Giving Up on Ordinary

by Isla Dewar

When Megs became a cleaner, she didn't realise that if people looked at her a cleaner would be all they saw. Megs has as full a life as the people she does for, Mrs Terribly-Clean-Pearson or Ms Oh-Just-Keep-It-Above-The-Dysentery-Line McGhee. She's the mother of three children and still mourning the death of a son; she enjoys a constant sparring match with her mother; she drinks away her troubles with Lorraine, her friend since Primary One; and she sings the blues in a local club.

Megs has been getting by. But somehow that's not enough any more. It's time Megs gave up on being ordinary...

Genres: Fiction, Chick Lit

Paperback

First published January 8, 1998

About the author

Born in Edinburgh, Isla Dewar now lives in Fife with her husband, a cartoonist, and two sons. Her first novel, Keeping Up with Magda, published in 1995, has been followed by a string of bestsellers.

Reviews

[Libby Mcainsh]

Read this many years ago but still have a picture of Mr Hundred miles an hour in my head.

[Tory]

“‘I thought I’d take him home. Pour him a glass of malt and give him the best blow-job of his life. Remind him of how good he had things. But, ‘A blow-hob won’t fix everything, Lorraine,” he says. “You think it will. But not this time.” So…’ She flicked as into the plant pot, ‘… there you go. A blow-job doesn’t fix everything. And here’s me thinking it did. More fool me.’”

‘Was that it? Where was all the steamy talk of love and death? The bawdy exchanges? Megs couldn’t remember when she’d last been so disappointed. This’ll do for conversation. This’ll do for a cake. This’ll do for life. She left her tea and good and never went back. She walked, hunched against the rain, back to her car, trying not to think that she was the same as the fat-kneed Blue Kettle ladies. She lived a this’ll-do life.’

Good book. Likeable characters. Sweet and entertaining. About appreciating who you are and what you have.

[Cindy]

Truly hated for this book to end. Ordinary describes every character in this book, yet they are just like everyone you already know. A lonely single mom, a gossipy best friend, teenage kids, nerdy neighbors, crappy ex-husbands . . . Intelligently written and situated in Scotland with a wee bit of Scottish verbage and attitude.

[Elizabeth Emily Browne]

Okay.. So this is the first one star review I have ever given.

This was so hard to get into.. It took me do long to read compared with others. I should have liked the honest speaking Megs but I just couldn't get the point. All in all I rather disappointing read. One that I should have given up on.

[Christina Metcalf]

I had difficulty originally getting into the book but once I did it was in the race for one of my favorites. I didn’t give it a 5 because I save those for only my very lifetime favorites. This one was close.

The characters jumped off the page. Her writing is tight and conveys so much feeling.

She also doesn’t lose energy in the storytelling at the end like many authors do.

Reading the book jacket, I expected a very different story. I loved the idea of shucking off ordinary, and the character did at the end, but I thought it was going to happen in a very different way. I liked the end but found Gilbert’s ending somewhat sad. I was hoping they could both shake their lives up. But alas, not everyone is ready for that.

Enjoyed the book and would read the author again.

[Diane]

An very enjoyble read by isla Dewar, a Scottish author who is filling the gap for Maeve Binchy now that she is gone. Megs feels she has been cheated by life and is just an ordinary nobody trying to hold it together as a single mom. Her dreams of stardom as a jazz & blues singer are down the drain and she is delegated to being a house cleaner. But just when life is at it' s lowest she finds love in the form of one of her customers and an opportunity to get a fresh prospective on her life.

[LInda L]

This was a wonderful book -- a divorced mom of 3 grieves for a child who was killed, a marriage that was wrong, and a career which never happened. She cleans houses for a while, but eventually believes in herself. She also has a best friend from kindergarten who has her back. Read this.

[Teresa D]

Whenever I need a lift any Isla book will do it for me.

[Connie Harrison]

I identify with the protagonist, creating a self-punishing environment over guilt for child loss in a tragic accident. Many things come from guilt and you don't allow yourself to forgive. It takes an un-ordinary relationship or experience to make an allowance of forgiveness to self like the protagonist, Megs, did in Giving Up On Ordinary.

[Joan Horkey]

Kind of funny.

[Joanne]

Good read, very serious

[Michelle]

Not really much of a plot, just “a year in the life of...” Interesting enough to finish, but didn’t love it

[Joy Nixon]

Glad I persevered, first 30 pages wasn't sure. But it got better and better. Bittersweet and touching!

[Geraldine]

I came upon this book at a time when I was jaded - no, angry - at the formulaic churn of 'chick lit' books that were prominently displayed in WH Smiths. Fed up with those ghastly women with their socially pointless jobs on the periphery of media, and their obsessions with fashion, appearance & conspicuously consuming a 'lifestyle'. Devoid of intellect (ie thick), hobbies or passion, disconnected from society, they obsessed only about hooking some boring, emotionally-stunted but rich man so they could embark on the lifestyle of discreet whoredom for which they'd been brought up.

And then this book appeared, as a present, and told the story of a woman who resembled the women I knew in my ward, who came to my surgery and to public meetings. Life hadn't dealt them a great hand of cards and they knew they had to fight for everything they needed. And fight they did.

I imagine it feels quite dated now, but at the time it uplifted me more than any book with 'feelgood' in its blurb

[Jacinda]

I really enjoyed this book. It was funny, clever and real.

"She did not know what to do. Smile? Look away? Stick out her tongue? Oh no, not that. He had, in the end, denied her. But then he only got there first. How long would it have been before she denied him? He'd been good for her. Perhaps she'd even been good for him. She remembered summer evenings, things they'd done.... she told him some of her secrets. These things she'd done with him were her favorite memories. Pictures she'd keep in her head."

That was a good quote, but I also liked, " A blow job wont fix everything.... you think it will. But not this time."

[Anita]

This book has all the ingredients...a single mom, interfering mother, gossipy best friend, teenage kids, basterdly ex husband... a earlier life drama.. great ingredients, a sharp sense of humor...yet...I couldn't get into it...hard to stay with the book. I must have liked the main character enough..I did finish the book... but not remarkable unfortunately..sigh.

[Carolyn]

Isla Dewar is an author currently popular in the UK. She was born in Edinburgh and lives in Scotland with her husband, a cartoonist, and two sons. Whether writing about the life of women during World War II or more contemporary times, she is honest, witty, and a keen observer of family life. Her characters are eccentric, and all too human.

[Elizabeth]

Page turner, very well written story about a woman with a family who cleans to support this family and who ends up having an affair with one of the men she cleans for. Different cultures, different backgrounds, but so funny. In the end she is 'giving up on ordinary' and starts her own business together with her best lady friend.

[Sho]

I pushed on to about half way through this before I realised - meh. Life is too short. So it's on the "given up" shelf.

It is pages and pages of semi-humorous never-ending description of a divorcée's life, her friend's husband leaves her, her kids are lively... *yawn*

[Siti]

funny and hilarious..how someone is thinking that she was living in an ordinary life...

[Rachel]

I loved this book - it's really sad in parts, especially the bits about Thomas and how Megs doesn't think she deserves anything good in life, but it's a wonderful story.

[Lisa]

Started April 21st
Finished DID NOT

I just could not get into this book never got to page 100 :(

[Cathy]

Thoroughly enjoyable pleasure read,like a visit with a good girlfriend. A bit of romance, but the man isn't the savior. Very funny turns of phrase from a Scottish author who is new to me.

[Tenna]

It was ok...little slow to begin with and I almost gave up on it. For some reason it took me FOREVER to get through it...must not have kept my attention that well!

[Arlene]

4 stars for a light summer reading book. Enjoyable characters. Liked that the man did not become the hero of the story (plus he wasn't all that likable)as Megs stopped being ordinary all by herself.

[Dysmonia Kuiper]

My most vivid memory of this book is my neighbor interrupting me while I was reading it on my patio and his dog going after my cat. It was decent, though. Good portrayal of an unlived life.

[Natalie Cooper]

I found the characters unlikeable, and overall the book was hard to get into. The ending was supposed to be uplifting but even that I found a bit flat and disappointing.

[Liana Robichaux]

Love this authors writing style

[Jess]

I'm not going to rave about this book, but a good read for on the train or holiday, easy to pick up and put down.

[Karen]

This was an absolutely awesome book! I loved the everyday life of Megs and the crazy cast of characters. And the ending was perfect (don't worry, no spoiler here!).