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The Season of Second Chances
A world of possibilities opens up for Joy Harkness when she sets out on a journey that’s going to show her the importance of friendship, love, and what makes a house a home
Coming-of-age can happen at any age. Joy Harkness had built a university career and a safe life in New York, protected and insulated from the intrusions and involvements of other people. When offered a position at Amherst College, she impulsively leaves the city, and along with generations of material belongings, she packs her equally heavy emotional baggage. A tumbledown Victorian house proves an unlikely choice for a woman whose family heirlooms have been boxed away for years. Nevertheless, this white elephant becomes the home that changes Joy forever. As the restoration begins to take shape, so does her outlook on life, and the choices she makes over paint chips, wallpaper samples, and floorboards are reflected in her connection to the co-workers who become friends and friendships that deepen. A brilliant, quirky, town fixture of a handyman guides the renovation of the house and sparks Joy’s interest to encourage his personal and professional growth. Amid the half-wanted attention of the campus’s single, middle-aged men, known as “the Coyotes,”and the legitimate dramas of her close-knit community, Joy learns that the key to the affection of family and friends is being worthy of it, and most important, that second chances are waiting to be discovered within us all.
285 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
21 people are currently reading
982 people want to read
About the author
Diane Meier
11 books46 followersDiane Meier Delaney is the author of The Season of Second Chances and The New American Wedding. She is the founder and president of MEIER, a full service marketing firm in Manhattan.
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August 21, 2011
I recently finished The Season of Second Chances, by Diane Meier and liked it so much that I didn’t want to write about it!
I do that sometimes after experiencing a great movie, opera, musical or book. When something touches me profoundly, I want it all to myself. Talking or writing about it somehow takes the shine off my new found treasure. And then there is that Bridget Jones insecurity tapping me on the shoulder telling me that my review could never give it due justice, or I would gush about it so much that people will think I am nuts. Well, more nuts.
So, I have been holding it in savoring my selfish indulgence until this week when I read Ms. Meier’s poignant commentary on publishing, media and buyers perceptions of literature vs. chick-lit in the Huffington Post. I was miffed. Not only had her charming book received positive reviews from all sectors, it also garnered some not so complementary criticisms from those who wanted to classify it as chick-lit because its forty-something female protagonist renovates her home, and the cover has flowers on it. Flowers? Flowers now disqualify books from being literature and earmark them as chick-lit? Conversely, one reader review on Amazon hated it because it wasn’t chick-lit! Go Figure! Like her sharp, funny and insightful book Diane had the perfect come-back to this dilemma.
"Okay, I wanted to respond, I’m sorry that you’re disappointed, but it’s like trying to blame a hot dog for not being ice cream."
Exactly!
"What I didn’t see was that the chick-lit argument had landed squarely on my doorstep.
Was “The Season of Second Chances” Chick Lit or not? That, in itself, became the general theme of most reviews, professional and consumer.
“Five stars because it is NOT Chick Lit.”
“Zero stars because it is NOT Chick Lit.”
What? Who asked for this as a mark of critical analysis?"
I will let you make your own decision, but first, you must read the book to understand the debate. Here’s a teaser and some thoughts…
Forty-eight year old English literature professor Joy Harkness has been avoiding relationships all her life. After fifteen years in the cold, competitive confines of Columbia University she accepts an exciting new position at Amherst College in Massachusetts. Eager to leave the spurious glamour of the New York lifestyle behind, she packs up her small cluttered apartment and purchases a once majestic Victorian house sorely in need of a major renovation. (not quite as disastrous as Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House, but close). Everyone insists that she contact local home restoration magician Teddy Hennessy. The man who shows up does not look very promising and their first few meetings are discouraging, but Joy soon discovers that this thirty-five year old laid back mama’s boy is a genius with plumbing, carpentry, vintage detailing and paint chips.
Joy’s anonymous lifestyle from New York soon changes as she makes connections in the community of supportive female co-workers on campus and a romance with an eligible professor. But it is simple, unassuming Teddy who makes the biggest impact on her life, transforming her house and her heart. In turn, she thinks that he needs a make-over and encourages him to return to college for his degree so he can teach (like her). However, his sad past and his domineering mommy-dearest have a strong hold on him that Joy may not be able to fix with her academic acumen.
Meier has crafted a story resplendent with memorable characters ready to make you laugh out loud and nod your head in recognition of the foibles and follies in us all. Joy is a literature professor who has formed her thinking, and her life around critical analysis of classics books. She treats people the same way. As we follow the narrative she throws in all sorts of literary and cultural references as antecedents peppering the plot with descriptors at the most important moments: “His eyes narrowing like a small-town spinster at the suggestion of living in sin.”, “She was a strange bird, almost attractive in a hard and urban way that “seemed to have flown too close to the scalpel.“”, or my personal favorite, “Like a stripper, I knew my routine, how much to reveal and when to cover up again.” I read this book during my lunch breaks at work and laughed so hard that my co-workers (fellow booksellers) looked at me in amazement quizzing me on what I was reading. I was happy to let them in on the secret. “The Season of Second Chances was a witty coming of age at any age story filled with astute observations and characters so real and outrageously funny that Jane Austen would smile.” There is more… but I promised I would not gush.
I loved the ending, but I can’t tell you about it. Nope. Won’t go there. I feel a personal affinity to Joy Harkness, being a single woman of a certain age who is having her own season of second chances. I wrote to Ms. Meier and told her so. She kindly replied that she wrote the book just for me! *purr*
Back to the literature vs. chick-lit kerfuffle. If Jane Austen is credited as being the grandmother of chick-lit and she is considered one of the finest writers EVAH – those good folks in book award land should take heed. The Season of Second Chances deserves its own second chance. Let’s call it literature. No chick-lit. Even better, chick-ature. Any thing you call it, it’s a darn good book.
Laurel Ann, Austenprose
I do that sometimes after experiencing a great movie, opera, musical or book. When something touches me profoundly, I want it all to myself. Talking or writing about it somehow takes the shine off my new found treasure. And then there is that Bridget Jones insecurity tapping me on the shoulder telling me that my review could never give it due justice, or I would gush about it so much that people will think I am nuts. Well, more nuts.
So, I have been holding it in savoring my selfish indulgence until this week when I read Ms. Meier’s poignant commentary on publishing, media and buyers perceptions of literature vs. chick-lit in the Huffington Post. I was miffed. Not only had her charming book received positive reviews from all sectors, it also garnered some not so complementary criticisms from those who wanted to classify it as chick-lit because its forty-something female protagonist renovates her home, and the cover has flowers on it. Flowers? Flowers now disqualify books from being literature and earmark them as chick-lit? Conversely, one reader review on Amazon hated it because it wasn’t chick-lit! Go Figure! Like her sharp, funny and insightful book Diane had the perfect come-back to this dilemma.
"Okay, I wanted to respond, I’m sorry that you’re disappointed, but it’s like trying to blame a hot dog for not being ice cream."
Exactly!
"What I didn’t see was that the chick-lit argument had landed squarely on my doorstep.
Was “The Season of Second Chances” Chick Lit or not? That, in itself, became the general theme of most reviews, professional and consumer.
“Five stars because it is NOT Chick Lit.”
“Zero stars because it is NOT Chick Lit.”
What? Who asked for this as a mark of critical analysis?"
I will let you make your own decision, but first, you must read the book to understand the debate. Here’s a teaser and some thoughts…
Forty-eight year old English literature professor Joy Harkness has been avoiding relationships all her life. After fifteen years in the cold, competitive confines of Columbia University she accepts an exciting new position at Amherst College in Massachusetts. Eager to leave the spurious glamour of the New York lifestyle behind, she packs up her small cluttered apartment and purchases a once majestic Victorian house sorely in need of a major renovation. (not quite as disastrous as Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House, but close). Everyone insists that she contact local home restoration magician Teddy Hennessy. The man who shows up does not look very promising and their first few meetings are discouraging, but Joy soon discovers that this thirty-five year old laid back mama’s boy is a genius with plumbing, carpentry, vintage detailing and paint chips.
Joy’s anonymous lifestyle from New York soon changes as she makes connections in the community of supportive female co-workers on campus and a romance with an eligible professor. But it is simple, unassuming Teddy who makes the biggest impact on her life, transforming her house and her heart. In turn, she thinks that he needs a make-over and encourages him to return to college for his degree so he can teach (like her). However, his sad past and his domineering mommy-dearest have a strong hold on him that Joy may not be able to fix with her academic acumen.
Meier has crafted a story resplendent with memorable characters ready to make you laugh out loud and nod your head in recognition of the foibles and follies in us all. Joy is a literature professor who has formed her thinking, and her life around critical analysis of classics books. She treats people the same way. As we follow the narrative she throws in all sorts of literary and cultural references as antecedents peppering the plot with descriptors at the most important moments: “His eyes narrowing like a small-town spinster at the suggestion of living in sin.”, “She was a strange bird, almost attractive in a hard and urban way that “seemed to have flown too close to the scalpel.“”, or my personal favorite, “Like a stripper, I knew my routine, how much to reveal and when to cover up again.” I read this book during my lunch breaks at work and laughed so hard that my co-workers (fellow booksellers) looked at me in amazement quizzing me on what I was reading. I was happy to let them in on the secret. “The Season of Second Chances was a witty coming of age at any age story filled with astute observations and characters so real and outrageously funny that Jane Austen would smile.” There is more… but I promised I would not gush.
I loved the ending, but I can’t tell you about it. Nope. Won’t go there. I feel a personal affinity to Joy Harkness, being a single woman of a certain age who is having her own season of second chances. I wrote to Ms. Meier and told her so. She kindly replied that she wrote the book just for me! *purr*
Back to the literature vs. chick-lit kerfuffle. If Jane Austen is credited as being the grandmother of chick-lit and she is considered one of the finest writers EVAH – those good folks in book award land should take heed. The Season of Second Chances deserves its own second chance. Let’s call it literature. No chick-lit. Even better, chick-ature. Any thing you call it, it’s a darn good book.
Laurel Ann, Austenprose
June 18, 2010
Joy Harkness is sick of her life in New York as a professor at Columbia University. She wants a change, and serendipitously the opportunity opens up when a well-known feminist author invites her to Amherst to join a new educational group to discover a new philosophy of learning. She moves there, finds a new home, and begins to recreate her life: her ‘second chance’. She falls into a wonderful new community of interesting individuals, all living fulfilled lives, and not only gets to enjoy her new teaching position but also remodel a unique Victorian home. In the end, she discovers that her previous life was narrow and unfulfilled, and her new life allows her to expand and enjoy the world to the full.
It’s a love letter to academia. The novel is easily readable and fast paced, and there’s no lack of descriptions for the details of her transformation. It might appeal to many readers as an imaginary escape from their own lives, to be read with a Restoration Hardware catalog and a fan of paint swatches at hand. It is a very pretty book…I loved the font and the block printing styles.
That said, I hated the book on so many levels. First, it would appear that the ‘second chance’ she needed was meant to be: her NY house sold in four days, far over the asking price, and she found her new home instantly. Her new job paid far more than she imagined. The first contractor to come along was not only a savant-like expert on all things Victorian, but his price was under her budget, and the remodel was a quick and smooth production. Do you see where I am going with this? Realism is not to be found.
Joy’s new friends are all wealthy academics who pride themselves on their tolerant love of others, community, and family. They accept her unhesitatingly, and it appears the entire community wants to assist in her transformation. Evenings of gourmet suppers with perfect food and wines, stimulating conversation, and constant supportive murmurings fill Joy’s new days. Her new job is also perfect: coworkers who gladly share duties without complaining, well-behaved students, and gourmet lunches made by a professor (in her spare time) and brought in for the staff. The only nod to their academic work is rearranging book shelves and deciding where the fresh flowers should be placed, with some occasional paper-grading over wine.
I kept waiting for one of the enlightened community to be an ax murderer, just to liven up the cloying sweetness of it all.
The biggest problem, of so many, was the treatment of the academic community towards the talented craftsman who remodels her home back to its original splendor. They recognize his talent, but are quick to suggest a course of study that will allow him to teach and join their ranks. He’s simply not living up to his potential in their eyes and they are troubled by his lack of ambition. He’s just not good enough. In fact, every character in the novel that leads a productive life is an academic; the only ones who aren’t are the craftsman (who lives with his mom and is emotionally stunted), a wife-beater, and a vindictive old woman. In other words, the flawed people are uneducated. It’s as if Lassie saves the family from the fire, saves Timmy from the well, and yet is put to sleep because she’s not purebred. The elitist agenda is obvious and awkward.
The house Joy remodels, with Teddy’s assistance, is an obvious metaphor for Joy’s life. It starts out decrepit and run down, but eventually is restored to beauty and luxury. It’s no coincidence that towards the end, when she discovers Armani couture and is counseled to live life to the full, the clothing she purchases reflect the colors used in the home. Even her new lipsticks (oh yeah, we get to hear about lipstick colors, wallpaper samples, and the benefits of skillful makeup) seem to coordinate. It all falls into place, with never a concern about money issues, family problems, misunderstandings with friends, or illness. The lack of any credible conflict dilutes it into more of a fashion article than an interesting novel. Sure, some bad things happen, to other people, on the periphery. These serve only to emphasize the wonderful nature of the academic village. Amid this she sprinkles Feminist anecdotes, Henry James references, and treatises on private education that leave you snoring. As I said, though, the font is lovely.
It’s a love letter to academia. The novel is easily readable and fast paced, and there’s no lack of descriptions for the details of her transformation. It might appeal to many readers as an imaginary escape from their own lives, to be read with a Restoration Hardware catalog and a fan of paint swatches at hand. It is a very pretty book…I loved the font and the block printing styles.
That said, I hated the book on so many levels. First, it would appear that the ‘second chance’ she needed was meant to be: her NY house sold in four days, far over the asking price, and she found her new home instantly. Her new job paid far more than she imagined. The first contractor to come along was not only a savant-like expert on all things Victorian, but his price was under her budget, and the remodel was a quick and smooth production. Do you see where I am going with this? Realism is not to be found.
Joy’s new friends are all wealthy academics who pride themselves on their tolerant love of others, community, and family. They accept her unhesitatingly, and it appears the entire community wants to assist in her transformation. Evenings of gourmet suppers with perfect food and wines, stimulating conversation, and constant supportive murmurings fill Joy’s new days. Her new job is also perfect: coworkers who gladly share duties without complaining, well-behaved students, and gourmet lunches made by a professor (in her spare time) and brought in for the staff. The only nod to their academic work is rearranging book shelves and deciding where the fresh flowers should be placed, with some occasional paper-grading over wine.
I kept waiting for one of the enlightened community to be an ax murderer, just to liven up the cloying sweetness of it all.
The biggest problem, of so many, was the treatment of the academic community towards the talented craftsman who remodels her home back to its original splendor. They recognize his talent, but are quick to suggest a course of study that will allow him to teach and join their ranks. He’s simply not living up to his potential in their eyes and they are troubled by his lack of ambition. He’s just not good enough. In fact, every character in the novel that leads a productive life is an academic; the only ones who aren’t are the craftsman (who lives with his mom and is emotionally stunted), a wife-beater, and a vindictive old woman. In other words, the flawed people are uneducated. It’s as if Lassie saves the family from the fire, saves Timmy from the well, and yet is put to sleep because she’s not purebred. The elitist agenda is obvious and awkward.
The house Joy remodels, with Teddy’s assistance, is an obvious metaphor for Joy’s life. It starts out decrepit and run down, but eventually is restored to beauty and luxury. It’s no coincidence that towards the end, when she discovers Armani couture and is counseled to live life to the full, the clothing she purchases reflect the colors used in the home. Even her new lipsticks (oh yeah, we get to hear about lipstick colors, wallpaper samples, and the benefits of skillful makeup) seem to coordinate. It all falls into place, with never a concern about money issues, family problems, misunderstandings with friends, or illness. The lack of any credible conflict dilutes it into more of a fashion article than an interesting novel. Sure, some bad things happen, to other people, on the periphery. These serve only to emphasize the wonderful nature of the academic village. Amid this she sprinkles Feminist anecdotes, Henry James references, and treatises on private education that leave you snoring. As I said, though, the font is lovely.
June 29, 2010
Joy Harkness is a middle-aged Academic who has closed herself off from the Human Race. She left her Husband, has no children, no immediate family, and two friends she hardly knows. Joy doesn't make any attempt to get to know anyone, and lets absolutely no one into her life.
She eventually becomes dissatisfied with all this emptiness and decides that the problem is not her, but her environment. So when Joy is offered a great job elsewhere, she quickly seizes it.
Joy's new life involves a large group of new (and wonderful) friends, a great job (with a hefty salary), a string of boyfriends (who she makes no effort to get to know), and an old run-down Victorian house that is slowly transformed into a home better than she ever dreamed.
So far the book is a bit bland but tolerable. Then a friend (whose cries for help were ignored by everyone) is beaten nearly to death. Shallow, self-centered Joy is forced to step outside of herself and think about someone else for the first time in her life.
Joy begins to realize just how empty her life has become, but instead of deciding to make changes, Joy looks forward to everything returning to normal (an emotional void). Her latest boyfriend (Teddy Hennessy) points this out to her, but Joy responds by shifting the focus from herself onto her boyfriend and insists that he stop looking after his mother and try to better himself.
This results in the only character conflict in the entire book, Teddy trying to please Joy and his Mother (Maureen Hennessy), who both want different things from him. Maureen wants Teddy to restore houses and stay under her control for the rest of her life. Joy wants Teddy to teach about restoring houses and abandon his Mother. There apparently is no room for compromise.
After bringing the relationship of Joy-Teddy-Maureen to a head, Diane Meier decides to resolve the issue by placing Joy on a pedestal while trashing Teddy. Joy is "wonderful", "outstanding", "brilliant", "clever and original and scrappy", "insightful and human".
Meanwhile, Teddy is revealed as someone who is emotionally stunted, drinks far too much, smokes pot, and has no ambition (while Joy is wonderful, drinks very little, never smoked pot, and has already risen to the top of her field).
As soon as the house is finished, Joy breaks up with Teddy. Teddy tries to deal with this (Joy using him to break out of her shell, then dumping him for not being good enough) by buying a dog for himself. But Joy winds up with his dog, too. Teddy is left with nothing but his heavy drinking, pot smoking, and a controlling manipulative mother.
Meanwhile, Joy completes "her transformation" by spending thousands of dollars on clothes, going back to New York to get a makeover, then showing off the new Joy, to the surprise, then acceptance of everyone (except the trail of old boyfriends who weren't good enough for her).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 6, 2011
I loved The Season of Second Chancesl! This is one of the best books that I have read this year. I picked it up, not sure what to expect. I was trying to work my way through The Three Weissmanns of Westportl and having a difficult time, so I decided to try this book, based on all the great recommendations. It was a really good book, easy to read and engaging from the first page.
The Season of Second Chances is about a college English professor, Joy, who is really going through the motions of life, not really "living" life. Her entire life, she's been searching for happiness, leaving her hometown of St. Louis, and her husband, for a new life at Columbia University. New York didn't meet her expectations and she settled into a rather solitary life, until one day, a legendary professor for Amherst University in Massachusetts calls her and wants to add her to a groundbreaking new program. Eager to abandon her life once again for greener pastures, Joy sets off for Massachusetts, but this time, things are different.
Taking a leap of faith, she purchases an old, decrepit home, hires a contractor to remodel the home, and somewhere along the way, as she gives the old house a second chance, the people at Amherst give her a second chance, and teach her what life is really about. Joy isn't the only one who can impart knowledge, and while she may be a brilliant English professor, she find out she knows very little about human relationships. As she learns how to love and trust again, she hits a few bumps in the road, but it is well worth the reward in the end.
The Season of Second Chances is about a college English professor, Joy, who is really going through the motions of life, not really "living" life. Her entire life, she's been searching for happiness, leaving her hometown of St. Louis, and her husband, for a new life at Columbia University. New York didn't meet her expectations and she settled into a rather solitary life, until one day, a legendary professor for Amherst University in Massachusetts calls her and wants to add her to a groundbreaking new program. Eager to abandon her life once again for greener pastures, Joy sets off for Massachusetts, but this time, things are different.
Taking a leap of faith, she purchases an old, decrepit home, hires a contractor to remodel the home, and somewhere along the way, as she gives the old house a second chance, the people at Amherst give her a second chance, and teach her what life is really about. Joy isn't the only one who can impart knowledge, and while she may be a brilliant English professor, she find out she knows very little about human relationships. As she learns how to love and trust again, she hits a few bumps in the road, but it is well worth the reward in the end.
May 11, 2010
The Season of Second Chances by Diane Meier tells the story of Joy Harkness and the new chapter she faces in her life. Leaving behind her relatively solitary existence in New York City as a professor at Columbia, Joy heads north and takes a position at a Massachusetts university. The novel chronicles Joy's transition to her new life and the self discovery that accompanies the transition.
Without acknowledging that she wanted or needed to, Joy leaves behind her NYC existence and is suddenly confronted with all kinds of complications to her previously straightforward life. Despite her best efforts to remain aloof, she is embraced by a group of friends and the rhythm of their reliance on each other. To many, this instant community would be welcome but to Joy it feels claustrophobic and she struggles to feel comfortable at weeknight dinners and daily lunches with her new friends. Joy reflects on the difference between her life in NY and her life in Amherst:
My time in New York hadn't exposed me to people who let you see their most intimate or ardent inner lives. I do remember thinking that life at Columbia was devoid of people of goodwill and benevolence. And I remember thinking that they must have had their kind and sweet human emotions removed before they took their jobs, or perhaps the pressures of their academic bred it out of them. Here in Amherst, in contrast, every day seemed to bring another heart onto another sleeve.
Along with new friends, romance also enters Joy's life. Actually, as opposed to the friends who she seems to feel have thrust themselves upon her, romance is welcomed in by Joy. She makes, in my opinion, some unwise choices in the romance department and these choices result in additional complications. Teddy, one of the men with which Joy becomes involved, is enmeshed with his overbearing mother and this limits his ability to fully be in a relationship with Joy. For all his emotional immaturity, Teddy also sees through Joy's aloof exterior to her fears and weaknesses and their relationship brings even more self revelation for Joy.
My assessment:
This book is excellent - it is smart and well written and the characters are complex and interesting. As much as Joy may not seem to always be the most likeable character, I think there is a lot readers can relate to in Joy's struggle to make changes to her life and the discomfort she feels with the changes. The book certainly gave me much to consider.
Without acknowledging that she wanted or needed to, Joy leaves behind her NYC existence and is suddenly confronted with all kinds of complications to her previously straightforward life. Despite her best efforts to remain aloof, she is embraced by a group of friends and the rhythm of their reliance on each other. To many, this instant community would be welcome but to Joy it feels claustrophobic and she struggles to feel comfortable at weeknight dinners and daily lunches with her new friends. Joy reflects on the difference between her life in NY and her life in Amherst:
My time in New York hadn't exposed me to people who let you see their most intimate or ardent inner lives. I do remember thinking that life at Columbia was devoid of people of goodwill and benevolence. And I remember thinking that they must have had their kind and sweet human emotions removed before they took their jobs, or perhaps the pressures of their academic bred it out of them. Here in Amherst, in contrast, every day seemed to bring another heart onto another sleeve.
Along with new friends, romance also enters Joy's life. Actually, as opposed to the friends who she seems to feel have thrust themselves upon her, romance is welcomed in by Joy. She makes, in my opinion, some unwise choices in the romance department and these choices result in additional complications. Teddy, one of the men with which Joy becomes involved, is enmeshed with his overbearing mother and this limits his ability to fully be in a relationship with Joy. For all his emotional immaturity, Teddy also sees through Joy's aloof exterior to her fears and weaknesses and their relationship brings even more self revelation for Joy.
My assessment:
This book is excellent - it is smart and well written and the characters are complex and interesting. As much as Joy may not seem to always be the most likeable character, I think there is a lot readers can relate to in Joy's struggle to make changes to her life and the discomfort she feels with the changes. The book certainly gave me much to consider.
August 26, 2010
When I finished The Season of Second Chances, I felt bereft. The Season of Second Chances was a wonderful novel that I enjoyed reading. I enjoyed it so much that I ripped through the book reading it too late into the night and finishing it in record speed during a busy work week. After I finished it, I regretted only that it didn’t continue on as I loved the story and characters so much, it was hard to let them go.
The Season of Second Chances is a unique story that I really loved. Joy Harkness is a middle-aged literature professor at Columbia University. She loves and excels at her work, but doesn’t really feel connected to anyone. When a professor she admires, Bernadette Lowell, offers her a chance to move to Amherst College in Massachusetts and be a part of an innovative new curriculum on learning, Joy jumps at the chance. She impetuously buys an old, large, falling down Victorian house and quickly moves up from her small New York apartment. I love the scene where she moves in and the house springs a giant leak.
Realizing that something needs to be done about the state of her house, Joy hires Teddy Hennessy to fix her house. Teddy is a unique individual that knows the history and design of old houses. He has an impeccable eye when it comes to interior design and works wonders with the house . . . and with Joy.
Joy finds life changing for herself at Amherst and becomes involved with a great new group of friends. She has a growth of personal relationships and self. Through her time there, Joy really has a “coming-of-age” at mid-age. She learns that to be a feminist, one does not need to give up everything that is feminine.
It is really hard to describe this novel as it was so unique and I do not want to give away the entire plot of the novel. It was a great story and I really loved the style in which it was written.
I also loved that since Joy is a literature professor she talks about a lot of my favorite authors such as Edith Wharton and Willa Cather. The discussions are like small diamonds throughout the text that I really enjoyed reading.
Overall, The Season of Second Chances is a wonderful novel with a great story, fantastic characters, and great prose. I highly recommend it.
The Season of Second Chances is a unique story that I really loved. Joy Harkness is a middle-aged literature professor at Columbia University. She loves and excels at her work, but doesn’t really feel connected to anyone. When a professor she admires, Bernadette Lowell, offers her a chance to move to Amherst College in Massachusetts and be a part of an innovative new curriculum on learning, Joy jumps at the chance. She impetuously buys an old, large, falling down Victorian house and quickly moves up from her small New York apartment. I love the scene where she moves in and the house springs a giant leak.
Realizing that something needs to be done about the state of her house, Joy hires Teddy Hennessy to fix her house. Teddy is a unique individual that knows the history and design of old houses. He has an impeccable eye when it comes to interior design and works wonders with the house . . . and with Joy.
Joy finds life changing for herself at Amherst and becomes involved with a great new group of friends. She has a growth of personal relationships and self. Through her time there, Joy really has a “coming-of-age” at mid-age. She learns that to be a feminist, one does not need to give up everything that is feminine.
It is really hard to describe this novel as it was so unique and I do not want to give away the entire plot of the novel. It was a great story and I really loved the style in which it was written.
I also loved that since Joy is a literature professor she talks about a lot of my favorite authors such as Edith Wharton and Willa Cather. The discussions are like small diamonds throughout the text that I really enjoyed reading.
Overall, The Season of Second Chances is a wonderful novel with a great story, fantastic characters, and great prose. I highly recommend it.
September 28, 2011
I absolutely adored this book.
I finished it three days ago and the characters are still with me, as is the main character Joy's house and the people in her Amherst community who draw them into her lives and therefore out of herself. I gobbled it up in practically one sitting.
This book has all my favorite elements: a compelling, sympathetic yet undeniably imperfect main character, a finely crafted and vivid setting, unique secondary characters who are distinct and wholly themselves from the moment they appear, romantic intrigue and entanglements, unexpected plot twists, and internal evolution/personal growth--all with a healthy yet not overdone helping of literary and academic references, discourse and analysis. It was like going back to college in the best possible way. I especially loved the non-Hollywood ending. I don't want to give anything away but suffice to say that the author stayed true to her characters until the very end and didn't overly romanticize or exaggerate their capacities.
I almost wish I hadn't read it so quickly. I just may have to start it all over again...
I finished it three days ago and the characters are still with me, as is the main character Joy's house and the people in her Amherst community who draw them into her lives and therefore out of herself. I gobbled it up in practically one sitting.
This book has all my favorite elements: a compelling, sympathetic yet undeniably imperfect main character, a finely crafted and vivid setting, unique secondary characters who are distinct and wholly themselves from the moment they appear, romantic intrigue and entanglements, unexpected plot twists, and internal evolution/personal growth--all with a healthy yet not overdone helping of literary and academic references, discourse and analysis. It was like going back to college in the best possible way. I especially loved the non-Hollywood ending. I don't want to give anything away but suffice to say that the author stayed true to her characters until the very end and didn't overly romanticize or exaggerate their capacities.
I almost wish I hadn't read it so quickly. I just may have to start it all over again...
Read
November 12, 2010I was pleasantly surprised by how substantial this book ended up being. I thought, based on the information I'd read about it, that it would be frothy and light, filled with romance and fun descriptions of an old house. I got the latter part right, but the former rather wrong. Not that there wasn't romance of a sort in the book, but it wasn't frothy and it wasn't necessarily fun. [return][return]I think this books strikes a really good balance between serious and not, and I especially did enjoy the parts about the house (I only wish there had been more). I'm not sure I'd say I loved this book, and I'm not sure how readily I would recommend it, because I'm not sure who the audience for this book is. It's slightly less serious than is required for it to be literary fiction, and it's slightly too serious to be appealing to someone who loves chick lit.[return][return]Nonetheless, it was enjoyable, and I'm very glad I read it.
December 14, 2019
DNF. Made it about 50 pages in and was bored out of my mind. I actually had to go back to beginning once to remember the main character’s name because that’s how much there was a lack of interest in the story. What a snooze fest.
June 9, 2010
While I enjoyed this book and stayed up late to finish it, I'm inclined to give this 3.5 stars. Joy Harkness, the lead character, is a literature professor recruited from Columbia to Amherst College, and, through the people she meets in the new job and locale, goes through a profound personal change. In short, she awakens from the dull, emotionally void life of a solitary academic to an engaged participant in her own life and the life of her community. And it started with the house. She bought a run-down Victorian and hired a highly qualified handyman to work on it. I'll admit that for me the old house fixer-upper element is what drew me to the book in the first place. I wish that Joy had had more of a personal stake in the house. She leaves most all of the decisions about it to the well-informed handyman, Teddy. In fact, Teddy is an odd amalgamation of a character: an expert in restoration and a talented carpenter, he is also a phenomenal interior designer, while being emotionally stuck in adolescence. I found it a bit unbelievable that he would have been quite so up on all the decorating when he had no sense of fashion and dressed in old weird tee shirts, and not the cool kind. He not only shopped at tag sales for the perfect accessories and old fabrics, but he had cushions made with contrast piping for the window seat. The descriptions of the decorating and remodeling were extensive and delightful, and sounded like they came from a woman who enjoys that kind of thing. That it was all the product of a handyman arrested in adolescence seemed to be stretching it to me. (I've worked in interior design, architecture and home building/remodeling and have never seen those worlds collide in a sixties rock-music loving straight man.) On the other hand, I felt that the extensive description of Joy's academic subject and new educational method were more esoteric and slowed down the narrative, and I was surprised the author was not an academic herself. Joy seems incredibly naive for someone who had once been married, and she seems much older than late forties. And her friend and colleague Josie was too perfect as the outgoing motherly domestic goddess cum respected professor. She literally did have it all. Further, the back story in the latter part of the book about Teddy's mother seemed to be the story of an Irish immigrant from the early twentieth century rather than mid-century. It sounded hollow and was a poor attempt to justify her bitterness and possessiveness. So, I had a lot of quibbles about the characters. While I enjoyed the story of Joy's transformation, the descriptions of houses, and the flashes of humor, all in all, it just did not ring true.
March 30, 2010
Do you ever wonder how many go to New York City looking for success and excitement? Next query - how many find it? Joy Harkness did not. She had long nurtured a dream of going to Manhattan as "a way out of Saint Louis." Some 17 years later she tells us, "It takes a keen eye to tell a false start from a dead end. I was finished with New York."
To many Joy's life was enviable - she'd been at Columbia University for 12 years, received a full professorship and published a book of poetry. Yet she remained isolated with few friends or involvement in the greater community or, for that matter, in life. Joy doesn't hesitate when she's offered a teaching position at Amherst College and the opportunity to be a part of a group working toward changing teaching methods. She sells her apartment, packs her belongings, and goes.
Although determined to remain in her self-styled cocoon, removed from others, Joy is immediately embraced by her office mates, and urged (dragged might be a better word) to take part in social activities in which she has no interest.
What does Joy care about? A recently purchased aged Victorian home in much need of repair. That had been a spur of the moment buy and quite unlike anything she has ever done. And, she cares about Teddy, a handyman who turns her relic of a residence into a warm, inviting home.
Teddy is one of the most appealing characters to be found. A boy/man in gimme cap and shorts he is caught in a dysfunctional relationship with his mother (a thin lipped harridan), is a genius at renovation and repair, has an unerring eye for color and decor, an encyclopedic knowledge of historic homes, and an innocent, honest concern for others.
As Joy is unwillingly drawn into the happiness and travails of those around her she begins to learn how to relate, how to genuinely feel for others. This evolution is described with both insight and humor, whether she is fending off the advances of the Coyotes (male faculty members with an eye for someone new) or trying to care for four young girls who patiently teach her the importance of a pastry bag and how necessary it is to keep hair conditioner on hand.
THE SEASON OF SECOND CHANCES is an empowering, entertaining story reminding us of the importance of home, family, and trust. It is, at times, an invitation to step outside of our familiar boundaries and perhaps discover what we may yet become.
As Joy reaches her home after an especially busy day she looks at the windows "glowing from within,' and comments, "There was life in this house, and I was a part of it." We can rejoice with her, and learn.
Enjoy!
- Gail Cooke
To many Joy's life was enviable - she'd been at Columbia University for 12 years, received a full professorship and published a book of poetry. Yet she remained isolated with few friends or involvement in the greater community or, for that matter, in life. Joy doesn't hesitate when she's offered a teaching position at Amherst College and the opportunity to be a part of a group working toward changing teaching methods. She sells her apartment, packs her belongings, and goes.
Although determined to remain in her self-styled cocoon, removed from others, Joy is immediately embraced by her office mates, and urged (dragged might be a better word) to take part in social activities in which she has no interest.
What does Joy care about? A recently purchased aged Victorian home in much need of repair. That had been a spur of the moment buy and quite unlike anything she has ever done. And, she cares about Teddy, a handyman who turns her relic of a residence into a warm, inviting home.
Teddy is one of the most appealing characters to be found. A boy/man in gimme cap and shorts he is caught in a dysfunctional relationship with his mother (a thin lipped harridan), is a genius at renovation and repair, has an unerring eye for color and decor, an encyclopedic knowledge of historic homes, and an innocent, honest concern for others.
As Joy is unwillingly drawn into the happiness and travails of those around her she begins to learn how to relate, how to genuinely feel for others. This evolution is described with both insight and humor, whether she is fending off the advances of the Coyotes (male faculty members with an eye for someone new) or trying to care for four young girls who patiently teach her the importance of a pastry bag and how necessary it is to keep hair conditioner on hand.
THE SEASON OF SECOND CHANCES is an empowering, entertaining story reminding us of the importance of home, family, and trust. It is, at times, an invitation to step outside of our familiar boundaries and perhaps discover what we may yet become.
As Joy reaches her home after an especially busy day she looks at the windows "glowing from within,' and comments, "There was life in this house, and I was a part of it." We can rejoice with her, and learn.
Enjoy!
- Gail Cooke
July 21, 2013
This is Diane Meirs debut novel, and it is excellent, and I am anxiously awaiting her next novel. Joy Harkness has been a very successful professor at Columbia for 15 years, but she is ready for a change. She gets recruited for a unique position as part of a team at Amherst College, at a great salary. She put her apartment in NY up for sale and it sold almost immediately. "Everyone seemed to think that the apartment was such a gem, with its high coffered ceilings, parquet floors and the bowed window that looked out onto broad Eighty-sixth Street. Wait until you hear the bus, I thought, but I didn't say a word. I smiled when they talked about the light. I nodded when they mentioned the perfect proportions of the rooms. I knew it was crowded, dark, mean little apartment with a fireplace that didn't work and too few closets." I love all the descriptions of her apartment.
Joy heads to Amherst to find a place to live. The college refereed her to an agent, Donna Fortunata, a tiny, smart young lady in bright clothing. Joy wants a house in town where she can walk to the stores. She finally agrees to show her a house in need of a great deal of attention. It is a Victorian home. "We drove into a driveway of cracked and broken concrete, choked with overgrown forsythia and weeds. Through masses and tangles of what looked like a garden never tended, one could make out the wide shingled porch, all strangled in vines with feminine quatrefoil corbels and a screen door of Victorian detail so fine it looked like the lace of old French underwear. Lest this sound too romantic, sections of the handiwork were missing, and the door was no longer on its hinges." Don't you just love her descriptions of this Victorian home!
Joy of course buys the home and there are plenty more references and details of her home and how she restores and renovates it. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves reading about renovation of a historical home within a novel, but this recommendation goes far beyond her house restoration. It is a change of life story about Joy and being around a vivacious group of new people at Amherst, a younger man, a possible marriage, and through all of these people she changes a great deal and sees her life in a brand new way. I would like to say she evolves, she becomes a better more fulfilled person with a larger life existence. It is a wonderful book and I highly recommend it.
Joy heads to Amherst to find a place to live. The college refereed her to an agent, Donna Fortunata, a tiny, smart young lady in bright clothing. Joy wants a house in town where she can walk to the stores. She finally agrees to show her a house in need of a great deal of attention. It is a Victorian home. "We drove into a driveway of cracked and broken concrete, choked with overgrown forsythia and weeds. Through masses and tangles of what looked like a garden never tended, one could make out the wide shingled porch, all strangled in vines with feminine quatrefoil corbels and a screen door of Victorian detail so fine it looked like the lace of old French underwear. Lest this sound too romantic, sections of the handiwork were missing, and the door was no longer on its hinges." Don't you just love her descriptions of this Victorian home!
Joy of course buys the home and there are plenty more references and details of her home and how she restores and renovates it. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves reading about renovation of a historical home within a novel, but this recommendation goes far beyond her house restoration. It is a change of life story about Joy and being around a vivacious group of new people at Amherst, a younger man, a possible marriage, and through all of these people she changes a great deal and sees her life in a brand new way. I would like to say she evolves, she becomes a better more fulfilled person with a larger life existence. It is a wonderful book and I highly recommend it.
April 15, 2010
Joy Harkness is a smart 40+ something woman who lead an insulated life working at Columbia University in New York. In NYC she had lovely "apartment with a great view", and a life that was comfortable, but she also had a past and the emotional baggage that goes along with it.
An opportunity presents itself for Joy to leave the big city behind, for a start up project at Amherst College in the quaint college town of Amherst, Massachusetts. Joy quickly packs up the things she can't live without and leaves NYC for Amherst, MA. With her emotional baggage intact, she impulsively buys a huge, run down old Victorian home.
"If you've ever moved, you understand that people will stay in the most deplorable environments simply to avoid considering things that belonged to the people they no longer are. This is not just a job of hauling heavy belongings; this task confronts memories too painful to life."
"There is the picture of your mother looking beautiful and fragile in a Norell dress, taken the day she told you that she would have been happier without children."
In NYC, Joy was happy with her solitary life. She spent a lot of time alone and no one ever pressured her to do otherwise. In Amherst, her life is very different. She finds herself busier than ever living in a small town. As the other professors and people she meets press her to go out and get involved, she has a hard time saying no. Her contractor Teddy, also plays an important role in Joy's transformation of sorts. As the home renovation progresses, and she actively gets involved in all the decorating details, Joy begins to see her new place as something more than just a house.
MY THOUGHTS -- The Season of Second Chances was a terrific debut novel. It was one of those wonderful stories that drew me in from the very first page and held my interest along the way. One of the things that I liked best about this book was that I love the setting Amherst, MA. It is a quaint college town where I've spent a lot of time, and many of the places mentioned are real, so that was a nice bonus. The story has likable characters, an appealing writing style, and it left me happy that I read this book. If you are looking for a lighter, feel good read, give this book a try. The title is perfect too. RECOMMENDED - (4.5/5 stars)
An opportunity presents itself for Joy to leave the big city behind, for a start up project at Amherst College in the quaint college town of Amherst, Massachusetts. Joy quickly packs up the things she can't live without and leaves NYC for Amherst, MA. With her emotional baggage intact, she impulsively buys a huge, run down old Victorian home.
"If you've ever moved, you understand that people will stay in the most deplorable environments simply to avoid considering things that belonged to the people they no longer are. This is not just a job of hauling heavy belongings; this task confronts memories too painful to life."
"There is the picture of your mother looking beautiful and fragile in a Norell dress, taken the day she told you that she would have been happier without children."
In NYC, Joy was happy with her solitary life. She spent a lot of time alone and no one ever pressured her to do otherwise. In Amherst, her life is very different. She finds herself busier than ever living in a small town. As the other professors and people she meets press her to go out and get involved, she has a hard time saying no. Her contractor Teddy, also plays an important role in Joy's transformation of sorts. As the home renovation progresses, and she actively gets involved in all the decorating details, Joy begins to see her new place as something more than just a house.
MY THOUGHTS -- The Season of Second Chances was a terrific debut novel. It was one of those wonderful stories that drew me in from the very first page and held my interest along the way. One of the things that I liked best about this book was that I love the setting Amherst, MA. It is a quaint college town where I've spent a lot of time, and many of the places mentioned are real, so that was a nice bonus. The story has likable characters, an appealing writing style, and it left me happy that I read this book. If you are looking for a lighter, feel good read, give this book a try. The title is perfect too. RECOMMENDED - (4.5/5 stars)
June 22, 2010
This is the story of Joy Harkness, a university professor who led an empty life—camouflaged by a successful career—and finally took the opportunity to change it and learned to live more fully. The cover and the synopsis attracted me to this book; however, the opening chapters did not hook me. The author’s writing style took some getting used to, as it was full of comparisons I could not relate to.
I debated if I wanted to continue reading it, and I stuck to my rule of reading the first fifty pages. As I continued reading, it suddenly got interesting and I finished it easily. I have mixed feelings about this book. I liked the changes that took place in Joy, the way she took a chance doing things she never would have done before. The best part for me was seeing the transformation of the old run-down Victorian house she bought and how this represented the changes that were taking place within her and her life. It’s true there is a lot of description in this book, some of which I found necessary in reference to the house and others which I did not.
I thought the minor character of Bernadette was given too much place in the story when I would have liked to see more regarding Donna and her family. The children seemed to have adapted too well (with almost no repercussions) to witnessing their mother being bludgeoned to near-death by their father, and none of this was explored in the story. It seemed too unrealistic to me, almost as if it was concocted merely to advance the plot. I was also not impressed that Joy's friends encouraged her involvement with Will, a shallow man and obvious womanizer.
What irked me about Joy’s behaviour was the casual use of sex, rendering it simply an act of physical attraction rather than an expression of intimate and profound love between a committed couple. She fell into a relationship with her emotionally stunted mamma’s-boy handyman, Teddy Hennessy, and I had a hard time figuring out what their relationship was based on. They reminded me of two teenagers, but then again, seeing how they were both missing the mature emotional growth that comes during later adolescence perhaps this was a reflection of that.
The writer in me tells me that there is much underlying in this book, but I was distracted throughout and could not relate to any of the characters. I did like the ending, though, and it was perfect for this story.
I debated if I wanted to continue reading it, and I stuck to my rule of reading the first fifty pages. As I continued reading, it suddenly got interesting and I finished it easily. I have mixed feelings about this book. I liked the changes that took place in Joy, the way she took a chance doing things she never would have done before. The best part for me was seeing the transformation of the old run-down Victorian house she bought and how this represented the changes that were taking place within her and her life. It’s true there is a lot of description in this book, some of which I found necessary in reference to the house and others which I did not.
I thought the minor character of Bernadette was given too much place in the story when I would have liked to see more regarding Donna and her family. The children seemed to have adapted too well (with almost no repercussions) to witnessing their mother being bludgeoned to near-death by their father, and none of this was explored in the story. It seemed too unrealistic to me, almost as if it was concocted merely to advance the plot. I was also not impressed that Joy's friends encouraged her involvement with Will, a shallow man and obvious womanizer.
What irked me about Joy’s behaviour was the casual use of sex, rendering it simply an act of physical attraction rather than an expression of intimate and profound love between a committed couple. She fell into a relationship with her emotionally stunted mamma’s-boy handyman, Teddy Hennessy, and I had a hard time figuring out what their relationship was based on. They reminded me of two teenagers, but then again, seeing how they were both missing the mature emotional growth that comes during later adolescence perhaps this was a reflection of that.
The writer in me tells me that there is much underlying in this book, but I was distracted throughout and could not relate to any of the characters. I did like the ending, though, and it was perfect for this story.
January 15, 2012
Here's what Publisher's Weekly had to say about The Season of Second Chances:
An out-of-touch Columbia professor gets a new lease on life in Meier's unconvincing debut when she takes on a fixer-upper house and some equally messy relationships. Forty-eight-year-old Joy Harkness loves teaching, but hates the campus politics and her lonely Manhattan life. So when she's invited to be part of a new program at Amherst College, Joy jumps at the chance and buys a nearly condemnable Victorian with no clue of how much work will be involved in making the house livable. Enter Teddy Hennessy, a younger handyman with a domineering mother. Inevitably, Joy and Teddy date, and Joy fixates on liberating him from his mother and on finding him more prestigious employment. Meanwhile, Joy's female friendships and their respective crises redefine who Joy is and what she values. Unfortunately, Meier focuses too much on surface matters and has a tough time making Joy come to life; her relationship with Teddy, meanwhile, carries uncomfortable maternal overtones. There are too many cracks in the foundation on this one.
This is an excellent synopsis but I don't think the book is as bad as the reviewer did. It's entertaining and there are some all too real people in the story.
2011 No 176
An out-of-touch Columbia professor gets a new lease on life in Meier's unconvincing debut when she takes on a fixer-upper house and some equally messy relationships. Forty-eight-year-old Joy Harkness loves teaching, but hates the campus politics and her lonely Manhattan life. So when she's invited to be part of a new program at Amherst College, Joy jumps at the chance and buys a nearly condemnable Victorian with no clue of how much work will be involved in making the house livable. Enter Teddy Hennessy, a younger handyman with a domineering mother. Inevitably, Joy and Teddy date, and Joy fixates on liberating him from his mother and on finding him more prestigious employment. Meanwhile, Joy's female friendships and their respective crises redefine who Joy is and what she values. Unfortunately, Meier focuses too much on surface matters and has a tough time making Joy come to life; her relationship with Teddy, meanwhile, carries uncomfortable maternal overtones. There are too many cracks in the foundation on this one.
This is an excellent synopsis but I don't think the book is as bad as the reviewer did. It's entertaining and there are some all too real people in the story.
2011 No 176
February 7, 2010
A very very enjoyable read! If you like the films of Nancy Meyers, reading searchingly intellectual essays in The New York Review of Books, watching episodes of THIS OLD HOUSE, and flipping through back issues of Martha Stewart LIVING, this book will hook you! It is as smart as the average post feminist 'women's novel' yet is is a wonderfully commercial page-tuner. WASPY College Prof Joy leave a steady tenured post at Columbia to take on new challenges at U Amherst in Mass. She is s cool customer-kind of a closed circle-a bright accomplished woman with few deep relationships-- with men or women. She plunges into life and finds it all deeply deeply uncomfortable yet wonderfully surprising. A love affair with her broken down Victorian rehab house, a sweeter love affair with her brilliant, diamond-in-the-rough and much younger contractor, learning how to be a friend and sustain the friendship of women--all combine for a pleasing and engaging work of 21st C post-feminist 'women's fiction.'
This book was a real surprise! I found it hard to put down and continue to feel the need to introduce it to women friends 40+. Try it. You'll love it!
This book was a real surprise! I found it hard to put down and continue to feel the need to introduce it to women friends 40+. Try it. You'll love it!
July 31, 2016
Actual Rating: 3.5/5
This book. I loved the descriptions of Joy's home and the details of the decor, as well as the meals prepared (and yet, I have no passages marked to share), but I wanted to take her by the arms and shake some sense into her. I couldn't understand her attraction to Teddy, a mama's boy with an over-domineering mother, nor her need to try to mold him into something he wasn't. At times, the scenes and the actions of the characters were so implausible, they came across like a parody of a sappy southern novel. And yet, I couldn't stop reading, hoping for a happily-ever-after.
Final Thoughts:
Yes, the cover caught my eye, but had I first read the publisher's blurb, I doubt I would've have bothered reading the book. And with a four month lapse between finishing the book and writing this review, I had no recollection of the plot until I read the publisher's blurb. Recommend? Maybe for a weekend at the beach. Forgettable.
This book. I loved the descriptions of Joy's home and the details of the decor, as well as the meals prepared (and yet, I have no passages marked to share), but I wanted to take her by the arms and shake some sense into her. I couldn't understand her attraction to Teddy, a mama's boy with an over-domineering mother, nor her need to try to mold him into something he wasn't. At times, the scenes and the actions of the characters were so implausible, they came across like a parody of a sappy southern novel. And yet, I couldn't stop reading, hoping for a happily-ever-after.
Final Thoughts:
Yes, the cover caught my eye, but had I first read the publisher's blurb, I doubt I would've have bothered reading the book. And with a four month lapse between finishing the book and writing this review, I had no recollection of the plot until I read the publisher's blurb. Recommend? Maybe for a weekend at the beach. Forgettable.
May 31, 2011
The back of the book did not do this book justice. This just proves that the description of the book does not indicate if you will like the author's writing style, or the actual plot itself. The plot is very simple: A woman moves from NYC to MA, buys an expensive house, meets an eccentric handyman with an overbearing mother, and tries to find meaning to her life. What made this book so good was the author's writing style. The plot sounds like pure chick lit, but her writing style was deeper and much more literary, making this a good read. I had never heard of this book, and when I found it as an ARC (it's been out for almost a year), I was excited to get it, but not excited to read it. But I'm really glad that I did!
January 20, 2011
I n this novel, Joy Harkness is given the opportunity to start a new life. She buys a dilapidated old house,and befriends the handy man. She,d lived in New York city for years and gave it up for small town life. Little did she kow that small town life can have more drama than the big city. This is a novel that made me think. At some point in our lifes we all are given the opportunity to chance some things in our lives. Some accept it and others have problems accepting it.
April 12, 2010
I won this book on Firstreads!!
This is a really great book. I really enjoyed the perspective of the narrator, and really felt as if I got to know her and went through the changes in her life along with her. This book is about "broadening your horizons", as my mom used to say to me when I was a kid. Thoroughly enjoyable read.
This is a really great book. I really enjoyed the perspective of the narrator, and really felt as if I got to know her and went through the changes in her life along with her. This book is about "broadening your horizons", as my mom used to say to me when I was a kid. Thoroughly enjoyable read.
September 4, 2018
"Interesting subject matter but the transitions between events were abrupt. Significant events occurred with limited discussion and then some parts of the book were slow-paced. So additional space could have been devoted to fleshing out the significant events." --patron
April 30, 2010
there were many familiar topics covered in this book: feminism, academia,grief. Lots of humor threaded throughout. Enjoyed it!
May 25, 2010
It was a story about a life transformation from being a recluse to forming lasting bonds with others. . . good character development.
June 9, 2010
Loved this book! A very realistic portrait of academia and of small town Massachusetts life. I found this character's journey to be moving and often very funny.
August 17, 2010
Lame and pathetic character.
December 30, 2012
Loved this. I read it in 2 sittings and it was a welcome, beautiful and thoughtful break from the too many non-fiction books I have read. Highly recommend it.
June 27, 2013
One of the best books I have read in a while. Medicine for my soul.
August 14, 2014
I definitely enjoyed this story, probably because I could relate - to the academic world, to the idea of "starting again" later in life, to the love of an old house. Very fun and also encouraging.
May 10, 2010
Interesting look at academics and letting people into their lives.
May 2, 2023
I really did not enjoy this book. The main character, Joy Harkness, totally lacks depth and comes across as extremely self centered. Her closest relationship is with a man 15 years younger than her who lives his life to please his mother. He acts more like a teenage boy- wearing graphic t-shirts and smoking weed and eating Hot Pockets. It made me cringe. The book was also just boring and honestly hard to follow with all of the hardware references and the literary references.
Joy is called from her comfortable position at Columbia to become part of a grand education project at Amherst. Even though Joy is high up in academia, she somehow is unable to have any meaningful conversations with anyone. When put in uncomfortable or confrontational conversations, there are lots of "Ummmms" and "Uhhhs" from her. When her close friend is nearly killed and lying in a pool of blood, Joy's main concern was whether or not the white carpet would be stained permanently. It seemed like she was constantly missing the big picture.
The book was also extremely unrealistic. Joy sells her apartment in New York in less than a week, for well above the asking price. Joy buys a house in Massachusetts in less than 2 weeks, and the town handyman is available to get started on it immediately for much less than she expected. Her transition into her new academic role was as smooth as could be, with seemingly everyone in town bending over backwards to be welcoming and supportive.
Joy also happens to be divorced, but there is no information surrounding how her previous marriage ended. Even though she is set on not getting remarried, she decides she is ready after one month of dating a controlling abusive man who is cheating on her with his students. She was so starved for companionship and it was hard to watch her be so blind to all of the signs. Even when her friend warns her that Will has a bad reputation, Joy doesn't listen and accuses her friend of being "jealous." Ugh!
This book had the potential to be really, really good. However, it was just beyond boring. I ended up just skimming the last 50 pages and was relieved when it was over.
Joy is called from her comfortable position at Columbia to become part of a grand education project at Amherst. Even though Joy is high up in academia, she somehow is unable to have any meaningful conversations with anyone. When put in uncomfortable or confrontational conversations, there are lots of "Ummmms" and "Uhhhs" from her. When her close friend is nearly killed and lying in a pool of blood, Joy's main concern was whether or not the white carpet would be stained permanently. It seemed like she was constantly missing the big picture.
The book was also extremely unrealistic. Joy sells her apartment in New York in less than a week, for well above the asking price. Joy buys a house in Massachusetts in less than 2 weeks, and the town handyman is available to get started on it immediately for much less than she expected. Her transition into her new academic role was as smooth as could be, with seemingly everyone in town bending over backwards to be welcoming and supportive.
Joy also happens to be divorced, but there is no information surrounding how her previous marriage ended. Even though she is set on not getting remarried, she decides she is ready after one month of dating a controlling abusive man who is cheating on her with his students. She was so starved for companionship and it was hard to watch her be so blind to all of the signs. Even when her friend warns her that Will has a bad reputation, Joy doesn't listen and accuses her friend of being "jealous." Ugh!
This book had the potential to be really, really good. However, it was just beyond boring. I ended up just skimming the last 50 pages and was relieved when it was over.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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