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Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough
Joanie's ex-husband is having a baby with his new girlfriend. Joanie won't be having more babies, since she's decided never to have sex again.
But she still has her teenaged daughter Caroline to care for. And thanks to the recession, her elderly mother Ivy as well. Her daughter can't seem to exist without texting, and her mother brags about "goggling,"-while Joanie, back in the workforce, is still trying to figure out her office computer. And how to fend off the advances of her coworker Bruce.
Joanie, Caroline, and Ivy are stuck under the same roof, and it isn't easy. But sometimes they surprise each other-and themselves. And through their differences they learn that it is possible to undo the mistakes of the past.
But she still has her teenaged daughter Caroline to care for. And thanks to the recession, her elderly mother Ivy as well. Her daughter can't seem to exist without texting, and her mother brags about "goggling,"-while Joanie, back in the workforce, is still trying to figure out her office computer. And how to fend off the advances of her coworker Bruce.
Joanie, Caroline, and Ivy are stuck under the same roof, and it isn't easy. But sometimes they surprise each other-and themselves. And through their differences they learn that it is possible to undo the mistakes of the past.
320 pages, Paperback
First published November 23, 2010
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167 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews
August 10, 2013
I wish I could go back in time a few weeks and ask myself what appealed to me about this book, because once I started reading it there wasn't really much in it that I enjoyed. What was I thinking?
This novel centers around three women, each with their own set of problems. The reader gets an up close and personal play by play of everything each of them thinks about things from sex to illegal aliens. None of these women came across as sympathetic to me, especially since their problems are so trivial compared to how it could be. I disliked Joanie most of all, especially with how she treated and thought of her mother. I get that it would be no fun living with your seventy-eight-year-old mother, but she is just so disrespectful and displays no compassion whatsoever.
There is really no point to this novel at all, other than to cover a period of time in these women's lives. I wasn't clear how much time had passed in this story, and also could have done without so much of the unimportant backstory that was included in the narrative.
I don't recommend this novel, and can't see why it has gotten some of the praise that it has. There is nothing original or unique in it as far as ideas, and the writing style is bland.
This novel centers around three women, each with their own set of problems. The reader gets an up close and personal play by play of everything each of them thinks about things from sex to illegal aliens. None of these women came across as sympathetic to me, especially since their problems are so trivial compared to how it could be. I disliked Joanie most of all, especially with how she treated and thought of her mother. I get that it would be no fun living with your seventy-eight-year-old mother, but she is just so disrespectful and displays no compassion whatsoever.
There is really no point to this novel at all, other than to cover a period of time in these women's lives. I wasn't clear how much time had passed in this story, and also could have done without so much of the unimportant backstory that was included in the narrative.
I don't recommend this novel, and can't see why it has gotten some of the praise that it has. There is nothing original or unique in it as far as ideas, and the writing style is bland.
January 19, 2011
I found myself uncannily motivated by Pennebaker’s title alone. Frankly, it describes me and many others in my circle of family and friends to a T. I suspect if you're dealing with either raising kids or handling eldercare drama (or both) ... the title probably describes your life too.
Based on her other writing, I knew I could count on Pennebaker for a respite from and a laugh about real life. I’ve had a hard time reading lately because I’m so distracted, so if a book can hold MY attention, that’s saying something.
Pennebaker’s book does NOT disappoint. It’s funny and aggravating at the same time, as three generations of women live in the same house (not by choice) and muddle the best they can through their individual and collective dramas. It helped me feel "normal" about the many times lately that I go from zero to pissed off in a matter of seconds. Frustration is real, and sometimes, frustration is funny.
An exercise in perspectives — generational, mother-daughter, and otherwise — Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough reveals the grace and humor, frustration and (yes) anger, that consumes us … especially at times of big transitions.
Based on her other writing, I knew I could count on Pennebaker for a respite from and a laugh about real life. I’ve had a hard time reading lately because I’m so distracted, so if a book can hold MY attention, that’s saying something.
Pennebaker’s book does NOT disappoint. It’s funny and aggravating at the same time, as three generations of women live in the same house (not by choice) and muddle the best they can through their individual and collective dramas. It helped me feel "normal" about the many times lately that I go from zero to pissed off in a matter of seconds. Frustration is real, and sometimes, frustration is funny.
An exercise in perspectives — generational, mother-daughter, and otherwise — Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough reveals the grace and humor, frustration and (yes) anger, that consumes us … especially at times of big transitions.
January 1, 2016
I am struggling to put my thoughts on this book into words. Overall, it was just OK. The three main characters, Joanie, Ivy, and Caroline, seem like they’re the exact same person – just at different stages in life. They’re all extremely dissatisfied, extremely lonely, and extremely desperate. They all find some way to work through those feelings, Joanie being the only one who seems to go about that in a somewhat healthy manner.
I felt like this book was way too negative, and like it dragged on. I wanted it to end quite a bit sooner than it did. Not because it seemed like anything was resolved, but just because I couldn’t take much more of these pathetic women. Adding B.J. to the mix was just overkill. Clearly she’s an insecure, manipulative, selfish girl. (Oh, yes, girl. Technically, by age, she’s a woman, but her actions are those of a child.)
I must say, though, that I just love the cover – front and back, as well as inside back. The birds are great, and I could quickly figure out which is representative of who. Love it!
I felt like this book was way too negative, and like it dragged on. I wanted it to end quite a bit sooner than it did. Not because it seemed like anything was resolved, but just because I couldn’t take much more of these pathetic women. Adding B.J. to the mix was just overkill. Clearly she’s an insecure, manipulative, selfish girl. (Oh, yes, girl. Technically, by age, she’s a woman, but her actions are those of a child.)
I must say, though, that I just love the cover – front and back, as well as inside back. The birds are great, and I could quickly figure out which is representative of who. Love it!
September 7, 2010
A boring tale about a mother, a daughter, and a grandmother. There's some good, insightful stuff about teenagers, but the plot is perfectly predictable, and the prose is bad.
March 17, 2011
3 generations of women all under one roof... that spells TROUBLE. See Aisle B review http://aisleb.tumblr.com/post/3918216...
March 23, 2011
Joanie Pilcher is about to turn fifty and has recently been left by her husband. If that’s not enough to make her feel overwhelmed, her eighty year old mother is also living with her and her sullen teenage daughter. When Joanie gets a call from her ex-husband letting her know he’s gotten his new twenty-nine year old girlfriend pregnant, Joanie begins to fall off the precipice of good mental health. Trapped in an ad-exec job she hates and a divorce support group that can sometimes be judgemental, Joanie is slowly losing it. Ivy, Joanie’s mother, is also deteriorating. Though she used to live on her own, the financial crash has eaten up her savings, forcing her into her daughter’s home, where she doesn’t feel welcomed or appreciated. Meanwhile, the teenage Caroline fears she has some sort of multiple personality disorder because she can’t understand why she’s so angry with everyone in her life except the handsome and oblivious Henry. As the three women orbit each other, they come to realize that life isn’t filled with the happiness they once expected to find, and must learn to navigate not only the waters of their tenuous relationships, but the wider waters of a life that fluctuates wildly from day to day. Infused with an offbeat and potent humor, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough is the story of three women of three very different generations coming to terms with each other and with the wider world around them
One of the things I liked best about this story was the way Pennebaker was able to write from each woman’s perspective so convincingly. Joanie, a baby boomer, is frustrated with her life and struggles with it due to her bitter attitude. She struggles because she believes that life should and could be so much more. She expects it and demands it, and because of all the overwhelming things that are happening in her professional and personal life, she feels as though she’s slowly sinking into a place where she might not be able to cope with it anymore. Her relationship with Ivy, her mother, is filled with anger. Part of that anger stems from knowing that she was not the favorite child, and part because, even though she has bailed her mother out, Ivy still finds many things to criticize Joanie about. It’s an issue a lot of women face. Becoming the mother to your mother can be not only confusing, but also has an odd way of building up resentment and anger. Ivy does a lot to add fuel to Joanie’s fire because of her puritanical belief system and her constant and unhelpful interjections. On the opposite side, her relationship with her daughter is difficult because she really does struggle to be a good and compassionate mother but can’t help but to put all kinds of emotional pressure on her. She doesn’t understand why her daughter is so angry and resentful when, try as she might, she just wants to connect. It was easy to see that Joanie’s relationship with her daughter was the mirror reflection of the relationship she had with her mother, with Caroline treating her much the same as she treated her mother.
To be honest, though I did like her, I found Ivy to be a little too meddlesome and inflexible. She is of the generation that believes the women of her daughter and granddaughter’s generation expect too much for themselves and that’s why they’re never satisfied. They eagerly seek happiness only to end up disappointed. She speaks at length about her own relationship with her deceased husband and how there was little to no communication or emotional connection. Ivy doesn’t understand why her daughter is so angry and depressed, or why her granddaughter is so full of angst. She is so far removed from any forms of society that she’s sometimes misled in her beliefs by the things she reads on the Internet and the age old opinions that she stubbornly holds on to. In the latter half of the story, Ivy comes to realize that she too may be depressed and she begins to act out in some alarming ways. Her relationship with her son, the favorite, is a source of painful disappointment to her, and she, at times, mercilessly antagonizes both her daughter and granddaughter. While I could readily sympathize with Ivy, she sometimes maddened me with her strange ideas and proclamations and endless insensitive questions.
Caroline was the person I most identified with, which is strange for me because usually I don’t sync all that well with YA characters. Caroline is frustrated by the role she’s forced to play in her parents’ drama. She’s constantly filled with anger because she feels that the adults around her are trying to validate their feelings through her and that everyone expects something from her. She’s in love with a boy who is only using her for her intellectual prowess and who doesn’t know how she feels about him. Caroline also is basically friendless and sort of a social outcast. She comes into skirmishes with almost everyone around her, a fact which saddens and confuses her. She doesn’t think she’s a mean person, so why is she acting this way all the time? Looking deeper into the book, I think I identified with Caroline because I’ve been Caroline. There’s a tremendous pressure and weight on her, and her need for understanding herself and her parents is something she’s not equipped for. Her confusion and anger were so real for me, her unhappiness so palpable. Out of the three women, she’s the one who seemed the most confused and troubled, and because she was so young, she had no wellspring from which to draw comfort.
Though I’ve made this book sound rather dour and serious, there were a lot of laugh out loud moments and a sharp humor to the ways in which the women dealt with each other. I found the book to be surprisingly amusing and realistic in a way I hadn’t expected, and although the ending was a bit ambiguous, I could see that each woman was on the road to healing by the conclusion of the book. The issues that manifest themselves were not light and frothy, but something about the way they were portrayed enabled me to see them for who they were, and also let me get a glimpse of the redemption that they were on the road to finding. This is the type of book I think a lot of women will relate to for a host of reasons. I think each reader will have a very different reaction to the three women and will find something about each of them to admire, despite their emotional upheavals. A very worthy read.
One of the things I liked best about this story was the way Pennebaker was able to write from each woman’s perspective so convincingly. Joanie, a baby boomer, is frustrated with her life and struggles with it due to her bitter attitude. She struggles because she believes that life should and could be so much more. She expects it and demands it, and because of all the overwhelming things that are happening in her professional and personal life, she feels as though she’s slowly sinking into a place where she might not be able to cope with it anymore. Her relationship with Ivy, her mother, is filled with anger. Part of that anger stems from knowing that she was not the favorite child, and part because, even though she has bailed her mother out, Ivy still finds many things to criticize Joanie about. It’s an issue a lot of women face. Becoming the mother to your mother can be not only confusing, but also has an odd way of building up resentment and anger. Ivy does a lot to add fuel to Joanie’s fire because of her puritanical belief system and her constant and unhelpful interjections. On the opposite side, her relationship with her daughter is difficult because she really does struggle to be a good and compassionate mother but can’t help but to put all kinds of emotional pressure on her. She doesn’t understand why her daughter is so angry and resentful when, try as she might, she just wants to connect. It was easy to see that Joanie’s relationship with her daughter was the mirror reflection of the relationship she had with her mother, with Caroline treating her much the same as she treated her mother.
To be honest, though I did like her, I found Ivy to be a little too meddlesome and inflexible. She is of the generation that believes the women of her daughter and granddaughter’s generation expect too much for themselves and that’s why they’re never satisfied. They eagerly seek happiness only to end up disappointed. She speaks at length about her own relationship with her deceased husband and how there was little to no communication or emotional connection. Ivy doesn’t understand why her daughter is so angry and depressed, or why her granddaughter is so full of angst. She is so far removed from any forms of society that she’s sometimes misled in her beliefs by the things she reads on the Internet and the age old opinions that she stubbornly holds on to. In the latter half of the story, Ivy comes to realize that she too may be depressed and she begins to act out in some alarming ways. Her relationship with her son, the favorite, is a source of painful disappointment to her, and she, at times, mercilessly antagonizes both her daughter and granddaughter. While I could readily sympathize with Ivy, she sometimes maddened me with her strange ideas and proclamations and endless insensitive questions.
Caroline was the person I most identified with, which is strange for me because usually I don’t sync all that well with YA characters. Caroline is frustrated by the role she’s forced to play in her parents’ drama. She’s constantly filled with anger because she feels that the adults around her are trying to validate their feelings through her and that everyone expects something from her. She’s in love with a boy who is only using her for her intellectual prowess and who doesn’t know how she feels about him. Caroline also is basically friendless and sort of a social outcast. She comes into skirmishes with almost everyone around her, a fact which saddens and confuses her. She doesn’t think she’s a mean person, so why is she acting this way all the time? Looking deeper into the book, I think I identified with Caroline because I’ve been Caroline. There’s a tremendous pressure and weight on her, and her need for understanding herself and her parents is something she’s not equipped for. Her confusion and anger were so real for me, her unhappiness so palpable. Out of the three women, she’s the one who seemed the most confused and troubled, and because she was so young, she had no wellspring from which to draw comfort.
Though I’ve made this book sound rather dour and serious, there were a lot of laugh out loud moments and a sharp humor to the ways in which the women dealt with each other. I found the book to be surprisingly amusing and realistic in a way I hadn’t expected, and although the ending was a bit ambiguous, I could see that each woman was on the road to healing by the conclusion of the book. The issues that manifest themselves were not light and frothy, but something about the way they were portrayed enabled me to see them for who they were, and also let me get a glimpse of the redemption that they were on the road to finding. This is the type of book I think a lot of women will relate to for a host of reasons. I think each reader will have a very different reaction to the three women and will find something about each of them to admire, despite their emotional upheavals. A very worthy read.
February 5, 2011
http://mariesbookgarden.blogspot.com/...
I picked up this book at the library (on the "new" shelf) and decided to read it, mostly based on the recommendation of Sarah Bird, a talented Texas writer. Ruth Pennebaker is another writer from Texas. According to the book jacket she is a commentator for an NPR facilitator and keeps a blog (which looks much better than her novel!).
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough is about a trio of generations living under the same roof. Joanie is mom to Caroline and daughter to Ivy, and they all want to tear each other to bits. Caroline is a sullen teenager, Ivy is an overly critical older woman, and Joanie is a sad, bitter divorcee. The life she was holding together by shreds comes crashing around her when her ex-husband announces that his new girlfriend is having a baby.
I found the writing and story to be overly simple, the characters one-dimensional, and the interactions between them grating. Perhaps this is meant to be written in such a way, and I just have no appreciation for it...sort of like Hemingway. (I can't stand Hemingway.)
Or maybe it's that I have a wonderful relationship with my own mother and can't imagine living my life in battle with those around me. I could not relate to the characters at all. Ivy, in particular, I found to be downright grating.
One thing I found completely implausible is that Joanie was out of the workforce for 20 years (and has minimal computer skills) and then she lands a plum job in the advertising industry. Never going to happen.
I read to page 100 or so, and then gave up. Life is too short to waste on mindless books that don't give us at least some amount of pleasure.
My only conclusion is that Sarah Bird must be biased in some way--perhaps she personally knows the author, or she was just being polite.
I should have trusted some of the bad reviews on Goodreads.
I picked up this book at the library (on the "new" shelf) and decided to read it, mostly based on the recommendation of Sarah Bird, a talented Texas writer. Ruth Pennebaker is another writer from Texas. According to the book jacket she is a commentator for an NPR facilitator and keeps a blog (which looks much better than her novel!).
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough is about a trio of generations living under the same roof. Joanie is mom to Caroline and daughter to Ivy, and they all want to tear each other to bits. Caroline is a sullen teenager, Ivy is an overly critical older woman, and Joanie is a sad, bitter divorcee. The life she was holding together by shreds comes crashing around her when her ex-husband announces that his new girlfriend is having a baby.
I found the writing and story to be overly simple, the characters one-dimensional, and the interactions between them grating. Perhaps this is meant to be written in such a way, and I just have no appreciation for it...sort of like Hemingway. (I can't stand Hemingway.)
Or maybe it's that I have a wonderful relationship with my own mother and can't imagine living my life in battle with those around me. I could not relate to the characters at all. Ivy, in particular, I found to be downright grating.
One thing I found completely implausible is that Joanie was out of the workforce for 20 years (and has minimal computer skills) and then she lands a plum job in the advertising industry. Never going to happen.
I read to page 100 or so, and then gave up. Life is too short to waste on mindless books that don't give us at least some amount of pleasure.
My only conclusion is that Sarah Bird must be biased in some way--perhaps she personally knows the author, or she was just being polite.
I should have trusted some of the bad reviews on Goodreads.
March 16, 2011
Joanie and Richard are divorced and Joanie has taken a life-long vow to celibacy! Richard is living with, BJ, a girl half is age who is now pregnant and they are getting married. Joanie, almost fifty-years-old is in a divorcee support group and only talks to her best friend Mary Margaret outside the group.
Fifteen-year-old daughter, Caroline, is a secretive, manipulative, unhappy teenager whose best friend, Sondra, just introduced her to marijuana.
Ivy, Joanie’s mother, lives with her and Caroline and they don’t get along well. Joanie is working full-time again after being an at-home Mom for years and Ivy under minds Joanie at every turn.
Joanie is so full of anger at Richard, fed up with listening to her mother that she freaked out one night during dinner after arguing with Ivy and smashes both their dinner plates on the kitchen floor then immediately retreats to her bedroom. That same night, Ivy types an email to David, her son and Joanie’s brother, telling him she’s scared and had to lock herself in her bedroom because his sister was throwing plates and she was afraid of being attacked!! The next day, David, phones Joanie to question her about what she is doing their almost eighty-year-old mother! Ivy can be acerbic but sweetly and subtly so.
Three women living under one roof isn’t a great idea, at least not for these three strong headed women. However, given their problems, the amount of fights and arguments they have, when it comes right down to it, they love each other immensely. This was a light-hearted, laugh-a-minute book that every woman should read. I’m sure you’ll find a little bit of yourself in one of these adorable characters!
Fifteen-year-old daughter, Caroline, is a secretive, manipulative, unhappy teenager whose best friend, Sondra, just introduced her to marijuana.
Ivy, Joanie’s mother, lives with her and Caroline and they don’t get along well. Joanie is working full-time again after being an at-home Mom for years and Ivy under minds Joanie at every turn.
Joanie is so full of anger at Richard, fed up with listening to her mother that she freaked out one night during dinner after arguing with Ivy and smashes both their dinner plates on the kitchen floor then immediately retreats to her bedroom. That same night, Ivy types an email to David, her son and Joanie’s brother, telling him she’s scared and had to lock herself in her bedroom because his sister was throwing plates and she was afraid of being attacked!! The next day, David, phones Joanie to question her about what she is doing their almost eighty-year-old mother! Ivy can be acerbic but sweetly and subtly so.
Three women living under one roof isn’t a great idea, at least not for these three strong headed women. However, given their problems, the amount of fights and arguments they have, when it comes right down to it, they love each other immensely. This was a light-hearted, laugh-a-minute book that every woman should read. I’m sure you’ll find a little bit of yourself in one of these adorable characters!
January 20, 2011
I was looking for a light, after the holidays type book and came across this one. It's premise is three women (a 15 year old daughter, 50 year old mom, and a grandmother) living under one roof. The mom went through a divorce and her ex husband is getting married to a young girl who happens to be pregnant. The grandmother had to give up her house due to the economy and crash of the stock market. The young daughter is having a hard time socially in high school. Lots of realistic challenges going on but the author does a great job with the characters, so I felt like I could relate to each of them on some level. It's very comical in some places. Each of the characters come to some realization by the end of the book, thus the "Breathrough" part of the title. I thought it was well done, easy read and I enjoyed it.
January 30, 2011
I finished this book last night. The author artfully tells a tale from three perspectives and generations. Each perspective is realistic, and even though all of the women in the book are deeply flawed and neurotic, they are also wonderfully likable. An irreverent sense of humor runs through the book. Some of the lines are classic and memorable and I found myself wanting to read with a highlighter. One scene toward the end of the book made me laugh so hard the dog jumped off the bed. This is a great book club pick because of all of the discussion issues that it brings up, and it's also a light, fun read and the perfect book to pick up in the darkness of winter.
May 26, 2016
Got this for review and just couldn't get through it. Paltry writing and selfish characters who don't like themselves or each other.
October 20, 2011
The jacket made this sound completely different - more of a comedy but this was some pretty serious stuff. None of the characters was likeable and it just kind of ended.
September 4, 2024
I did not laugh out loud, and I did not grow to really care for these characters as the blurbs on the back claimed.
The story felt flat, and the characters were not terribly well developed. There was little nuance, they all behaved like stereotypes. Their problems were minor. It's only in the final chapters of the book when the characters finally shook off their complacency and something actually happened.
It's ridiculous that Ivy insists her granddaughter had joined a gang because she dyed her hair a bright color, but fails to notice the odor of cigarette smoke that must have been hanging on her. I suppose the pot brownie scene was meant as comic relief, but I find it hard to believe a woman of her age who surfs the web for articles as frequently as she does, is that unfamiliar with marijuana.
This book is just not worth any further critique.
The story felt flat, and the characters were not terribly well developed. There was little nuance, they all behaved like stereotypes. Their problems were minor. It's only in the final chapters of the book when the characters finally shook off their complacency and something actually happened.
It's ridiculous that Ivy insists her granddaughter had joined a gang because she dyed her hair a bright color, but fails to notice the odor of cigarette smoke that must have been hanging on her. I suppose the pot brownie scene was meant as comic relief, but I find it hard to believe a woman of her age who surfs the web for articles as frequently as she does, is that unfamiliar with marijuana.
This book is just not worth any further critique.
September 6, 2018
I thought this book was going to be funny but it wasn't. Divorcee Joanie/Roxanne lives with her 15 year old daughter Caroline and her widow mom Ivy. Caroline is a low esteem teenager that thinks she has a multiple personality disorder and not very happy to find out her dad -dating a woman 29 to his 50 will soon be a father again. And getting married in a few weeks. Caroline is also in love with a guy who of course doesn't know she is alive. And grandma is just an ignorant mess who believes everything she reads on the internet.
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January 11, 2020I bought Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough on a whim during my most recent trip to the used bookstore. It was a light, easy read. The story centers around three women— a mother, daughter, and grandmother— who live together and are each struggling with the circumstances of their lives. While often relatable, I didn’t really find any of the characters likable.
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The story wasn’t bad by any means, but I didn’t really love it either. It was a solid OK.
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The story wasn’t bad by any means, but I didn’t really love it either. It was a solid OK.
January 7, 2018
Why this book doesn't have higher ratings is beyond me. It was downright hilarious!! I loved how it took 3 different women in different phases of their lives and created a personal story that intertwines the characters. At times reading what could be my life, I loved this down-to-earth comical book
January 6, 2025
Caroline and Ivy had the most relatable to their age problems in the book. The ending was abrupt and honestly could have been better. There were times where I couldn’t keep myself engaged in the story and other times where I couldn’t put the book down. Overall, the story was just ok.
June 5, 2019
Very real. I loved the three main characters. I think they are all at big turning points and this describes that feeling very well.
January 19, 2022
I liked these characters, and enjoyed spending time with them. A little dated in the technology context, but still enjoyable.
February 22, 2022
Great read, laughed at how 3 different generations looked at things. Fun read.
October 20, 2022
Three generations living under one roof and all are struggling. They continue to fall apart until maybe they find themselves?
March 24, 2017
What happens when 3 generations of women live together?
March 13, 2011
WOMEN ON THE VERGE OF A NERVOUS BREAKTHROUGH[return]by Ruth Pennabaker[return]Berkley Trade[return]January 4, 2011[return]978-0425238561[return]320 pp, $15.00[return][return]Synopsis from Berkley Books[return][return]Description[return] Joanie's ex-husband is having a baby with his new girlfriend. Joanie won't be having more babies, since she's decided never to have sex again. [return][return]But she still has her teenaged daughter Caroline to care for. And thanks to the recession, her elderly mother Ivy as well. Her daughter can't seem to exist without texting, and her mother brags about "goggling,"-while Joanie, back in the workforce, is still trying to figure out her office computer. And how to fend off the advances of her coworker Bruce. [return][return]Joanie, Caroline, and Ivy are stuck under the same roof, and it isn't easy. But sometimes they surprise each other-and themselves. And through their differences they learn that it is possible to undo the mistakes of the past. ~ HYPERLINK "http://us.penguingroup.com/nf/Book/Bo..." Berkley Books[return][return]My Review[return][return]I must confess, when approached to participate in this blog tour, I was somewhat hesitant. This is not a book I would normally gravitate to. Contemporary women s fiction, especially when quoted as breezily hilarious has me suspect. It s like watching a movie intended to be a comedy, sometimes it is wildly entertaining as you nearly wet your pants laughing, or it falls flat and you wake up sometime later with a stiff neck. Either way in the end some body part hurts. [return]I prefer the former and when my stomach aches a bit and my emotions tingle with joy. Fortunately, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough is hysterical, a real hoot and simply refreshingly astute with a candid and humorous look into the lives of four unique women, generations apart.[return][return]Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough follows the interaction of four women, three are related daughter, mother, grandmother with an ex-husbands girlfriend thrown in the mix. (see publisher s description for plot summary). Surprisingly, Pennebaker is able to capture the distinct personalities of each character, who are generations apart. Her intuition into each personality is flawless. She is a sagacious manipulator of dialogue, able to assume the role of each woman s soul. The result is a funny and warmly believable story every woman should read. All women will find an aspect of this book to identify with as they embrace the universality of this story. Pennebaker has separated the generations shaping their specific ideology and attitudes . I thank this writer for capturing the universality of women s difference with an eye for their commonality and the unique beauty of women s kinship. [return][return]On the author s website, Ms. Pennebaker says to buy three copies of this book, I agree, you will want to pass this one around to all the special women in your life. Highly recommended.
September 8, 2011
3.5 out of 5
When 3 generation of women who cannot stand each other have to live under the same roof, you can definitely expect some entertainment. That’s exactly what we get in Women on the verge of a nervous breakthrough. For a minute I thought this would be a self help book, but not really. It’s a story about 3 completely different women and how they go through their almost nervous breakdowns and subsequent breakthrough’s.
Joanie is in her late 40’s and has just gone through a divorce with her long time husband Richard because he cheated on her with a girl in her 20’s. Her mother Ivy whom Joanie is not very close to has also come to stay with her. Her teenage daughter Caroline is trying to come to terms with her parents’ divorce in her own way which has created a distance between mother and daughter. In addition to all this, Joanie has to take up an advertising job after years of staying at home. Obviously she is on an all time low.
All these three women are annoying and endearing at the same time. With her marriage broken, Joanie is always complaining and although you understand why, you wish she would just stop for a minute. But then she is also trying to get her life back on track by getting a job and working towards her issues by joining a divorce group. I disliked Ivy for always nagging Joanie and Caroline and finding faults in everything Joanie did. She’s also more biased towards her son even though its Joanie who has taken her in after she lost all her savings. On the other hand you also feel bad for her because she’s lost everything and has come to her daughter to stay. Caroline is a teenager, so obviously she is irritating and annoying and all that but you also feel bad for her because she feels invisible in school and everything is not good at the home front too.
As the novel progresses, each of these three women realize the worth of the other as they come to terms with their own loss and realize the value of the other. The author, Ruth Pennebaker, has written a thoroughly entertaining book and although the circumstances are depressing, no where does the book become overbearing or boring. I didn’t find it laugh out loud funny as written on the book cover but I did make me smile at places. Initially I was a little worried that I wouldn’t like the book because the characters were so unlikable. But as the book progressed and the layers peeled you realize they have their own charm.
The author has managed to show the fragile thread by which these relationships are hanging by and how they reluctantly work towards their differences and misunderstandings. Definitely give this book a try if you interested in reading about relationships between women.
When 3 generation of women who cannot stand each other have to live under the same roof, you can definitely expect some entertainment. That’s exactly what we get in Women on the verge of a nervous breakthrough. For a minute I thought this would be a self help book, but not really. It’s a story about 3 completely different women and how they go through their almost nervous breakdowns and subsequent breakthrough’s.
Joanie is in her late 40’s and has just gone through a divorce with her long time husband Richard because he cheated on her with a girl in her 20’s. Her mother Ivy whom Joanie is not very close to has also come to stay with her. Her teenage daughter Caroline is trying to come to terms with her parents’ divorce in her own way which has created a distance between mother and daughter. In addition to all this, Joanie has to take up an advertising job after years of staying at home. Obviously she is on an all time low.
All these three women are annoying and endearing at the same time. With her marriage broken, Joanie is always complaining and although you understand why, you wish she would just stop for a minute. But then she is also trying to get her life back on track by getting a job and working towards her issues by joining a divorce group. I disliked Ivy for always nagging Joanie and Caroline and finding faults in everything Joanie did. She’s also more biased towards her son even though its Joanie who has taken her in after she lost all her savings. On the other hand you also feel bad for her because she’s lost everything and has come to her daughter to stay. Caroline is a teenager, so obviously she is irritating and annoying and all that but you also feel bad for her because she feels invisible in school and everything is not good at the home front too.
As the novel progresses, each of these three women realize the worth of the other as they come to terms with their own loss and realize the value of the other. The author, Ruth Pennebaker, has written a thoroughly entertaining book and although the circumstances are depressing, no where does the book become overbearing or boring. I didn’t find it laugh out loud funny as written on the book cover but I did make me smile at places. Initially I was a little worried that I wouldn’t like the book because the characters were so unlikable. But as the book progressed and the layers peeled you realize they have their own charm.
The author has managed to show the fragile thread by which these relationships are hanging by and how they reluctantly work towards their differences and misunderstandings. Definitely give this book a try if you interested in reading about relationships between women.
February 7, 2011
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It’s a drag getting old, everyone knows that. Ivy didn’t think that her faith in God or devotion to her family would ever let age have her against the ropes. Yet, here she is, watching her fifty year old daughter let a nice marriage die and a her teenaged granddaughter join gangs or cults or whatever it is that young people have found to get into, now a days. She wishes for a simpler time as she continually shakes her head and sighs.
Joanie didn’t exactly let a good marriage die. It’s more like her husband of over a decade, woke up one morning, out of love, in love with a wispy blonde thing that happened to be carrying his baby. She’s over the divorce, over her teenager slamming her door, over her mother bombarding her with criticism and very over her divorcee group. Oh, and she’s over sex. Forever.
Caroline is not over sex, although, she has yet to have it. She’s smart and skinny but why does any of that matter when no one notices you? Getting old may be a drag but high school is downright unbearable.
There is something really unique about the way this story is told. Instead of a header telling which character is speaking or thinking, the inner monologue and rolling commentary simply flips from one to the next. This method seemed to give the impression that all three women comprised one whole person at various states of existence, watching and noting the other quirks of age or youth.
I found the book hilarious, throughout. Of course, I’ve recently been informed that my sense of humor is in full on desert drought stage and needs to be used only with people who have similar inclinations. I tend to find humor in almost everything and I like snarky, wry commentary, especially about really normal stuff.
For some reason, I suppose it’s more a matter of appealing to target audience than a true gender leaning, I’ve had a hard time finding very dark, satirical humor in female voice. I think Pennebaker does a great job in three voices, nailing my type of shown, not told, humor.
This is a book to be read but to be read with care. I loved it, again, but I’ve seen a few reviews that felt it missed the mark. It’s a witty commentary on, not family dynamics but rather people and their insecurities, dreams, failures and rhythms. Read it with that in mind and you’ll enjoy it wholeheartedly.
It’s a drag getting old, everyone knows that. Ivy didn’t think that her faith in God or devotion to her family would ever let age have her against the ropes. Yet, here she is, watching her fifty year old daughter let a nice marriage die and a her teenaged granddaughter join gangs or cults or whatever it is that young people have found to get into, now a days. She wishes for a simpler time as she continually shakes her head and sighs.
Joanie didn’t exactly let a good marriage die. It’s more like her husband of over a decade, woke up one morning, out of love, in love with a wispy blonde thing that happened to be carrying his baby. She’s over the divorce, over her teenager slamming her door, over her mother bombarding her with criticism and very over her divorcee group. Oh, and she’s over sex. Forever.
Caroline is not over sex, although, she has yet to have it. She’s smart and skinny but why does any of that matter when no one notices you? Getting old may be a drag but high school is downright unbearable.
There is something really unique about the way this story is told. Instead of a header telling which character is speaking or thinking, the inner monologue and rolling commentary simply flips from one to the next. This method seemed to give the impression that all three women comprised one whole person at various states of existence, watching and noting the other quirks of age or youth.
I found the book hilarious, throughout. Of course, I’ve recently been informed that my sense of humor is in full on desert drought stage and needs to be used only with people who have similar inclinations. I tend to find humor in almost everything and I like snarky, wry commentary, especially about really normal stuff.
For some reason, I suppose it’s more a matter of appealing to target audience than a true gender leaning, I’ve had a hard time finding very dark, satirical humor in female voice. I think Pennebaker does a great job in three voices, nailing my type of shown, not told, humor.
This is a book to be read but to be read with care. I loved it, again, but I’ve seen a few reviews that felt it missed the mark. It’s a witty commentary on, not family dynamics but rather people and their insecurities, dreams, failures and rhythms. Read it with that in mind and you’ll enjoy it wholeheartedly.
February 16, 2019
I never know how to write a review when I don't like any of the characters. This book was about three generations of women all living in the same house. It said on the cover, that it was how they went from annoying each other to finally developing a relationship and becoming a family, that didn't happen. The language was horrible, they seemed to have very few moral values, and no goals . There were a few funny situations, which is why I gave it two stars.
January 20, 2011
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough is a story about three generation of women living under the same roof trying to cope with each other and with life. Joanie, Ivy and Caroline are each going through changes in their life that they are finding difficult to handle. Joanie is a soon to be 50 divorcee. Her husband is living with a woman half his age and just announced that they are having a baby. Ivy is a widow whose savings has quickly dwindled thanks to the bad economy. She can no longer afford to live on her own and moves in with her daughter Joanie. Caroline is a typical teenager, dealing with her parents divorce, living with her grandmother and being a pea in the very big pond known as High School. What all 3 of these women have in common is that they are trying to find their place in the world and with each other.
I enjoyed reading Women on the Verge. The tone is light, funny and sometimes snarky. The story is told from 3 POVs - Joanie, Ivy and Caroline - so that you get a bird's eye view of what each character is thinking. The character I could relate to the most is Caroline. She doesn't connect with her mother and grandmother. She only has one friend. And she tries to avoid her father completely. I could understand why Joanie's relationship with Ivy was tenuous. Ivy undermines Joanie constantly. She insults her in an infuriating passive-aggressive manner. There was a scene where Joanie finally gave into her anger with her mother and I was happy that she did. Although, I felt sympathy for Joanie, I felt that she was so consumed by her own misery that she couldn't or wouldn't see her daughter's misery. And in typical teenage fashion, Caroline started acting out.
I felt that the "breakthrough" for these women was a little anti-climatic. Towards the end, they do come together and start to see each other in a different light. I felt that the ending was just the beginning for Joanie, Ivy and Caroline. I would have loved to have read more about these women working through their issues with themselves and each other.
Note: I love the cover. Very original and cute.
I enjoyed reading Women on the Verge. The tone is light, funny and sometimes snarky. The story is told from 3 POVs - Joanie, Ivy and Caroline - so that you get a bird's eye view of what each character is thinking. The character I could relate to the most is Caroline. She doesn't connect with her mother and grandmother. She only has one friend. And she tries to avoid her father completely. I could understand why Joanie's relationship with Ivy was tenuous. Ivy undermines Joanie constantly. She insults her in an infuriating passive-aggressive manner. There was a scene where Joanie finally gave into her anger with her mother and I was happy that she did. Although, I felt sympathy for Joanie, I felt that she was so consumed by her own misery that she couldn't or wouldn't see her daughter's misery. And in typical teenage fashion, Caroline started acting out.
I felt that the "breakthrough" for these women was a little anti-climatic. Towards the end, they do come together and start to see each other in a different light. I felt that the ending was just the beginning for Joanie, Ivy and Caroline. I would have loved to have read more about these women working through their issues with themselves and each other.
Note: I love the cover. Very original and cute.
June 22, 2011
“Hell was three generations of women living under the same roof.”
Joanie “Roxanne” Pilcher is a divorcee who has found out that her ex is going to be a daddy with the young woman he is living with and her new boss, Zoe, thinks she is a charity case. From Joanie: “What was worst of all to Joanie was that Zoe hadn’t seen anything special in her. She had instead glommed on to Joanie as some kind of sad cliché. A shopworn, middle-aged housewife whose husband had dumped her. A feminist cause to be championed. A little social experiment in doing good.”
Ivy Horton is a widow and a kleptomaniac who is forced to live with her daughter and granddaughter when she lost money during the recession. From Ivy: “Depression. Maybe it wasn’t a mental illness anymore. It was what they now called old age.”
Caroline Pilcher is a teen who is misunderstood and angry at her parents for the mess they made of her life. She also has a crush on a boy at school that doesn’t even know she exists…or does he? From Caroline: “Yes, that was it. B.J. saw right through [Caroline], knew she didn’t have any friends, had never been kissed, was a hopeless, flat-chested virgin who spent her whole life thinking, obsessing, dreaming about a good-looking guy who’d barely even noticed her, couldn’t have picked her out in a lineup of felons.”
All three women are lonely and trying to figure out how to cope with their lives and, unfortunately, don’t know how to communicate with each other.
This book is funny and sad and it was a quick read. However, I was disappointed in the ending. Maybe it was me, but I felt that it just stopped. I wanted to know how they all turned out after they discovered themselves and confronted those people that didn’t understand them.
Thank you to Ruth Pennebaker and PR by the Book for giving me the opportunity to review this book.
Joanie “Roxanne” Pilcher is a divorcee who has found out that her ex is going to be a daddy with the young woman he is living with and her new boss, Zoe, thinks she is a charity case. From Joanie: “What was worst of all to Joanie was that Zoe hadn’t seen anything special in her. She had instead glommed on to Joanie as some kind of sad cliché. A shopworn, middle-aged housewife whose husband had dumped her. A feminist cause to be championed. A little social experiment in doing good.”
Ivy Horton is a widow and a kleptomaniac who is forced to live with her daughter and granddaughter when she lost money during the recession. From Ivy: “Depression. Maybe it wasn’t a mental illness anymore. It was what they now called old age.”
Caroline Pilcher is a teen who is misunderstood and angry at her parents for the mess they made of her life. She also has a crush on a boy at school that doesn’t even know she exists…or does he? From Caroline: “Yes, that was it. B.J. saw right through [Caroline], knew she didn’t have any friends, had never been kissed, was a hopeless, flat-chested virgin who spent her whole life thinking, obsessing, dreaming about a good-looking guy who’d barely even noticed her, couldn’t have picked her out in a lineup of felons.”
All three women are lonely and trying to figure out how to cope with their lives and, unfortunately, don’t know how to communicate with each other.
This book is funny and sad and it was a quick read. However, I was disappointed in the ending. Maybe it was me, but I felt that it just stopped. I wanted to know how they all turned out after they discovered themselves and confronted those people that didn’t understand them.
Thank you to Ruth Pennebaker and PR by the Book for giving me the opportunity to review this book.
March 16, 2011
Three female members of a family at different stages of their lives are trying to coexist.
Sandwiched between her seventy-six-year-old mother, Ivy, and her fifteen-year-old daughter, Caroline, Joanie Pilcher (approaching fifty) feels overwhelmed at times, emotionally bankrupt, and definitely misunderstood. She is so "done" with men that she has vowed never to have sex again. Caroline is at a point of fearing that she will never find anyone to love her, much less to have sex with her. And Ivy is flailing about, trying to discover who she is in this new life in which she has no real place of her own, and in her attempt to define who she is, she makes some risky choices.
In the voices of each female, we come to understand their dilemmas as we peek inside each one in turn; and then we have the opportunity to root for each of them as this story unfolds to yield a very satisfying meeting of the minds.
Along the way, we meet the women in Joanie's support group; Caroline's only friend Sondra; and observe Ivy's somewhat unusual friendship with a waitress named Lupe.
We also see glimpses of the young woman B. J., whom Joanie's ex-husband is now planning to marry. She is at an entirely different place in her life, but each character has a chance to see her at a time of crisis, and in this moment, Ivy and Caroline each see a side of Joanie they had never acknowledged.
"Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough" is a story that can resonate with any woman who has ever been a mother, a daughter, or a displaced elderly person, and reminds us that empathy is the stepping stone to connecting with those we love.
Five stars.
Sandwiched between her seventy-six-year-old mother, Ivy, and her fifteen-year-old daughter, Caroline, Joanie Pilcher (approaching fifty) feels overwhelmed at times, emotionally bankrupt, and definitely misunderstood. She is so "done" with men that she has vowed never to have sex again. Caroline is at a point of fearing that she will never find anyone to love her, much less to have sex with her. And Ivy is flailing about, trying to discover who she is in this new life in which she has no real place of her own, and in her attempt to define who she is, she makes some risky choices.
In the voices of each female, we come to understand their dilemmas as we peek inside each one in turn; and then we have the opportunity to root for each of them as this story unfolds to yield a very satisfying meeting of the minds.
Along the way, we meet the women in Joanie's support group; Caroline's only friend Sondra; and observe Ivy's somewhat unusual friendship with a waitress named Lupe.
We also see glimpses of the young woman B. J., whom Joanie's ex-husband is now planning to marry. She is at an entirely different place in her life, but each character has a chance to see her at a time of crisis, and in this moment, Ivy and Caroline each see a side of Joanie they had never acknowledged.
"Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough" is a story that can resonate with any woman who has ever been a mother, a daughter, or a displaced elderly person, and reminds us that empathy is the stepping stone to connecting with those we love.
Five stars.
June 10, 2011
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough by Ruth Pennebaker takes a unique perspective on a family of three generations living together. Joanie, the woman in the middle generation and the bread-winner, is dealing with her ex-husband who’s having a baby with his girlfriend, her mother who’s moved in with her for financial reasons, her daughter who’s experiencing her horrible teen years, and a co-worker who’s putting the moves on her.
The tale is often funny, sometimes rather heart-breaking, and will make most of us glad we’re not Joanie. But don’t think Ivy, the grandmother, or Caroline, the daughter, are out to get Joanie. They’re just living their lives, trying to survive like everyone else. Caroline is trying to be something other than the invisible girl at school. Ivy wants to be seen, too, as a whole person, not an old person having to live with her daughter. Pennebaker has even drawn the ex-husband’s girlfriend as a three-dimensional character with her own problems and fears.
Each character is well-drawn and believable. I think it doesn’t matter whether you’re young, older, or the generation in-between, you would like the book and identify with the characters. (Although if you buy it for your daughter, I recommend you read it first since it does have some language and scenes you’d want to check out.) But no matter which generation you identify with, you’ll find yourself wondering if they can ever come together. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough is character driven and the three main characters are up to the drive through the hills and valleys of life and family.
The tale is often funny, sometimes rather heart-breaking, and will make most of us glad we’re not Joanie. But don’t think Ivy, the grandmother, or Caroline, the daughter, are out to get Joanie. They’re just living their lives, trying to survive like everyone else. Caroline is trying to be something other than the invisible girl at school. Ivy wants to be seen, too, as a whole person, not an old person having to live with her daughter. Pennebaker has even drawn the ex-husband’s girlfriend as a three-dimensional character with her own problems and fears.
Each character is well-drawn and believable. I think it doesn’t matter whether you’re young, older, or the generation in-between, you would like the book and identify with the characters. (Although if you buy it for your daughter, I recommend you read it first since it does have some language and scenes you’d want to check out.) But no matter which generation you identify with, you’ll find yourself wondering if they can ever come together. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakthrough is character driven and the three main characters are up to the drive through the hills and valleys of life and family.
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