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Wishful Thinking
Jennifer Sharpe is a divorced mother of two with a problem just about any working parent can relate her boss expects her to work as though she doesn’t have children, and her children want her to care for them as though she doesn’t have a boss. But when, through a fateful coincidence, a brilliant physicist comes into possession of Jennifer’s phone and decides to play fairy godmother, installing a miraculous time-travel app called Wishful Thinking, Jennifer suddenly finds herself in possession of what seems like the answer to the impossible dream of having it an app that lets her be in more than one place at the same time. With the app, Jennifer goes quickly from zero to hero in every part of her she is super-worker, the last to leave her office every night; she is super-mom, the first to arrive at pickup every afternoon; and she even becomes super-girlfriend, dating a musician who thinks she has unlimited childcare and a flexible job. But Jennifer soon finds herself facing questions that adding more hours to her day can’t answer. Why does she feel busier and more harried than ever? Is she aging faster than everyone around her? How can she be a good worker, mother, and partner when she can’t be honest with anybody in her life? And most important, when choosing to be with your children, at work, or with your partner doesn’t involve sacrifice, do those choices lose their meaning? Wishful Thinking is a modern-day fairy tale in which one woman learns to overcome the challenges—and appreciate the joys—of living life in real time.
370 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 7, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 110 reviews
April 7, 2015
Wishful Thinking had everything I could want in a novel; an intriguing premise (who wouldn't want to be in two places at once--almost?), interesting characters, both primary and secondary (I still don't know what was up with the one red and one black shoe), a bit of romance, and physics details that made me wonder how many of them were true. Of course the idea of a time travel app is outlandish, but somehow, the further I got into the story, the more plausible it seemed. But even though that's the hook of this wonderfully charming novel, its heart is about, well, heart, and what I otherwise find a tedious, irksome phrase, "having it all." Jennifer is given the chance to supposedly "have it all" by being able to do all her work and then some and be with her kids whenever she wants, and be with her new boyfriend, but at what cost? That is the core question of this book and, especially toward the end, Wicoff made me think about some major questions about how I spend my limited time on earth and who I do and don't prioritize. I highly recommend this, and I'm not a mom, though I do think I'd also follow Jennifer's route and accept an app that let me time travel, if given the chance.
June 8, 2015
This book was so much fun! I so related to this single mom that I actually started to get superwoman syndrome when I finished reading it. (that feeling you get that you do entirely too much for one person, no one ever helps you, and you are pulling it off fabulously) I am back to reality to tell you all that this is a really great read.
Jennifer is a single mom to two boys. She is a recent divorcee and is struggling with not enough hours in the day. Her new boss expects her to work like she has no life. Her ex-husband is rarely helpful with child care and her nanny spends a lot of time with her children. She loves her job, and she is passionate about what she does. So therein lies the problem, Jennifer doesn’t have enough hours in the day. When she looses her phone, a mysterious stranger returns it with a little bonus. The stranger has placed an app called Wishful Thinking on her phone that will allow her to go back in time and redo parts of her day. She is really skeptical, but the app actually works. Jennifer is delighted to find she can do more with the app’s help. Months later, Jennifer is exhausted and not really improving her life, just surviving it. The cost may be more than she can handle though, as she is living three lives, lying to everyone, and aging twice as fast as her peers.
I know the premise makes this sound so unbelievable, but I found in the reading that it was at easy to buy into. The author gives us so much science to go with (in easily digestible terms) and I found myself not caring about it being realistic or not. The science was actually fun to read and it celebrated the accomplishments of women. (how cool is that?) It really didn’t feel like a stretch for me to just go with it. I can imagine how many issues in my own life that would be gone with this app. I could be everywhere and get everything done and still maintain a clean house. Jennifer uses it for realistic purposes and tries to be the best employee and mother of the year. It doesn’t even occur to Jennifer to do something for herself in all of this. Later she adds a little romance time into her day. The author gave us a slow burn sort of romance that I really appreciated.
I loved this story. Jennifer is really a great character. Her life is hopeless without help. This app has all the answers. Jennifer just jumps into using this app to answer all the time constraints of her life. The secondary characters were really outstanding in this book, too. Jennifer’s best friend and her scientist neighbor were really great. I loved the realistic look at her ex-husband, who is obviously over the break up. The last 5 or so chapters I found myself biting my nails. I might have even rooted for her out-loud to my Miguel. This book left me with feeling good and appreciating all the help that I have in my life. I highly recommend this book to every woman. It was just a delight to read.
Jennifer is a single mom to two boys. She is a recent divorcee and is struggling with not enough hours in the day. Her new boss expects her to work like she has no life. Her ex-husband is rarely helpful with child care and her nanny spends a lot of time with her children. She loves her job, and she is passionate about what she does. So therein lies the problem, Jennifer doesn’t have enough hours in the day. When she looses her phone, a mysterious stranger returns it with a little bonus. The stranger has placed an app called Wishful Thinking on her phone that will allow her to go back in time and redo parts of her day. She is really skeptical, but the app actually works. Jennifer is delighted to find she can do more with the app’s help. Months later, Jennifer is exhausted and not really improving her life, just surviving it. The cost may be more than she can handle though, as she is living three lives, lying to everyone, and aging twice as fast as her peers.
I know the premise makes this sound so unbelievable, but I found in the reading that it was at easy to buy into. The author gives us so much science to go with (in easily digestible terms) and I found myself not caring about it being realistic or not. The science was actually fun to read and it celebrated the accomplishments of women. (how cool is that?) It really didn’t feel like a stretch for me to just go with it. I can imagine how many issues in my own life that would be gone with this app. I could be everywhere and get everything done and still maintain a clean house. Jennifer uses it for realistic purposes and tries to be the best employee and mother of the year. It doesn’t even occur to Jennifer to do something for herself in all of this. Later she adds a little romance time into her day. The author gave us a slow burn sort of romance that I really appreciated.
I loved this story. Jennifer is really a great character. Her life is hopeless without help. This app has all the answers. Jennifer just jumps into using this app to answer all the time constraints of her life. The secondary characters were really outstanding in this book, too. Jennifer’s best friend and her scientist neighbor were really great. I loved the realistic look at her ex-husband, who is obviously over the break up. The last 5 or so chapters I found myself biting my nails. I might have even rooted for her out-loud to my Miguel. This book left me with feeling good and appreciating all the help that I have in my life. I highly recommend this book to every woman. It was just a delight to read.
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December 27, 2014LOVED this book. Hilarious. Familiar. An 'I Don't Know How She Does it" with a sci fi twist - and a smart send up of the structures and expectations that have yet to catch up with the way we live - that are sucking our time and driving us all crazy.
July 18, 2015
When I had three young children, and a full-time job, I often wished there was a way to be in two or more places at the same time. While I thought more along the lines of clones, this book deals with a smartphone app which allows time travel.
The story draws you in from the beginning and seems almost plausible most of the time. As Jennifer finds more time in her day, she finds more "things" to fill that time, and begins to use the app more and more. At the heart of this story is the question of what it truly costs to "have it all" and be the proverbial Superwoman.
This was a book that I didn't want to put down--I needed more time in MY day just to be able to sit and read it uninterrupted. All the characters are well written and recognizable, even lovable. I absolutely adored Dr. Sexton--I looked forward to every scene she was in and every description of her outfits (still not sure about the one black shoe and one red shoe thing! LOL)
The wrap up of the story wasn't a magical, unbelievable one, which I worried it might be. Even though it was a "happily ever after" ending, it was one that most of us could achieve--WITHOUT a time travel app!
I received a copy of this book from BookSparks as part of the Summer Reading Challenge, in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.
The story draws you in from the beginning and seems almost plausible most of the time. As Jennifer finds more time in her day, she finds more "things" to fill that time, and begins to use the app more and more. At the heart of this story is the question of what it truly costs to "have it all" and be the proverbial Superwoman.
This was a book that I didn't want to put down--I needed more time in MY day just to be able to sit and read it uninterrupted. All the characters are well written and recognizable, even lovable. I absolutely adored Dr. Sexton--I looked forward to every scene she was in and every description of her outfits (still not sure about the one black shoe and one red shoe thing! LOL)
The wrap up of the story wasn't a magical, unbelievable one, which I worried it might be. Even though it was a "happily ever after" ending, it was one that most of us could achieve--WITHOUT a time travel app!
I received a copy of this book from BookSparks as part of the Summer Reading Challenge, in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.
April 21, 2015
I really enjoyed reading this book. I'm a grandmother now, but can recall those days when I wish I had an app that would let me be in two places at one time. I think this is a great fairy tale for any working mother, single, married or divorced. I would think that whoever was using this app would fist pump the air every night before going to bed saying "yes, I am a Supermom". Ha!!
While this concept is WAY out there, the author made it believable and included some great characters in her story. I'm pretty sure I did not skip any pages due to fluff or redundancy. It was thoroughly entertaining for me as I just got lost in the story.
Thank you She Writes Press and Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review this free e-galley. I had a great time!
While this concept is WAY out there, the author made it believable and included some great characters in her story. I'm pretty sure I did not skip any pages due to fluff or redundancy. It was thoroughly entertaining for me as I just got lost in the story.
Thank you She Writes Press and Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review this free e-galley. I had a great time!
July 31, 2015
I did not think from the title and description that this would be my sort of book, but I purchased it in support of Kamy Wicoff who is one of the founders of the amazing She Writes community and also She Writes Press who publish so many excellent novels. I began to read it thinking I might not get too far(partly because I am a bit "over" stories of young mothers, given that that stage of my life was a long time ago! , and anything that looks like fantasy and magic is also not something I am drawn to.) But I found it an excellent read and finished it, finding it well written (No surprises there) but also engaging and the fantasy/magic intriguing and very well done. I almost began to believe Kamy must be an astrophysicist who decided to write on the side. There are many good morals embedded in this story, and I definitely recommend it to multitasking young women, especially those with kids, and especially those with who are single with kids and of course the big job. I know so many of these and was once one myself!
August 21, 2018
3.5/5 This was a cute book about trying to do it all as a female. The app helped Jennifer manage her life until it became her whole life. While she might have been living her life, she wasn’t enjoying it. What I got out of it is that maybe instead of being superwomen, we need to ask for help
April 22, 2015
Wishful Thinking by Kamy Wicoff is a humorous and engaging book. Jennifer Bideau is divorced, works full-time (with the housing authority), and has two young boys. Her ex-husband, Norman, who is an actor (which means the child support is pitiful), has not been very helpful and only sees the boys once a week. Jennifer’s new boss, Bill, believes she should be working more hours per week. Forty hours a week is not enough for this man. He is trying to implement private sector ideas into the government. Jennifer does not know how she can work more hours. Bill offers an incentive of bonuses.
Jennifer’s needs help. One morning before work she cannot find her phone. They turn on the phone finder and they find the phone in an envelope outside her front door. There is a note inside. Her kindly neighbor, Dr. Diane Sexton (Jennifer and the boys call her The Shoe Lady) found the phone and installed an app on it. The app is called Wishful Thinking. Diane is in a hurry and decides she will investigate it later. In the afternoon when Diane is wondering how she can get more done within a 24 hour day, she looks at the app. It states that she can be in two places at once! The note states she is to contact Dr. Sexton before trying out the app. Of course, Jennifer decides to try it without checking with Dr. Sexton.
The app requires that you schedule an “appointment” stating start time, end time, leaving coordinates, and arrival coordinates. Jennifer would love to attend her elder son’s recital. She is hiding in a bathroom on the eighteenth floor (a nice quiet place) when she tries out the app. Next thing she knows she is across town. What just happened? Diane gets to attend her son’s recital (who is thrilled) and then she goes back to work. It was like she never left. She returns back to the bathroom at the same time she left! How wonderful! What ensues is hilarious! Jennifer becomes superwoman. She can be with her children, get word done (making her new boss happy), and find time for a boyfriend. You just know something is going to happen!
Read Wishful Thinking to see how Jennifer handles the app and the lessons she learns along the way. I give Wishful Thinking 4.25 out of 5 stars. I found that the book was sometimes a little too wordy (some more editing was needed) and the physics parts were down right confusing (made my brain hurt). Wishful Thinking was a fun book to read. It had romance, humor, a mystery, and unique characters (Dr. Diane Sexton). I look forward to reading more books by Kamy Wicoff.
I received a complimentary copy of this novel from NetGalley (and publisher) in exchange for an honest review.
http://bibliophileandavidreader.blogs...
Jennifer’s needs help. One morning before work she cannot find her phone. They turn on the phone finder and they find the phone in an envelope outside her front door. There is a note inside. Her kindly neighbor, Dr. Diane Sexton (Jennifer and the boys call her The Shoe Lady) found the phone and installed an app on it. The app is called Wishful Thinking. Diane is in a hurry and decides she will investigate it later. In the afternoon when Diane is wondering how she can get more done within a 24 hour day, she looks at the app. It states that she can be in two places at once! The note states she is to contact Dr. Sexton before trying out the app. Of course, Jennifer decides to try it without checking with Dr. Sexton.
The app requires that you schedule an “appointment” stating start time, end time, leaving coordinates, and arrival coordinates. Jennifer would love to attend her elder son’s recital. She is hiding in a bathroom on the eighteenth floor (a nice quiet place) when she tries out the app. Next thing she knows she is across town. What just happened? Diane gets to attend her son’s recital (who is thrilled) and then she goes back to work. It was like she never left. She returns back to the bathroom at the same time she left! How wonderful! What ensues is hilarious! Jennifer becomes superwoman. She can be with her children, get word done (making her new boss happy), and find time for a boyfriend. You just know something is going to happen!
Read Wishful Thinking to see how Jennifer handles the app and the lessons she learns along the way. I give Wishful Thinking 4.25 out of 5 stars. I found that the book was sometimes a little too wordy (some more editing was needed) and the physics parts were down right confusing (made my brain hurt). Wishful Thinking was a fun book to read. It had romance, humor, a mystery, and unique characters (Dr. Diane Sexton). I look forward to reading more books by Kamy Wicoff.
I received a complimentary copy of this novel from NetGalley (and publisher) in exchange for an honest review.
http://bibliophileandavidreader.blogs...
July 3, 2016
Divorced mom of two with a high pressure job? Not enough hours in the day?
The time-traveling app is gimicky and I almost gave up after the first few chapters of Jennifer's stressful life. (I'm not a competitive city dweller and just can't understand the mentality.) But I was at the pool with nothing else to read, so I stuck with it, and I'm glad I did.
This is chick lit with a brain, including explanations of physics theory that made my eyes glaze over a little, and a feminist heart. The female characters are intelligent and fiesty, with realistic relationships. Jennifer, the protagonist, has an MBA, but works for the New York City Housing Authority, struggling to balance all the aspects of her life. Her BFF, Vinita, is a married pediatrician with three young daughters. Her co-worker/rival, Alicia, grew up in the projects, but became a ground-breaking educator. And (maybe don't read this unless you've read the first half of the book) . I love how, despite their differences and conflicts, the women are all able to work together when problems arise...and they're pretty badass in the process. I also enjoyed the fact that, while romance is present in the story and fairly important to Jennifer's life, it's not the main focus.
In her acknowledgments, Wicoff says she was inspired by the Harry Potter series, wishing there was an equivalent for working moms, and at the very end of the book, she gives a subtle nod to Hermione's time turner. But there's no magic here, just science, however far-fetched it might be, and if anything, this reminded me of the adult version of Freaky Friday, one of my adolescent favorites.
(3.5 stars rounded up being a fun, summer read.)
The time-traveling app is gimicky and I almost gave up after the first few chapters of Jennifer's stressful life. (I'm not a competitive city dweller and just can't understand the mentality.) But I was at the pool with nothing else to read, so I stuck with it, and I'm glad I did.
This is chick lit with a brain, including explanations of physics theory that made my eyes glaze over a little, and a feminist heart. The female characters are intelligent and fiesty, with realistic relationships. Jennifer, the protagonist, has an MBA, but works for the New York City Housing Authority, struggling to balance all the aspects of her life. Her BFF, Vinita, is a married pediatrician with three young daughters. Her co-worker/rival, Alicia, grew up in the projects, but became a ground-breaking educator. And (maybe don't read this unless you've read the first half of the book) . I love how, despite their differences and conflicts, the women are all able to work together when problems arise...and they're pretty badass in the process. I also enjoyed the fact that, while romance is present in the story and fairly important to Jennifer's life, it's not the main focus.
In her acknowledgments, Wicoff says she was inspired by the Harry Potter series, wishing there was an equivalent for working moms, and at the very end of the book, she gives a subtle nod to Hermione's time turner. But there's no magic here, just science, however far-fetched it might be, and if anything, this reminded me of the adult version of Freaky Friday, one of my adolescent favorites.
(3.5 stars rounded up being a fun, summer read.)
November 9, 2015
This is one of the best books I have read in a while. Jennifer Sharpe is a 39 year old, divorced, working mom with two young sons, and never enough time to get everything done. Her boss wants her to work more, her sons want her to spend more time with them, and Me time for Jen? Just not happening!! Until the night Jen loses her phone. When the kindly but eccentic physicist who lives down the hall retuns it, an app called Wishful Thinking has been added. It seems this app will allow you to be in two places at once. Great idea? Jen thinks so, until she begins schedule so many things that "extra time" seems to become one more chore, and she begins to learn that sometimes the things we make time for are more precious than the time we just take for granted. Throw in the crazy but kind physicist, an old friend who has the "perfect life", a driven co-worker, and a villianous boss, and you have a story that simply draws you in and hold on to you.
I read this book in two sittings. Yes, I read a LOT, but at 370 pages, that's saying something!! I simply loved all the characters, and could not wait to find out what would happen next. For those of you scoffing because you don't like SciFi, neither do I. This book takes that science base, and uses it to tell a fairy tale. I will admit to not understanding all the science that was behind this (and briefly explained in the book), but it never mattered. I got the gist of it, and I enjoyed every minute of the story!!
I read this book in two sittings. Yes, I read a LOT, but at 370 pages, that's saying something!! I simply loved all the characters, and could not wait to find out what would happen next. For those of you scoffing because you don't like SciFi, neither do I. This book takes that science base, and uses it to tell a fairy tale. I will admit to not understanding all the science that was behind this (and briefly explained in the book), but it never mattered. I got the gist of it, and I enjoyed every minute of the story!!
July 23, 2015
We could all use extra hours in the day. Couldn’t we?
In this thought provoking book, Jennifer Sharpe loses her phone and it’s returned with a note and a strange app installed. She doesn’t quite know what to make of it. But what if this app is what she really needs?
Jennifer is a single mother who works long hours at her job along with raising two little boys. She has trouble making it to school functions and barely enough time to relax at the end of the day. Wishful Thinking is an app that was put on her phone by an eccentric physicist who lives in her apartment building. The app allows Jennifer to stop time and be someplace else when she wants to be. From the comfort of the private bathroom in her office building, Jennifer can use the app and spend time with her kids during day when she would normally be working.
When Jennifer decides she is using the app too much and things are starting to get out of hand, she asks to have it removed. But, there is one last travel she needs to make and it has to do with her job and some missing money.
This book was a lot of fun to read and really made me think of what I would use Wishful Thinking for.
In this thought provoking book, Jennifer Sharpe loses her phone and it’s returned with a note and a strange app installed. She doesn’t quite know what to make of it. But what if this app is what she really needs?
Jennifer is a single mother who works long hours at her job along with raising two little boys. She has trouble making it to school functions and barely enough time to relax at the end of the day. Wishful Thinking is an app that was put on her phone by an eccentric physicist who lives in her apartment building. The app allows Jennifer to stop time and be someplace else when she wants to be. From the comfort of the private bathroom in her office building, Jennifer can use the app and spend time with her kids during day when she would normally be working.
When Jennifer decides she is using the app too much and things are starting to get out of hand, she asks to have it removed. But, there is one last travel she needs to make and it has to do with her job and some missing money.
This book was a lot of fun to read and really made me think of what I would use Wishful Thinking for.
April 25, 2015
This type of book is one of my favorites--fun, silly, but also true-to-life (you know, the harried mother part). Probably all the loose ends tied up by the end of the book, which is comforting sometimes. To sum up, I know this book isn't anything ground-breaking in literature, but I love it.
This is the story of a mom who is too busy, too stretched, too stressed. She finds a magical app on her phone that basically allows her to be in two places at once. It turns out a genius-physicist lives in her building and has invented time travel through wormholes. She doesn't want to share it with the world, she wants to share it with an exhausted mother. Thus this madcap story begins...
Thanks to NetGalley for this read! Loved it.
http://queenbeebooks.blogspot.com/201...
This is the story of a mom who is too busy, too stretched, too stressed. She finds a magical app on her phone that basically allows her to be in two places at once. It turns out a genius-physicist lives in her building and has invented time travel through wormholes. She doesn't want to share it with the world, she wants to share it with an exhausted mother. Thus this madcap story begins...
Thanks to NetGalley for this read! Loved it.
http://queenbeebooks.blogspot.com/201...
May 5, 2015
What a wonderful story...such fun!!! Who wouldn't want a magical app to make life easier, but is that really what we need? Is is really the answer??? Could we accomplish the same amazing things without it? WISHFUL THINKING allows the reader to a jump into the world of what-if. But along with the delightful story there is also depth and contemplation. There are questions to ponder within this read: how we live our limited time we are given, how we prioritize time and what it really means to "have it all"... read the book to find out how is all shakes out... 4 delightful stars
May 24, 2015
A fun read with an underlying question: Why are you trying to do more? As a writer, a wife and a mother with a more-than-fulltime job, I found myself wondering what I would do with an app that could give me more hours in my day and why I feel like I never have enough time. Wormholes aside, it's a question worth pondering and WISHFUL THINKING provides a safe and fun vehicle for that message. Wonderful read for a vacation, when you have time to actually think about what you want from your life.
July 17, 2015
Many of us can relate to feeling overwhelmed and wanting to be in more than one place at the same time. Thanks to an app called Wishful Thinking, Jennifer is able to do this. The science of how it's done slows the story down a bit. But the repercussions of using the app are plausible.
June 16, 2015
This is the sleeper hit of the summer! I give it a 4.5/5, but Goodreads doesn't work like that. It was a really great read, the writing was very well done, and the story grabs you. Definitely one you should read!
May 4, 2015
**Disclaimer: I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads**
Short version:
It made me laugh and cry and stay up late reading. A good feminist book taking down the idea of "having it all" in a very original manner. It's one of the quirkiest science fiction novels I can remember reading, and the rare one that also pays attention to characterization. Not a perfect book (more about that in the long version) but worth the read for its foray into debates on complex societal issues, making this an integral part of the storyline, and not a lecture. Read it!
Longer version:
An over-worked, divorced mother of two receives the gift of a lifetime -- the ability to be in two (or three) places at once through a time-traveling app on her phone. How will she use the app, and will the ability to "have-it-all" truly make her happy?
I definitely recommend Wishful Thinking. Although not a perfect book, it does a lot in a short space. The characters are given time to develop, as are their relationships. There is a serious effort made to explain the mechanisms behind the time-travel central to the book, although like EVERY time-travel story I've read, there are some unanswered questions. However, since this is not unique to this book, and does not detract from the story, I can't take points off for it. Relatedly, brilliant women scientists are prominently featured, and interwoven naturally into the story.
We see how women are constantly pushed to "do-it-all," reframing this instead into the nicer sounding "having-it-all." It also shows how this can lead to competition between women, in a cycle of envy and shame, instead of refocusing on the men in their lives who leave them with the brunt of the work, or a society who doesn't account for the non-paid work many women do. There is a particularly poignant scene between Jennifer and her best friend Vinita, who although a doctor with three young daughters, is also wealthier thanks to her investment banker husband, and able to afford a housekeeper and nanny, that speaks to this. There's also some discussion about how some women do have it harder, because of a lack of support systems.
**MILD SPOILERS**
Nothing central to the plot really, but since the book is so focused on characters, I though a warning was in order. All the mild spoilers focus on issues I had with the book.
For all these positives, I did have some issues with the book. The story still came from a decidedly middle-class perspective, and though there was a bit of it, I felt that there could have been more exploration of the unique challenges women from different socioeconomic backgrounds face. Jennifer herself is reminded that despite her struggle, she still enjoys benefits those she serves do not. There is a particularly excellent scene between Jennifer and her co-worker Alicia addressing this. But...given their line of work there definitely could have been more.
Also, I thought it was an...interesting choice to make Bill Truitt, Jennifer's boss, a black men. He has mild political aspirations, and an enormous amount of wealth. He's also determined to bring a "private-sector work ethic" to a public-service department, which Jennifer rightfully decries as unreasonable, given the discrepancy in the pay of the two.
I think this was done to show how easy it is to be corrupted by money and power, even if someone is only one generation removed from poverty. However, this felt rather cheap to me, a way of saying, "Black people are so oppressed in this country! You should know better!" I readily acknowledge that this type of figure exists in the United States (I do after all currently live in Philly, criticized for its "black elite"). However, I feel like this lets the majority of the people in our society in power, most of whom are white, off the hook, because, somehow, it's worse when someone "from the community" does the same thing white, wealthy people do all the time. I say, that's a massive cop-out, especially given the book's obvious effort to address real, serious social ills. Male frat-boy banker types are derided a few times throughout the book, but nothing harsher than a slap-on-the wrist (see: Vinita's husband Sean). In the meantime, see Bill Truitt's character, and compare the treatment of the two. I personally think it was the wrong focus if trying to criticize U.S. political/governmental culture, because it lets the majority of the real players off the hook.
Lastly, I am completely, utterly disappointed that the only character in the book that acknowledges lasting attraction to men and women flippantly calls herself a lesbian towards the end. Even if it was a joke and insincere, playing into the simplified vision of sexuality the media has (which I very much want to believe), as a bisexual myself, I was on cloud nine about such an amazing character having characteristics of a bisexual (although of course not ever calling herself a bisexual, because...). But then, the only mention of a sexual orientation, AT ALL, in the book was the word "lesbian," completely discounting the fact that this character very plainly said she quite enjoyed male company. Yes, I understand people's sexual orientation can change, or she could have identified as lesbian all along, but again, this felt cheap. And also, unnecessary. That one line could have been left out, detracted nothing from the book, and would have left bisexuals like myself with a character that even if we can't claim outright, we could at least lay claim to. Instead, all I saw was another example of bisexual erasure. Otherwise, I really, really liked this character's storyline, I thought it was incredibly believable and touching and near perfect, which is why the let-down was so much harder to take.
These criticisms together made be dock a star from my review, but overall I quite enjoyed the book. I think it did a better job than most at addressing real social issues, which I absolutely expect from a feminist book (and a feminist publishing co.).
But keep in mind that this is on a different grading scale than (non-feminist) books I don't expect as much from, so it is still a recommended read for feminists!
Short version:
It made me laugh and cry and stay up late reading. A good feminist book taking down the idea of "having it all" in a very original manner. It's one of the quirkiest science fiction novels I can remember reading, and the rare one that also pays attention to characterization. Not a perfect book (more about that in the long version) but worth the read for its foray into debates on complex societal issues, making this an integral part of the storyline, and not a lecture. Read it!
Longer version:
An over-worked, divorced mother of two receives the gift of a lifetime -- the ability to be in two (or three) places at once through a time-traveling app on her phone. How will she use the app, and will the ability to "have-it-all" truly make her happy?
I definitely recommend Wishful Thinking. Although not a perfect book, it does a lot in a short space. The characters are given time to develop, as are their relationships. There is a serious effort made to explain the mechanisms behind the time-travel central to the book, although like EVERY time-travel story I've read, there are some unanswered questions. However, since this is not unique to this book, and does not detract from the story, I can't take points off for it. Relatedly, brilliant women scientists are prominently featured, and interwoven naturally into the story.
We see how women are constantly pushed to "do-it-all," reframing this instead into the nicer sounding "having-it-all." It also shows how this can lead to competition between women, in a cycle of envy and shame, instead of refocusing on the men in their lives who leave them with the brunt of the work, or a society who doesn't account for the non-paid work many women do. There is a particularly poignant scene between Jennifer and her best friend Vinita, who although a doctor with three young daughters, is also wealthier thanks to her investment banker husband, and able to afford a housekeeper and nanny, that speaks to this. There's also some discussion about how some women do have it harder, because of a lack of support systems.
**MILD SPOILERS**
Nothing central to the plot really, but since the book is so focused on characters, I though a warning was in order. All the mild spoilers focus on issues I had with the book.
For all these positives, I did have some issues with the book. The story still came from a decidedly middle-class perspective, and though there was a bit of it, I felt that there could have been more exploration of the unique challenges women from different socioeconomic backgrounds face. Jennifer herself is reminded that despite her struggle, she still enjoys benefits those she serves do not. There is a particularly excellent scene between Jennifer and her co-worker Alicia addressing this. But...given their line of work there definitely could have been more.
Also, I thought it was an...interesting choice to make Bill Truitt, Jennifer's boss, a black men. He has mild political aspirations, and an enormous amount of wealth. He's also determined to bring a "private-sector work ethic" to a public-service department, which Jennifer rightfully decries as unreasonable, given the discrepancy in the pay of the two.
I think this was done to show how easy it is to be corrupted by money and power, even if someone is only one generation removed from poverty. However, this felt rather cheap to me, a way of saying, "Black people are so oppressed in this country! You should know better!" I readily acknowledge that this type of figure exists in the United States (I do after all currently live in Philly, criticized for its "black elite"). However, I feel like this lets the majority of the people in our society in power, most of whom are white, off the hook, because, somehow, it's worse when someone "from the community" does the same thing white, wealthy people do all the time. I say, that's a massive cop-out, especially given the book's obvious effort to address real, serious social ills. Male frat-boy banker types are derided a few times throughout the book, but nothing harsher than a slap-on-the wrist (see: Vinita's husband Sean). In the meantime, see Bill Truitt's character, and compare the treatment of the two. I personally think it was the wrong focus if trying to criticize U.S. political/governmental culture, because it lets the majority of the real players off the hook.
Lastly, I am completely, utterly disappointed that the only character in the book that acknowledges lasting attraction to men and women flippantly calls herself a lesbian towards the end. Even if it was a joke and insincere, playing into the simplified vision of sexuality the media has (which I very much want to believe), as a bisexual myself, I was on cloud nine about such an amazing character having characteristics of a bisexual (although of course not ever calling herself a bisexual, because...). But then, the only mention of a sexual orientation, AT ALL, in the book was the word "lesbian," completely discounting the fact that this character very plainly said she quite enjoyed male company. Yes, I understand people's sexual orientation can change, or she could have identified as lesbian all along, but again, this felt cheap. And also, unnecessary. That one line could have been left out, detracted nothing from the book, and would have left bisexuals like myself with a character that even if we can't claim outright, we could at least lay claim to. Instead, all I saw was another example of bisexual erasure. Otherwise, I really, really liked this character's storyline, I thought it was incredibly believable and touching and near perfect, which is why the let-down was so much harder to take.
These criticisms together made be dock a star from my review, but overall I quite enjoyed the book. I think it did a better job than most at addressing real social issues, which I absolutely expect from a feminist book (and a feminist publishing co.).
But keep in mind that this is on a different grading scale than (non-feminist) books I don't expect as much from, so it is still a recommended read for feminists!
November 25, 2019
The premise of this story caught my eye immediately when I saw it on the library shelf: an all-too-busy single mom struggling to keep her career afloat is given an opportunity to magically be in two places at one time. Though I don't have kids and I'm happily married, I do work full-time and am in college part-time, so the crazy busy life is not unfamiliar to me! I thoroughly enjoyed this story and had a hard time putting it down. The ending was a little unsatisfactory and a bit too deus ex machina for a full five stars, however, and I took off another full star (perhaps a little too unfairly) for the weird way that the author handled the diversity in her characters. It was difficult to see why she felt it necessary to repeatedly mention which characters were POC while assuming the reader would infer that all the main characters were, by default, white. New York is an incredibly racially diverse city and though on some level I appreciated that the reader was not supposed to assume that a book by a white writer would feature an all-white cast, the fact that we were constantly bonked over the head with "this person is Indian, this person is black," etc., felt a little grating.
February 8, 2021
Have you ever wanted to attend your children's play in the middle of the day? Have you needed to be at work attending a big conference at the same time? Not possible, you say with the wishful thinking app it may just be. Jennifer is a single mom of two boys who have lots of interests and want mom to be there for all of it. Jennifer is also a hardworking mom who wants to achieve great things at her job and has a boss who expects her to put her all into the position. One night Jennifer loses her phone, and a mysterious new neighbor installs a beautiful app called the Wishful thinking app, which allows Jennifer to become, in a sense, a superwoman. Like all good things, it sounds good in theory, but the reality is not a dream come true. This novel is hilarious, heartwarming, and raises the biggest question of all we prioritizing during our limited time on Earth?
August 8, 2017
This was a very inventive story - one that I thought I would love. I think it could have been everything I expected, if the author had tightened the text. Too much unimportant things weighed the story down.
April 11, 2018
I couldn't wrap my mind around how time travel really happened, but the story proved to be entertaining. The story assisted me in escaping everyday life. The characters showed emotions and real life pain. The reader is an observer the whole book.
October 10, 2019
This book has an interesting premise and might catch some people's interest. Personally, I spent many days "hate reading" because I thought it might get better. Parental teleportation, really? I can't.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 4, 2019
An alright brainless book but very predictable which makes it lose some entertainment value. Not a bad book but my life was not enriched by reading it by any means.
May 26, 2015
This book was super funny and had a similar message as The Balance Project. This book is very different as far as the story is concerned, but they both discuss the "women having it all" myth. The main character, Jennifer, is a single mom of two boys. She has not had a lot of support from her ex-husband, Norman, in the past. She has a very fulfilling job, but has a new boss that wants the employees to work 60-80 hours a week. By chance, Jennifer's physicist neighbor installs and app on Jennifer's phone that allows her to be in more than one place at the same time. At first Jennifer is reluctant to use the app. However she starts using it more and more to spend time with her kids while meeting the demands of her boss. All this extra time starts to take a toll on Jennifer. She is more tired since she is doing more in her days and she realizes she isn't doing everything she would like to do. She also tries to keep groups of people separate from each other so they won't discuss how she is picking up her kids after school, but somehow manages to be at work until 8. At the same time, Jennifer is learning that all moms find it hard to juggle quality time with their kids and working while not feeling exhausted. She (unknowingly) is making a coworker feel bad about not staying as late as Jennifer does.
All the secrets (she is hiding the use from everyone and hiding things from her best friend) and time start to wear on Jennifer. Her Norman finds someone else and tries to tell Jennifer that she needs to find someone to be happy with. At first Jennifer thinks her life should revolve around her kids and work, but eventually she meets Owen. Once Owen and her start getting close, she splits herself into threes to make for him. She's exhausted and starts feeling present in multiple places at once. When something at sketchy at work happens that she is suspected of and when she can sense danger for her kids, Jennifer has to decide whether to interfere with the future or just let things happen naturally without the app.
I thought the premise of this book was very intriguing. Without giving specifics of the app away, I thought it was very neat that the app had certain rules and that there were lessons from the person that created the app. As a reader there was some background involved instead of being expected to take the app at face value without any questions involved. In a way all of this made it seem possible. Her best friend thinks she's having a panic attack when she first tells her about the app. I thought this book raised some very interesting points. When she falls asleep at a meeting after using the app for some time, she realizes that other mothers are exhausted and that she isn't alone. A line from the book really stood out to me. (I'm paraphrasing) Near the end of the book Jennifer wonders if you have all the time in the world to do anything is there really meaning to the things you do. Since we do have such limited time and there are no guarantees it speaks volumes when you do make time for people or activities. There are some many other things we could or want to be doing. Even when Jennifer has extra time to clean or see her kids she thinks she still does not have enough hours in the day to do EVERYTHING she wants. One last point that I think is important is that when things start getting serious with Owen she is scared. She wants a guarantee that things will work out and that the relationship won't end up like the one with Norman. That is not possible (obviously). However, Jennifer has to learn to take a leap of faith and trust not only Owen but other people in her life to do things that she thinks she is the only person capable of doing. Sure it would be nice to avoid heartache or bad situations, but sometimes those lead to the best things or make you even more grateful for the good things you do have in life.
Overall, I thought this book was great. It was so funny and I loved the snark from Jennifer. She is trying to make things good for her sons, but sometimes she doesn't think about her own happiness. The emails between her and her best friend are some of the best lines in the book. I loved those. I also enjoyed the minor characters in this book, particularly Dr. Sexton. She was like a kid herself. You will get a kick out of the book and maybe wonder what you would do with all the extra time if you had an app like Jennifer. Would you do it if it potentially made you age faster and more tired than you already were? That's something to think about.
PS In the acknowledgements I loved that the author may have potentially found her own real life Owen! :)
I received a copy of this book for an honest review
All the secrets (she is hiding the use from everyone and hiding things from her best friend) and time start to wear on Jennifer. Her Norman finds someone else and tries to tell Jennifer that she needs to find someone to be happy with. At first Jennifer thinks her life should revolve around her kids and work, but eventually she meets Owen. Once Owen and her start getting close, she splits herself into threes to make for him. She's exhausted and starts feeling present in multiple places at once. When something at sketchy at work happens that she is suspected of and when she can sense danger for her kids, Jennifer has to decide whether to interfere with the future or just let things happen naturally without the app.
I thought the premise of this book was very intriguing. Without giving specifics of the app away, I thought it was very neat that the app had certain rules and that there were lessons from the person that created the app. As a reader there was some background involved instead of being expected to take the app at face value without any questions involved. In a way all of this made it seem possible. Her best friend thinks she's having a panic attack when she first tells her about the app. I thought this book raised some very interesting points. When she falls asleep at a meeting after using the app for some time, she realizes that other mothers are exhausted and that she isn't alone. A line from the book really stood out to me. (I'm paraphrasing) Near the end of the book Jennifer wonders if you have all the time in the world to do anything is there really meaning to the things you do. Since we do have such limited time and there are no guarantees it speaks volumes when you do make time for people or activities. There are some many other things we could or want to be doing. Even when Jennifer has extra time to clean or see her kids she thinks she still does not have enough hours in the day to do EVERYTHING she wants. One last point that I think is important is that when things start getting serious with Owen she is scared. She wants a guarantee that things will work out and that the relationship won't end up like the one with Norman. That is not possible (obviously). However, Jennifer has to learn to take a leap of faith and trust not only Owen but other people in her life to do things that she thinks she is the only person capable of doing. Sure it would be nice to avoid heartache or bad situations, but sometimes those lead to the best things or make you even more grateful for the good things you do have in life.
Overall, I thought this book was great. It was so funny and I loved the snark from Jennifer. She is trying to make things good for her sons, but sometimes she doesn't think about her own happiness. The emails between her and her best friend are some of the best lines in the book. I loved those. I also enjoyed the minor characters in this book, particularly Dr. Sexton. She was like a kid herself. You will get a kick out of the book and maybe wonder what you would do with all the extra time if you had an app like Jennifer. Would you do it if it potentially made you age faster and more tired than you already were? That's something to think about.
PS In the acknowledgements I loved that the author may have potentially found her own real life Owen! :)
I received a copy of this book for an honest review
November 10, 2015
This review was originally posted to Jen in Bookland
Whishful Thinking. This was an okay read. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it either. I didn't care for the main character which didn't help, but it was okay.
Jennifer is divorced, taking care of her two kids and trying to work the long hours needed at her job. Her ex wasn't very reliable for a long time, but now he seems to want to be in their kids lives more. He wants to file for more custody, especially since they are home with a sitter most of the time. Her boss also expects her to put in long hours to try and get her dream plan to come to fruition a year earlier than planned. She has a lot to do and not enough time to do it.
When she loses her phone one day she finds it again with a mysterious new app on it that claims to let her be in two places at once kind of. She was supposed to miss her sons guitar recital, but even though she doesn't believe this new app will really let her be in two places at the same time she gives it a try. When she sees that it actually works, that she could be at her sons recital, then get sent back in time to when she left to finish off her work day she thinks this is the perfect thing for her. With the help of her crazy physicist neighbour who made the app she can have everything. She is only supposed to use it a few times a week. After all it has not been testes significantly and they wouldn't want anything to happen to Jennifer. Her bff is also in the loop as she is a doctor and can keep an eye on her health.
Quickly Jennifer finds that only time jumping a twice a week is not enough. She can have it all, if only she re-lives the same times two or three times in a day. It sounds horrible really. She ends up doing way more, but never really enjoying it.
"It was not lost on Jennifer that, even with the app, she was still chasing the moment when she could finally be in the moment, and it was a moment that never seemed to arrive."
It is one of those be careful what you wish for type of situations. It looks like it would be great to have many more hours in a day, but it is not really. You still are chasing time and it is not something I would really want. Sure it would be nice at times to have more hours in the day, but there aren't so you make do with what you have.
So through it all I just found Jennifer a bit..she just gets a bit too crazy for me. I didn't really care for her and never felt for her and her situation. I really thought sure, let your ex have the kids a few days a week after school. You can work, he can see them, win win win. Only she won't let that happen. Maybe if we would have seen the ex and how bad he was before it would have been different, but as it is I just felt like that would have been a good solution to some of your problems. Yes you would miss time with your kids, but you already do. As the ex pointed out they are not even with her, so why not let them be with him? I didn't care for it. I know a lot of working parents would probably love an app like this to let them not miss anything with their kids, but the way she was written I just didn't care for Jennifer.
My one real issue with the book though is near the end. **spoiler alert** Jennifer finally realizes that she cannot keep time jumping forever, that she will age so much faster since she is living so many more hours that everyone else. She realizes she will end up missing more if she keeps up her addiction so she quits cold turkey. No more time jumps. Only they need to get some information that is locked up and they cannot get to it. It turns into this weird crime story, stop the bad guys in a humorous way kind of thing. It was odd as that storyline seemed to come out of nowhere. Sure I guess it is kind of set up with the boss, but it was just like alright zany fun take the bad guy down time. I didn't like it. Really I didn't like that they needed to get he documents to catch the bad guy, but couldn't figure out how to get them. So what do they do? Use the app once again to pop in and out of where they needed to be and yey problem solved. I really didn't like that. Instead of figuring out a way to get what they needed by themselves it is just like oh we will just time jump again. I know we just said no more, but just once more couldn't hurt right? Ugh. I can just see if they didn't destroy the app that she would just start using every once and a while, only when she really needed it mind you, and then we would be right back where we were in the middle of the book. It annoyed me.
Overall an alright read, but because I never liked the main character it didn't win me over. The end also annoyed me so not my favorite, but not the worst thing either.
Whishful Thinking. This was an okay read. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it either. I didn't care for the main character which didn't help, but it was okay.
Jennifer is divorced, taking care of her two kids and trying to work the long hours needed at her job. Her ex wasn't very reliable for a long time, but now he seems to want to be in their kids lives more. He wants to file for more custody, especially since they are home with a sitter most of the time. Her boss also expects her to put in long hours to try and get her dream plan to come to fruition a year earlier than planned. She has a lot to do and not enough time to do it.
When she loses her phone one day she finds it again with a mysterious new app on it that claims to let her be in two places at once kind of. She was supposed to miss her sons guitar recital, but even though she doesn't believe this new app will really let her be in two places at the same time she gives it a try. When she sees that it actually works, that she could be at her sons recital, then get sent back in time to when she left to finish off her work day she thinks this is the perfect thing for her. With the help of her crazy physicist neighbour who made the app she can have everything. She is only supposed to use it a few times a week. After all it has not been testes significantly and they wouldn't want anything to happen to Jennifer. Her bff is also in the loop as she is a doctor and can keep an eye on her health.
Quickly Jennifer finds that only time jumping a twice a week is not enough. She can have it all, if only she re-lives the same times two or three times in a day. It sounds horrible really. She ends up doing way more, but never really enjoying it.
"It was not lost on Jennifer that, even with the app, she was still chasing the moment when she could finally be in the moment, and it was a moment that never seemed to arrive."
It is one of those be careful what you wish for type of situations. It looks like it would be great to have many more hours in a day, but it is not really. You still are chasing time and it is not something I would really want. Sure it would be nice at times to have more hours in the day, but there aren't so you make do with what you have.
So through it all I just found Jennifer a bit..she just gets a bit too crazy for me. I didn't really care for her and never felt for her and her situation. I really thought sure, let your ex have the kids a few days a week after school. You can work, he can see them, win win win. Only she won't let that happen. Maybe if we would have seen the ex and how bad he was before it would have been different, but as it is I just felt like that would have been a good solution to some of your problems. Yes you would miss time with your kids, but you already do. As the ex pointed out they are not even with her, so why not let them be with him? I didn't care for it. I know a lot of working parents would probably love an app like this to let them not miss anything with their kids, but the way she was written I just didn't care for Jennifer.
My one real issue with the book though is near the end. **spoiler alert** Jennifer finally realizes that she cannot keep time jumping forever, that she will age so much faster since she is living so many more hours that everyone else. She realizes she will end up missing more if she keeps up her addiction so she quits cold turkey. No more time jumps. Only they need to get some information that is locked up and they cannot get to it. It turns into this weird crime story, stop the bad guys in a humorous way kind of thing. It was odd as that storyline seemed to come out of nowhere. Sure I guess it is kind of set up with the boss, but it was just like alright zany fun take the bad guy down time. I didn't like it. Really I didn't like that they needed to get he documents to catch the bad guy, but couldn't figure out how to get them. So what do they do? Use the app once again to pop in and out of where they needed to be and yey problem solved. I really didn't like that. Instead of figuring out a way to get what they needed by themselves it is just like oh we will just time jump again. I know we just said no more, but just once more couldn't hurt right? Ugh. I can just see if they didn't destroy the app that she would just start using every once and a while, only when she really needed it mind you, and then we would be right back where we were in the middle of the book. It annoyed me.
Overall an alright read, but because I never liked the main character it didn't win me over. The end also annoyed me so not my favorite, but not the worst thing either.
April 4, 2015
Who among us doesn't wish that they could be in more than one place at a time?
Divorced mother-of-two Jennifer Sharpe is burning the candle at both ends. Working a job with incredible demands on her time, sleeping on the sofa bed in her tiny apartment because her ex-husband is "pursuing his acting career" and not paying support, and left with little time for her children or a social life, she often wishes that she could be in more than one place at a time. When she loses her phone one night and finds it outside of her apartment door the next morning with a mysterious new app installed called "Wishful Thinking", Jennifer finds that she can do just that. With the help of her app-creating neighbor, physicist Dr. Diane Sexton, suddenly Jennifer is able to work until 8 pm every night and be home with her children in the evening at the same time. Jennifer is living the dream, even able to pursue a relationship with her son's handsome and charismatic guitar teacher in thanks to the app's time travel properties, but then the realities of time travel start to make themselves knows to her. She finds herself exhausted much of the time, unable to remember important details about friends, and she finds herself aging more quickly due to the multiple times that she lives each hour of each day. She, along with her best friend, know that she needs to stop using the app. But will Jennifer be able to cope without the app? Will she be able to find a balance that allows her to live happily ever after?
I love the concept of Wishful Thinking and I found myself absorbed in the plot early on. It was hard not to like Jennifer Sharpe. It was clear from the beginning that she adored her two small boys and would do anything for them, but it was also apparent that she had no choice but to work punishing hours in order to support them single-handedly and put food on the table. I think that any working mother, divorced or otherwise, can relate to how Jennifer feels. That is likely why I found myself so taken with this story from the very beginning! I miss the days when I was able to volunteer at my sons' schools or read them an extra chapter or two at night before bed, but being a working parent certainly puts time constraints on day-to-day life. This is likely why I found the app Wishful Thinking such a fun concept. Imagine being able to be in two places at once! Hard at work until 8 pm, while being home with your family at the same time! However as with any good story about time travel, I knew that things would, at some point, go spectacularly wrong. They did, but with an important lesson to go along with the mishaps. Is there such thing as being too much? Doing too much? I believe that there is. We, as women, as mothers, as employees, tend to try to be everywhere at once. We aim for perfection, and we often exhaust and disappoint ourselves in the process. Perhaps it is time for us to step back and just be, to allow ourselves to be the best that we can be, and to remind ourselves that it is ok for us to be less than perfect from time to time. That is what I took away from Wishful Thinking.
I thoroughly enjoyed Wishful Thinking. I enjoyed the writing style, the underlying message, and all of the characters. I enjoyed getting to know Jennifer as well as getting to know her best friend and Dr. Diane Sexton. The characters came alive on the pages and I related to each of them in some way. They were all doing their best to find their own happiness, and I appreciated them for that. While the concept of the time-travel app was fascinating, what I really appreciated was the underlying theme- we are all perfect as we are, and that it is more important for us to find balance in our lives than to burn out trying to do it all. This was a thought-provoking read, and one that I will definitely be recommending.
Divorced mother-of-two Jennifer Sharpe is burning the candle at both ends. Working a job with incredible demands on her time, sleeping on the sofa bed in her tiny apartment because her ex-husband is "pursuing his acting career" and not paying support, and left with little time for her children or a social life, she often wishes that she could be in more than one place at a time. When she loses her phone one night and finds it outside of her apartment door the next morning with a mysterious new app installed called "Wishful Thinking", Jennifer finds that she can do just that. With the help of her app-creating neighbor, physicist Dr. Diane Sexton, suddenly Jennifer is able to work until 8 pm every night and be home with her children in the evening at the same time. Jennifer is living the dream, even able to pursue a relationship with her son's handsome and charismatic guitar teacher in thanks to the app's time travel properties, but then the realities of time travel start to make themselves knows to her. She finds herself exhausted much of the time, unable to remember important details about friends, and she finds herself aging more quickly due to the multiple times that she lives each hour of each day. She, along with her best friend, know that she needs to stop using the app. But will Jennifer be able to cope without the app? Will she be able to find a balance that allows her to live happily ever after?
I love the concept of Wishful Thinking and I found myself absorbed in the plot early on. It was hard not to like Jennifer Sharpe. It was clear from the beginning that she adored her two small boys and would do anything for them, but it was also apparent that she had no choice but to work punishing hours in order to support them single-handedly and put food on the table. I think that any working mother, divorced or otherwise, can relate to how Jennifer feels. That is likely why I found myself so taken with this story from the very beginning! I miss the days when I was able to volunteer at my sons' schools or read them an extra chapter or two at night before bed, but being a working parent certainly puts time constraints on day-to-day life. This is likely why I found the app Wishful Thinking such a fun concept. Imagine being able to be in two places at once! Hard at work until 8 pm, while being home with your family at the same time! However as with any good story about time travel, I knew that things would, at some point, go spectacularly wrong. They did, but with an important lesson to go along with the mishaps. Is there such thing as being too much? Doing too much? I believe that there is. We, as women, as mothers, as employees, tend to try to be everywhere at once. We aim for perfection, and we often exhaust and disappoint ourselves in the process. Perhaps it is time for us to step back and just be, to allow ourselves to be the best that we can be, and to remind ourselves that it is ok for us to be less than perfect from time to time. That is what I took away from Wishful Thinking.
I thoroughly enjoyed Wishful Thinking. I enjoyed the writing style, the underlying message, and all of the characters. I enjoyed getting to know Jennifer as well as getting to know her best friend and Dr. Diane Sexton. The characters came alive on the pages and I related to each of them in some way. They were all doing their best to find their own happiness, and I appreciated them for that. While the concept of the time-travel app was fascinating, what I really appreciated was the underlying theme- we are all perfect as we are, and that it is more important for us to find balance in our lives than to burn out trying to do it all. This was a thought-provoking read, and one that I will definitely be recommending.
May 27, 2015
Have you ever wanted, no needed, to be in two places at once. I'm guessing you have at least once in your life. I know I have. In Wishful Thinking, Jennifer is able to do just that with an app on her phone that works a little bit like Hermione Granger's time turner in Harry Potter. After her neighbor, Dr. Diane Sexton, a kooky physicist, installs the app that Sexton had designed on her phone, she finds herself living the working mom's dream, being supermom to her two children and the most dedicated employee in her office all at the same time. But it comes at a price that Jennifer might not be willing to pay.
I was immediately intrigued by this story, feeling like I could really relate to Jennifer having two young children of my own and being a divorce away from finding myself planted squarely in her shoes in real life. I'm currently a stay at home mom and already feel like I need two of me at times, I can't imagine being a working mother trying to juggle work and kids activities, except I kind of can after reading this book, although Jennifer makes it seem almost effortless with her wishful thinking app.
I did find myself feeling ashamed of Jennifer as she started to take on more and more responsibilities through the apps special powers, but couldn't really blame her as I would possibly do the same thing, although I think I'd most likely just schedule myself some extra nap times during the week. But with the pressure women today feel to be perfect in everything we do to impress our 600 friends on Facebook and Pinterest, it's easy to understand why Jennifer would feel the need to join planning committees and schedule perfect playdates for her sons. It seems like almost everyone's life is perfect if you check their Facebook.
The wishful thinking app did allow Jennifer to develop new friendly relationships outside of work though, through those playdates, which would be an absolutely wonderful thing if they weren't stretching her so thin. Jennifer eventually comes to realize that a person's body can only take so much pressure before it starts to have deleterious affects on them.
Overall I give this book 4 out of 5 stars because it was entertaining and made me think about my own life and what I would do if I had an app like that. I also think this would make a great book club selection, because I can think of a half dozen discussion questions off the top of my head. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a lighthearted, but through-provoking read.
Reviewed on Just Another Girl and Her Books blog
http://www.justanothergirlandherbooks...
I was immediately intrigued by this story, feeling like I could really relate to Jennifer having two young children of my own and being a divorce away from finding myself planted squarely in her shoes in real life. I'm currently a stay at home mom and already feel like I need two of me at times, I can't imagine being a working mother trying to juggle work and kids activities, except I kind of can after reading this book, although Jennifer makes it seem almost effortless with her wishful thinking app.
I did find myself feeling ashamed of Jennifer as she started to take on more and more responsibilities through the apps special powers, but couldn't really blame her as I would possibly do the same thing, although I think I'd most likely just schedule myself some extra nap times during the week. But with the pressure women today feel to be perfect in everything we do to impress our 600 friends on Facebook and Pinterest, it's easy to understand why Jennifer would feel the need to join planning committees and schedule perfect playdates for her sons. It seems like almost everyone's life is perfect if you check their Facebook.
The wishful thinking app did allow Jennifer to develop new friendly relationships outside of work though, through those playdates, which would be an absolutely wonderful thing if they weren't stretching her so thin. Jennifer eventually comes to realize that a person's body can only take so much pressure before it starts to have deleterious affects on them.
Overall I give this book 4 out of 5 stars because it was entertaining and made me think about my own life and what I would do if I had an app like that. I also think this would make a great book club selection, because I can think of a half dozen discussion questions off the top of my head. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a lighthearted, but through-provoking read.
Reviewed on Just Another Girl and Her Books blog
http://www.justanothergirlandherbooks...
February 8, 2016
Jennifer is a busy single mom, struggling to keep up at work while still spending enough time with her two young boys. One day her lost smartphone shows up on her doorstep and Jennifer discovers a new app has been installed. This app, she soon comes to realize, allows her to time travel -- to basically be in two places at the same time. Suddenly Jennifer is able to keep the long hours her boss is demanding, while still picking her boys up from school and getting in quality time Mom/kid time. She is the superwoman she's always dreamed of being. But is it too good to be true?
I'll confess that a good portion of this book made me cringe. Not because it's bad. In fact, it's the opposite. It's a smartly written, captivating novel with a harried heroine who captures your heart pretty quickly. For me, the book was stressful because it hit home! A busy working mother who has demands at the office, but who also wants to spend time with her kids? That certainly describes a lot of us. Much like when I'm watching an action or horror movie for a first time, I felt myself tensing, anxiously wondering what was going to happen to Jennifer. Was she going to get caught using the app? Was the Jennifer at the office going to somehow show up with her kids? Would her co-workers find out? Her kids? Would the app make her sick? This couldn't go on forever, right?
And that's basically the premise behind Wicoff's clever novel. Of course, being in two (and over time, as Jennifer becomes dependent on the app, three places) places isn't all it's cracked up to be. Jennifer is tired, experiencing some strange sensations, potentially losing friendships, and wait, is she aging rapidly when she's living two days in the span of what should only be one?
Wicoff does a great job of showing the pressures many working parents feel. It's true - sometimes you do feel like you have to be a superwoman! Her book is also populated with fun characters -- in particular, Dr. Sexton, Jennifer's kooky neighbor, who also happens to be a genius scientist and inventor of said app.
If it all sounds a little improbable, it is, and you'll have to be prepared to suspend disbelief a bit, but Wicoff does such a great job, that it isn't really that hard. The book veers off a bit in its final quarter, turning more from the harried working mom scene, to a bit of an almost mystery/avenger plot, which is also completely improbable, and a very strange twist, but it's fun, too. You can't help but rooting for Jennifer (and Dr. Sexton, too). Overall, a crazy 3.5 star rating.
(Note, I received an advanced copy of this book in return for an unbiased review.)
I'll confess that a good portion of this book made me cringe. Not because it's bad. In fact, it's the opposite. It's a smartly written, captivating novel with a harried heroine who captures your heart pretty quickly. For me, the book was stressful because it hit home! A busy working mother who has demands at the office, but who also wants to spend time with her kids? That certainly describes a lot of us. Much like when I'm watching an action or horror movie for a first time, I felt myself tensing, anxiously wondering what was going to happen to Jennifer. Was she going to get caught using the app? Was the Jennifer at the office going to somehow show up with her kids? Would her co-workers find out? Her kids? Would the app make her sick? This couldn't go on forever, right?
And that's basically the premise behind Wicoff's clever novel. Of course, being in two (and over time, as Jennifer becomes dependent on the app, three places) places isn't all it's cracked up to be. Jennifer is tired, experiencing some strange sensations, potentially losing friendships, and wait, is she aging rapidly when she's living two days in the span of what should only be one?
Wicoff does a great job of showing the pressures many working parents feel. It's true - sometimes you do feel like you have to be a superwoman! Her book is also populated with fun characters -- in particular, Dr. Sexton, Jennifer's kooky neighbor, who also happens to be a genius scientist and inventor of said app.
If it all sounds a little improbable, it is, and you'll have to be prepared to suspend disbelief a bit, but Wicoff does such a great job, that it isn't really that hard. The book veers off a bit in its final quarter, turning more from the harried working mom scene, to a bit of an almost mystery/avenger plot, which is also completely improbable, and a very strange twist, but it's fun, too. You can't help but rooting for Jennifer (and Dr. Sexton, too). Overall, a crazy 3.5 star rating.
(Note, I received an advanced copy of this book in return for an unbiased review.)
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