. It's such a sad story that Olivia makes, with her being unsure why she's supporting Jorge when she doesn't necessarily love him. It makes one question why we insist on trying to convince ourselves we're happy when we're genuinely not.
I'm happy to say I enjoyed Daughter's Keeper so much that I devoured it within a ten-hour time period, given I took a break to sleep. I highly recommend this and other works by Waldman!
Read more book reviews at http://dreamworldbooks.com.
September 21, 2010
You can tell in the reading this is one of Waldman's early novels but I liked it none the less. I find it interesting to read an author's early work to see how they hone their craft. It had a slow beginning, a bit unpolished in spots, but it fleshed out. Author Ms. Waldman, is a Harvard trained attorney and worked in LA in the Prosecutor's office so her portrayal of the legal system and its many flaws is quite well done.
The characters are not likable but the strains of the central mother/daughter relationship are well-captured. The books takes place in the Bay Area,it serves as the perfect backdrop, to this drama about a young woman whose missteps land her in a bind only her mother can help fish her out of, a mother she has had a strained relationship from the very beginnings as a young single mother. Elaine, the mother, is an emotionally crippled pharmacist, and her live-in love interest, Arthur the accountant is also a bit of a rigid cold fish. The daughter, Olivia, is a passionate woman who is growing up fast when thrown into a bad situation and caught up in just the wrong place as the wrong time.
You can see how a situation can spin out of control in a hurry and how unjust the mandatory minimum sentence laws are. Waldman is a good writer here and only gets better with time.
The characters are not likable but the strains of the central mother/daughter relationship are well-captured. The books takes place in the Bay Area,it serves as the perfect backdrop, to this drama about a young woman whose missteps land her in a bind only her mother can help fish her out of, a mother she has had a strained relationship from the very beginnings as a young single mother. Elaine, the mother, is an emotionally crippled pharmacist, and her live-in love interest, Arthur the accountant is also a bit of a rigid cold fish. The daughter, Olivia, is a passionate woman who is growing up fast when thrown into a bad situation and caught up in just the wrong place as the wrong time.
You can see how a situation can spin out of control in a hurry and how unjust the mandatory minimum sentence laws are. Waldman is a good writer here and only gets better with time.
February 26, 2022
Izaya Feingold-Upchurch set his telephone receiver back in its cradle, a puzzled frown creasing his broad forehead. He had been worried about pulling the bail package together quickly enough, but it had never occurred to him that the girl's mother wouldn't immediately step up. They almost always did, even the ones who should have known better--the ones whose child or grandchild had already proved to possess an all-consuming self-absorption impervious to even the most dramatic of consequences. In those cases he hated even mentioning the possibility of putting the house up as collateral. Knowing how it would end, Izaya sometimes flirted with the idea of protecting the woman--and it was almost always a woman--from her son's perfidy and her own delusions that her love had any hope at all of saving him. But the duty he owed was to his client, not to those exhausted women from whom, despite all reason, life had not yet drained the seductive elixir of hope.
~~Children visiting their mothers in a New York correctional facility for women. Pregnant and facing her impending trial, Olivia is terrified that she will end up in a very similar situation to this photograph--loving a daughter who doesn't remember her, longing for an eventual reunion outside prison bars.
First two sentences: They were obviously mother and daughter: the expression on the young woman's face gave them away. She wore the peculiarly adolescent scowl that--after they reach the age of seventeen or eighteen and their disdain for the world gives way, again, to a sense of possibility--young women reserve only for their mothers.
Continue reading, and you will learn that the mother is Elaine. A rebel herself in her youth, Elaine left her stable home in New England, and drove cross-country to San Francisco to catch the hippy movement. She lived for a time in a female commune which celebrated free love. Slightly older, she has little to show for her summer of love except Olivia. Motherhood overwhelms her though. She is terrified when confronted by Olivia's insatiable, constant need for her love and attention. She becomes the "just enough" mother. She provides a safe home, and provides for Olivia's basic needs, but can't bring herself to give unconditional love.
"At school Olivia belonged to organizations with names like Diversity NOW!, Students United for Peace, and Women Take Back the Night. She demonstrated on behalf of bilingual education, affirmative action, and an end to the death penalty. She drove up the coast with a dozen of her friends to link arms around an ancient redwood and protect it from the jagged teeth of the chain saw. It had never occurred to her to wonder if her nearly compulsive compassion for the poor and downtrodden had as its genesis her unfulfilled longing to be mothered herself."
Olivia fails to find satisfaction in the school organizations who do little more than talk. Determined to take action into her own hands, she heads to Mexico. There she meets Jorge at a protest rally for the rights of natives of Mexico. They go on to have a fling. She leaves him behind to return to the USA...but a few months later he follows her illegally across the border, and shows up at her Oakland apartment doorstep. She is shocked that he would go through such danger to reunite, and determinedly wills her heart to love him. Jorge stands on the street corner begging for work, and Olivia struggles to support both of them as a waitress. Her nerves are starting to fray, and Jorge is feeling increasingly emasculated. He turns to one of the only ways for an illegal to make money--selling drugs.
But he's not familiar with the intricacies of street life in Oakland, and both he and Olivia end up arrested. Desperate, Olivia begs her mother for help. How will Elaine respond? Can she find it in herself to open up her heart to her daughter? Read to find out.
My two cents: I'm not sure whether a small-time drug deal that didn't cross state boarders would result in a DEA sting like the one Waldman describes. But you know what? The book is so well done, that I'm not sure I care if that little detail is factual. Everything else is spot on. From her depictions of a mother struggling to find love and empathy within herself, to the challenges of setting boundaries with a young adult daughter who can't seem to launch properly, Waldman brings her characters alive. They are flawed, but they are well fleshed out, believable, and relatable. And while the DEA may not get involved in small operations, everything else is, unfortunately, quite true. There's an article about mandatory minimum sentences under further reading. I knew America locks away young adults at an alarming rate--much more frequently and for longer than any other first world country, but I didn't know quite how bad the sentencing guidelines were until I read this novel. And unfortunately, it seems that not much has improved since 2003 when this book was written. Given 4 stars or a rating of "Excellent". Highly recommended as a library checkout or local bookstore find.
Further Reading: An article that goes into more depth about mandatory minimum sentences, which Olivia was subjected to. https://www.brennancenter.org/our-wor...
~~A three part in-depth journalistic piece on Mother's Day as an inmate. https://citylimits.org/2010/05/06/mot...
~~And a very good NPR article on a program for incarcerated mothers. Well worth a read. https://www.npr.org/2018/12/06/663516...
Other favorite quotes: "Elaine was fully aware of how ironic it was that she, who had left her parents in search of a long-over summer of love and produced for them a grandchild with no father whatsoever, should have such banal ambitions for her daughter. Elaine had come to believe, however, that happiness just might lie in banality and convention. There was a reason those were the choices most people made."
~~"For a moment, Olivia felt a familiar flash of irritation with her mother. It was hard not to feel that these clothes were a reproach, an expression of the disgust Elaine felt for Olivia's Goodwill purchases. But then Olivia looked up at her mother. Her face bore an expression at once anxious and wistful, as if she were waiting for Olivia to find fault with her gift, as if she knew she could expect nothing else, but nonetheless imagined some different kind of reception, even some different kind of relationship, where a mother and daughter's offerings to one another were received with ease and comfort and nothing but thanks."
~~Children visiting their mothers in a New York correctional facility for women. Pregnant and facing her impending trial, Olivia is terrified that she will end up in a very similar situation to this photograph--loving a daughter who doesn't remember her, longing for an eventual reunion outside prison bars.
First two sentences: They were obviously mother and daughter: the expression on the young woman's face gave them away. She wore the peculiarly adolescent scowl that--after they reach the age of seventeen or eighteen and their disdain for the world gives way, again, to a sense of possibility--young women reserve only for their mothers.
Continue reading, and you will learn that the mother is Elaine. A rebel herself in her youth, Elaine left her stable home in New England, and drove cross-country to San Francisco to catch the hippy movement. She lived for a time in a female commune which celebrated free love. Slightly older, she has little to show for her summer of love except Olivia. Motherhood overwhelms her though. She is terrified when confronted by Olivia's insatiable, constant need for her love and attention. She becomes the "just enough" mother. She provides a safe home, and provides for Olivia's basic needs, but can't bring herself to give unconditional love.
"At school Olivia belonged to organizations with names like Diversity NOW!, Students United for Peace, and Women Take Back the Night. She demonstrated on behalf of bilingual education, affirmative action, and an end to the death penalty. She drove up the coast with a dozen of her friends to link arms around an ancient redwood and protect it from the jagged teeth of the chain saw. It had never occurred to her to wonder if her nearly compulsive compassion for the poor and downtrodden had as its genesis her unfulfilled longing to be mothered herself."
Olivia fails to find satisfaction in the school organizations who do little more than talk. Determined to take action into her own hands, she heads to Mexico. There she meets Jorge at a protest rally for the rights of natives of Mexico. They go on to have a fling. She leaves him behind to return to the USA...but a few months later he follows her illegally across the border, and shows up at her Oakland apartment doorstep. She is shocked that he would go through such danger to reunite, and determinedly wills her heart to love him. Jorge stands on the street corner begging for work, and Olivia struggles to support both of them as a waitress. Her nerves are starting to fray, and Jorge is feeling increasingly emasculated. He turns to one of the only ways for an illegal to make money--selling drugs.
But he's not familiar with the intricacies of street life in Oakland, and both he and Olivia end up arrested. Desperate, Olivia begs her mother for help. How will Elaine respond? Can she find it in herself to open up her heart to her daughter? Read to find out.
My two cents: I'm not sure whether a small-time drug deal that didn't cross state boarders would result in a DEA sting like the one Waldman describes. But you know what? The book is so well done, that I'm not sure I care if that little detail is factual. Everything else is spot on. From her depictions of a mother struggling to find love and empathy within herself, to the challenges of setting boundaries with a young adult daughter who can't seem to launch properly, Waldman brings her characters alive. They are flawed, but they are well fleshed out, believable, and relatable. And while the DEA may not get involved in small operations, everything else is, unfortunately, quite true. There's an article about mandatory minimum sentences under further reading. I knew America locks away young adults at an alarming rate--much more frequently and for longer than any other first world country, but I didn't know quite how bad the sentencing guidelines were until I read this novel. And unfortunately, it seems that not much has improved since 2003 when this book was written. Given 4 stars or a rating of "Excellent". Highly recommended as a library checkout or local bookstore find.
Further Reading: An article that goes into more depth about mandatory minimum sentences, which Olivia was subjected to. https://www.brennancenter.org/our-wor...
~~A three part in-depth journalistic piece on Mother's Day as an inmate. https://citylimits.org/2010/05/06/mot...
~~And a very good NPR article on a program for incarcerated mothers. Well worth a read. https://www.npr.org/2018/12/06/663516...
Other favorite quotes: "Elaine was fully aware of how ironic it was that she, who had left her parents in search of a long-over summer of love and produced for them a grandchild with no father whatsoever, should have such banal ambitions for her daughter. Elaine had come to believe, however, that happiness just might lie in banality and convention. There was a reason those were the choices most people made."
~~"For a moment, Olivia felt a familiar flash of irritation with her mother. It was hard not to feel that these clothes were a reproach, an expression of the disgust Elaine felt for Olivia's Goodwill purchases. But then Olivia looked up at her mother. Her face bore an expression at once anxious and wistful, as if she were waiting for Olivia to find fault with her gift, as if she knew she could expect nothing else, but nonetheless imagined some different kind of reception, even some different kind of relationship, where a mother and daughter's offerings to one another were received with ease and comfort and nothing but thanks."
September 20, 2009
This book has excellent characters and is a very real, beautiful examination of a mother/daughter relationship. Beautiful does NOT equal mushy--Olivia and her mom Elaine are frequently not very nice to each other. There's a lot of misunderstanding and drawing of boundaries, but the way they get through the horrible situation that is at the crux of this book is absolutely moving.
Also, I read this book in less than a day, which is NOT something I'm typically able to do. I HATE Jodi Picoult's work,so don't ask why I'm drawing this parallel, but if Jodi Picoult weren't so intent upon manipulating our emotions and creating surfacy, un-sympathetic characters, maybe she would write books like this one. Really excellent for what it is, a page-turner.
Also, I read this book in less than a day, which is NOT something I'm typically able to do. I HATE Jodi Picoult's work,so don't ask why I'm drawing this parallel, but if Jodi Picoult weren't so intent upon manipulating our emotions and creating surfacy, un-sympathetic characters, maybe she would write books like this one. Really excellent for what it is, a page-turner.
July 28, 2009
Waldman's style is simple and straight-forward, which lets her riff on a host of themes, ranging from the criminal justice system and mandatory minimums, to motherhood and birth, to the complications of race and class. She also manages to look at these themes using practically all of her characters, who are different enough that they give the reader a well-rounded picture of each issue. Waldman manages to do all that without seeming preachy, either.
March 13, 2011
I've read this twice and I couldn't put it down either time. It's a great story of a few dumb decisions with serious consequences. It also cuts to the quick of our insane system of mandatory minimums and the criminal justice systems approach to drugs.
December 3, 2008
This is a very good book, and it paints a very stark picture of the consequences of federal sentencing guidelines. I couldn't put it down.
November 21, 2012
In many ways a pretty good story.
Olivia and her mom have a little bit of a rocky relationship. Olivia, idealistic champion of the poor, especially in under-developed nations, feels her mother is insensitive to the plight of those less fortunate than herself. Olivia has dropped out of college and is living with her illegal alien Mexican boyfriend in a bad neighborhood. She is working to make ends meet but with the boyfriend unable to find work they are struggling. The boyfriend feels inadequate and is offered easy work picking up and delivering drugs. Uh oh. He gets caught and both he and Olivia are brought up on drug charges. To complicate matters Olivia finds herself pregnant. She has to turn to her mother (she has never known who her father is) and the result is kind of 'coming of age the hard way' and 'resolving her relationship with her own mother' kind of story.
One important aspect of this book is the truth which the book is centered around and that is the injustice of our justice system, where the system fails. The author worked as a public defender and so has a lot of legitimacy to say what she does. She doesn't sugarcoat criminal activity and make excuses for it, but she vividly points out where and how the system fails and how thin the line can be between cops and thugs. What she says about Cuban refugee drug criminals being used by the DEA in order to save themselves (the Cuban drug dealers) from a life sentence was shocking to me. Think millions of tax free dollars to a criminals in order to prosecute the bottom rung members of the drug trade.
Olivia and her mom have a little bit of a rocky relationship. Olivia, idealistic champion of the poor, especially in under-developed nations, feels her mother is insensitive to the plight of those less fortunate than herself. Olivia has dropped out of college and is living with her illegal alien Mexican boyfriend in a bad neighborhood. She is working to make ends meet but with the boyfriend unable to find work they are struggling. The boyfriend feels inadequate and is offered easy work picking up and delivering drugs. Uh oh. He gets caught and both he and Olivia are brought up on drug charges. To complicate matters Olivia finds herself pregnant. She has to turn to her mother (she has never known who her father is) and the result is kind of 'coming of age the hard way' and 'resolving her relationship with her own mother' kind of story.
One important aspect of this book is the truth which the book is centered around and that is the injustice of our justice system, where the system fails. The author worked as a public defender and so has a lot of legitimacy to say what she does. She doesn't sugarcoat criminal activity and make excuses for it, but she vividly points out where and how the system fails and how thin the line can be between cops and thugs. What she says about Cuban refugee drug criminals being used by the DEA in order to save themselves (the Cuban drug dealers) from a life sentence was shocking to me. Think millions of tax free dollars to a criminals in order to prosecute the bottom rung members of the drug trade.
June 16, 2022
This is the third book I've read by Ayelet Waldman and it is probably my favorite. It also happens to be the first of the three, although she has also penned a series of mystery novels I have not read.
Daughter's Keeper is told in multiple third person narration, which is an extremely effective way of getting the reader to become emotionally attached not only to the main character Olivia, but also her mother, Elaine. We are even forced to sympathize with the boyfriend who gets Olivia involved and arrested for his illegal activities. We find ourselves understanding Elaine's fiancee's inability to support her.
I particularly enjoyed the glimpse into the world of mandatory minimums. Waldman uses her real life experience in as a public defense attorney to serve as the backdrop for this story. Olivia is a fictional example of all the real people failed by our justice system's disastrous war on drugs.
I'm excited to see that Waldman will be releasing her fourth novel, Love and Treasure, in April. I have already added it to my Amazon wish list.
Daughter's Keeper is told in multiple third person narration, which is an extremely effective way of getting the reader to become emotionally attached not only to the main character Olivia, but also her mother, Elaine. We are even forced to sympathize with the boyfriend who gets Olivia involved and arrested for his illegal activities. We find ourselves understanding Elaine's fiancee's inability to support her.
I particularly enjoyed the glimpse into the world of mandatory minimums. Waldman uses her real life experience in as a public defense attorney to serve as the backdrop for this story. Olivia is a fictional example of all the real people failed by our justice system's disastrous war on drugs.
I'm excited to see that Waldman will be releasing her fourth novel, Love and Treasure, in April. I have already added it to my Amazon wish list.
April 26, 2007
A book that really made me THINK. It was about a woman who unwittinly went on a ride with her boyfriend who was making a drug run, and has taken down a message for her boyfriend on the phone, even though she was against the whole idea, and had begged her boyfriend not to participate in it. He had promised her it was only a one-time thing, and unknowingly to them, they were watched by the drug enforcement agents and had gotten arrested. She was pregnant, and had to go through difficult decisions regarding her baby, especially that she was in prison, and had to deal with her relationship with her mother, for they did not have a solid one. The book showed us a lot of insights into the prison/judical system regarding drugs, and pregnancy in jail. I was pleased with the outcome, but still disappointed with the fact she still had to serve time for just being a "passenger," and then a "one-time messenger." This book is definitely another keeper!
June 16, 2011
I enjoyed this book very much. I learned much about the legal system and federal mandatory minimum sentences among other things. The characters were well developed, but ones I did not like very much. Not that one has to always like or understand the characters, they are what they are. Being introduced to, "The Saddest Poem" ( p. 308) by Pablo Neruda was an extra bonus.
My favorite quote comes from a scene when the young mother character and her small child are to say good bye at the end of her prison visit on Mother's Day. "Olivia scooped the baby into her arms and buried her face in her neck, inhaling deeply. Elaine looked around the room and saw the mothers all doing the same thing. They were all smelling their children, breathing their aromas, memorizing their particular and unique fragrance." p. 359
The author honored us with a wonderful and well attended visit to the Hayward Library. She was a very entertaining and humorous speaker. Looking forward to her next release.
My favorite quote comes from a scene when the young mother character and her small child are to say good bye at the end of her prison visit on Mother's Day. "Olivia scooped the baby into her arms and buried her face in her neck, inhaling deeply. Elaine looked around the room and saw the mothers all doing the same thing. They were all smelling their children, breathing their aromas, memorizing their particular and unique fragrance." p. 359
The author honored us with a wonderful and well attended visit to the Hayward Library. She was a very entertaining and humorous speaker. Looking forward to her next release.
September 2, 2007
While not the most amazing book I've ever read by a long shot, I was pleasantly stunned by how good and informative this was. The story seems like it SHOULD be far-fetched, but I believed [nearly] every bit of it, and it's a story that doesn't seem to be frequently told. At least - not convincingly or engagingly.
Mostly it's an eye-opening insight on the American legal system in terms of drug trafficking, immigration, and the nuts and bolts of what happens to whom, when. Pretty much the disbelief and surreality of being thrust into a situation you never, ever thought could ever happen to you.
One of my favorite moments is when all this crazy legal stuff is happening to this girl, and although she's this superliberal college girl, she fights off the impulse to wave her hand in front of the police and say "Look! You have the wrong person! See? I'm white!"
Mostly it's an eye-opening insight on the American legal system in terms of drug trafficking, immigration, and the nuts and bolts of what happens to whom, when. Pretty much the disbelief and surreality of being thrust into a situation you never, ever thought could ever happen to you.
One of my favorite moments is when all this crazy legal stuff is happening to this girl, and although she's this superliberal college girl, she fights off the impulse to wave her hand in front of the police and say "Look! You have the wrong person! See? I'm white!"
May 30, 2008
The stars are more for what I learned from the book (policy-wise - mandatory minimums). I do like Ayelet Waldman. I think she's a good story-teller and most of her characters are well-drawn. I "got" Olivia. The story is heartbreaking. My stomach still turns when I think of how easy it was for her to make the mistake she did and the repucussions. Waldman's descriptions of the trial, prison, life there and Olivia's condition seemed absolutely believable. Elaine though - I did not "get"; she put me off. As a mom to a daughter I just didn't understand her. She seemed distant and cold and self-absorbed. Maybe because my daugter was just emerging from babyhood when I read this and the mamabear in me was still close to the surface (she is still in there ... but she receeds as Zoe grows up and away - sniff). I just wanted to wrap Olivia up and protect her and Elaine, well, didn't.
May 17, 2010
I would actually give this book a 4.5.
I really enjoyed this book. The relationship between mother and daughter was something that you can definitely relate to. I know that my relationship with my Mom is strained at best, and in Daughter's Keeper, it helps me understand just a little bit on the mom's perspective.
In this book, the daughter, Olivia gets into a jam and needs her mom's help. The mom, Elaine, helps because it is her daughter, but you see that she struggle's with what Olivia needs and what she can and can't do for her daughter. And you see that this is something that this is something that Elaine has struggled with for years.
I also really liked the way the book ended. Without going into too many details or giving the story away, I felt that the ending was completely realistic. Something you definitely see happening everyday.
I really enjoyed this book. The relationship between mother and daughter was something that you can definitely relate to. I know that my relationship with my Mom is strained at best, and in Daughter's Keeper, it helps me understand just a little bit on the mom's perspective.
In this book, the daughter, Olivia gets into a jam and needs her mom's help. The mom, Elaine, helps because it is her daughter, but you see that she struggle's with what Olivia needs and what she can and can't do for her daughter. And you see that this is something that this is something that Elaine has struggled with for years.
I also really liked the way the book ended. Without going into too many details or giving the story away, I felt that the ending was completely realistic. Something you definitely see happening everyday.
February 26, 2008
i liked that it was set in berkeley, in elmwood, no less, my old stomping grounds. i liked the message about the absurdity and injustice of federal sentencing laws.
i liked pretty much everything about it the first time i read it--but liked it less the second time, when i re-read it for a book club. probably the second time i was focusing less on the suspense of the story and more on the characters and their relationships (primarily the mother-daughter one), which upon closer inspection was sort of unbelievable and a bit overly dramatic, for my taste. i know the events were inherently dramatic, but still.
anyway, a good read for a berkeleyan or a lawyer or someone interested in mother-daughter relationships.
i liked pretty much everything about it the first time i read it--but liked it less the second time, when i re-read it for a book club. probably the second time i was focusing less on the suspense of the story and more on the characters and their relationships (primarily the mother-daughter one), which upon closer inspection was sort of unbelievable and a bit overly dramatic, for my taste. i know the events were inherently dramatic, but still.
anyway, a good read for a berkeleyan or a lawyer or someone interested in mother-daughter relationships.
September 25, 2007
Why do all the books I've read recently either try to make me cry, or succeed? This book was very difficult to get into. It's not divided into chapters, only 2 large sections (fine) and jumps from person to person at a dizzying pace that it almost gives you whiplash. I had to read the first several pages over and over again to figure out who in the world the characters were.
Once I got into it, the book was easy and fast to read. Although I could see where the book was going, it was still engaging to read.
In closing, I'd like to do an anti shout-out to Glamour magazine and whoever design the back cover of this book. Glamour said on the back of the book, "A warm and funny novel." This book is barely warm, and definately not funny.
Once I got into it, the book was easy and fast to read. Although I could see where the book was going, it was still engaging to read.
In closing, I'd like to do an anti shout-out to Glamour magazine and whoever design the back cover of this book. Glamour said on the back of the book, "A warm and funny novel." This book is barely warm, and definately not funny.
June 25, 2010
I think I might just have a new favorite author. This book was AMAZING. I had read another of Waldman's fiction novels and liked it a lot, but not overwhelmingly so. I will say no more about this book because I don't want to spoil it, but if you like a great story that makes you mad, sad, happy and torn up, this is the book for you. I loved it.
October 25, 2010
Parts of the plot were so predictable... but I really appreciate how Waldman wrote the dynamic between mother and daughter. I guess I identified with Olivia to some extent -- feeling like my mother was always at arm's length and eternally disappointed with my life's decisions.
It was an interesting story with flawed characters.
It was an interesting story with flawed characters.
April 21, 2008
Ayelet Waldman is a master at making you root for unsympathetic characters. Fast, well-written, enjoyable read focusing on the relationship between an emotionally limited mother and a headstrong daughter.
April 30, 2011
I really enjoyed this book. It was nothing like I had expected and at the end of the book I had a completely different perspective on peoples lives. Its a great read that can give you a whole new outlook on others.
April 14, 2014
Interesting book, about the struggles a mother an daughter have, and what it takes for them to heal and strengthen their relationship. While it started out as each other blaming one another, it shows self reflection and healing.
July 16, 2014
Sad, touching, and also a really good look at how the war on drugs is being waged, from an inside perspective.
Waldman's protagonists aren't very warm, which makes it more impressive how I came to care for them.
Waldman's protagonists aren't very warm, which makes it more impressive how I came to care for them.
May 9, 2010
Daughter gets arrested for Mexican boyfriends drup deal, gets pregnant, imprisoned. Mom eventually agrees to raise child.
September 24, 2025
3.75 stars. Complicated mother/daughter relationships provide great material for novels, and this one definitely has that. Add in an extremely stressful situation that is unexpected, frustrating, and very consequential, and watching that relationship evolve provides an engaging, page turning plot. There were times I wanted to grab each character by the shoulders and try to shake some sense into them, so there were lots of moments that are difficult to read. The insight into the justice system, particularly as it relates to drug offenses and mandatory sentencing was well done, and the insanity of tying judges' hands with these mandatory sentences is laid clear. Why have a human, sentient judge with so little leeway? The one aspect that I found a little lacking was the issue of undocumented immigrants. This book was written in 2003, and I am seeing it through the lens of 2025, so that may be a big part of the issue, but I would have liked to see a more nuanced approach to the challenges faced by those immigrants. The approach made Jorge wholly unlikeable to me which made Olivia's actions that much more incomprehensible. It would be interesting to see if that might have been done differently in current times. Not a criticism, but I also would have loved a second epilogue-what's going on many years later? The epilogue is well done, but I am left pretty curious about long term. Nothing wrong with an author leaving some things to the imagination, though.
November 5, 2024
A mother, daughter story that tugs on the heart. Ayelet Waldman's knowledge of the Federal legal system shines through.
When a young woman gets swept into illegal activity perpetrated by her live-in boyfriend, she finds herself in over her head relying on the mother who always kept her at arm's length. Pregnant, with the prospect of serving many years in prison, Olivia must make difficult adult choices. Her mother is also forced into making a difficult choice that may jeopardize her chance for her own happiness.
This was a gripping and inciteful read.
When a young woman gets swept into illegal activity perpetrated by her live-in boyfriend, she finds herself in over her head relying on the mother who always kept her at arm's length. Pregnant, with the prospect of serving many years in prison, Olivia must make difficult adult choices. Her mother is also forced into making a difficult choice that may jeopardize her chance for her own happiness.
This was a gripping and inciteful read.
November 13, 2022
3.5 - 3.75
April 30, 2014
I found this book while scanning the shelves at the local library and saw on the back jacket that author Elizabeth Stroud gave her recommendation. That was good enough for me to try it. What a great find! I loved this book and I would highly recommend it - a fantastic little read for a book group. 335 pages. This was published in 2003.
A young woman still learning the ways of her own heart,gets herself indicted on federal drug charges even though she really was an innocent bystander. The story focuses on the relationship between this young woman and her emotionally distant mother as well as the American judicial system and some of its broken parts. There is so much in between but just read the book. I had to hold back tears at the end.
While we pride ourselves on the justice system in America, it doesn't mean that it is perfect and it certainly doesn't mean that there is justice for everyone. This book tells a little of the story about the 'war on drugs' in America and how the justice system operates and the underhanded tactics employed by a so-called 'just'ice system. The author of this book graduated from Harvard Law School, was a criminal defense attorney for the Federal Public Defender's office in L.A. so I am going to assume she knows a few things - and because I read her bio and know that she pulled on her own experience. A great and heart-wrenching story - both about the deep meaning and responsibilities of parenting and also about the justice system.
A young woman still learning the ways of her own heart,gets herself indicted on federal drug charges even though she really was an innocent bystander. The story focuses on the relationship between this young woman and her emotionally distant mother as well as the American judicial system and some of its broken parts. There is so much in between but just read the book. I had to hold back tears at the end.
While we pride ourselves on the justice system in America, it doesn't mean that it is perfect and it certainly doesn't mean that there is justice for everyone. This book tells a little of the story about the 'war on drugs' in America and how the justice system operates and the underhanded tactics employed by a so-called 'just'ice system. The author of this book graduated from Harvard Law School, was a criminal defense attorney for the Federal Public Defender's office in L.A. so I am going to assume she knows a few things - and because I read her bio and know that she pulled on her own experience. A great and heart-wrenching story - both about the deep meaning and responsibilities of parenting and also about the justice system.
July 21, 2014
I enjoyed this book. This is a story of a somewhat strong willed, rebellious girl ( although basically a good kid) Olivia, and her relationship with her mother, Elaine. Elaine has never had a nurturing relationship with her daughter. Elaine raised Olivia as a single mother and is just now enjoying a comfortable loving relationship with a man who wants nothing to do with kids or a family. Parallel to this story Olivia drops out of college and meets up with a man while in Mexico. Olivia comes back to the states and is working as a waitress when this young man finds her. Because he is illegally In this country so has difficulty finding work. This causes him to chose to deliver drugs. Olivia is a somewhat innocent bystander in the transaction but gets arrested. Of course she is pregnant. There are an abundance of social issues in this book; single woman raising daughter, illegal immigration, low working wages, abortion, stern drug laws, women having babies while in prison, grandparents raising grandchildren, the relationship between mother and daughter, the mother making a choice between child and a loving relationship, as well as the cultural differences between American and Mexican culture. There is a lot packed into this book, with no simple answers.
December 24, 2016
Ayelet Waldman (seeThe Mommy-Track Mysteries) has written a novel called Daughter’s Keeper that I think is excellent. It features a woman in her 50’s or 60’s who is finally settled into a good life with her live-in boyfriend after many years of raising a daughter on her own. Just as they are making plans for their retirement, the 22-year-old daughter, with whom she has had a very contentious relationship, gets caught up in a drug ring and ends up with a jail sentence according to the U.S.’s mandatory sentencing laws (which Waldman clearly feels is wrong, although the reader get a good education while she explains it all). The mother must decide just how much to step forward for her daughter, and at what cost. I thought this was a very intelligent and compelling read.
July 7, 2008
Hated the characters. Pathetic. Boring...I was skipping pages. Very predictable- the synopsis pretty much tells you the whole thing. Too many weird sexual descriptions (from the boyfriend) that were unnatural. There were some good parts that focused on mother/daugher/granddaughter relationship, but I've seen better. I read the ending, which had more purpose, but it just wasn't the "highly emotional and unbearably suspensful" book as promised.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 205 reviews