Las cuatro hermanas: Una joven que quería ser diferente en el Liverpool de la década de 1950.

by Maureen Lee, Mónica Rubio (Translator)

Kitty McCarthy, una joven inconformista en el Liverpool de los años 1950, tiene claro que no quiere llevar la vida de sus hermanas y la de la mayoría de chicas de su entorno. Con seis hermanas mayores y un hermano, Kitty conoce demasiado bien lo que le espera a una chica de clase trabajadora como ella: tratar de sobrevivir en este entorno industrial y gris, casarse con un chico en el mejor de los casos honesto, e ir criando a varios hijos. Kitty tiene otros planes, que pasan en primer lugar por su independencia. Pero la vida tiene sus propias reglas y las cosas no siempre salen según lo planeado.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Chick Lit

416 pages, Paperback

First published September 9, 2010

About the author

Maureen Lee was born in Bootle, England, UK, near Liverpool during the World War II. She attended Commercial College and became a shorthand typist. She married Richard, and they had three sons, now adults. The last years the marriage lives in Colchester, Essex.

During years, she published over one hundred and fifty short-stories, before published her first novel Lila in 1983. She continued published dramatic historical sagas mainly setting in Liverpool since 1994. In 2000, her novel Dancing in the Dark won the Romantic Novel of the Year Award by the Romantic Novelists' Association.

Reviews

[Sonia Gomes · Rating 1 out of 5]

What's with Kitty and her Sisters, all they seem to do is to have kids and relationships. Most of them get married because 'they had to'. There is no desire to study better or to get better jobs. Is this how Liverpool was in the 1950's but as the book stretches up to the 1980's it is strange that the younger generation does not think of getting a better education, except for Ben who is on the road to University but Samantha his girlfriend gets pregnant ! Eve who did seem to be promising, has no career, no ambitions. Kitty who also started on a promising note, just drifts, first a baby with Con, who she gives for adoption to Aileen, who promptly abandons the baby Eve. Kitty starts looking after her, seemed to have picked up and was doing well with a Stationery shop but has a fling with Oliver (who shocking as it may sound, she used to look after when he was a toddler of four)and promptly gets PREGNANT and bears his child, we could term this relationship as incest. The book rambles on, with relationships, kids and more kids.
Not my cup of tea at all !!

[Shirley Revill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy to read but very hard to put down. Recommended.

[Julie Day · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were some funny moments in this book and some likable characters, however I thought some of the twists in the storyline in the latter half of the book were a bit far fetched and the ending was disappointing.

[Kristy Trauzzi · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was cute. A quick and easy read that made me want the story to keep going.

[Lauren Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book. I thought it was a slow start, but couldn’t put it down afterwards when I really got into it.. love Maureen Lees books.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Maureen Lee and think I've read about 8 of hers in the past few years. I truly enjoyed this book - a family saga set in Liverpool England from the mid 1940's to the 1980's. We follow the main character, Kitty, and her 4 sisters through 40 years of "regular life". I like books about regular life sometimes, because like them, I live a pretty "regular" life. Yes, there are ups and downs and inside outs - all of which I felt were plausible. It kept my interest, while still being an easy read. I still have several others by Ms Lee in my TBR pile and will certainly read them all at some point!

[Liz Chapman · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maureen Lee's books are very similar but nice relaxing reads. I did think that some of the books would have characters interlacing through the stories but this doesn't seem to be the case. Kitty and her sisters, what a family! I am not sure I even like Kitty that much and some of them seem quite disturbed. I think that if the book had not been set in the 60s and 70 s to begin with , a family story like this set in 2014 would have much more dire consequences . They did get away with an awful lot.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like Maureen Lee as an author, but when you've read several of her books you tend to see a lot of similar plot lines. Kitty and her sisters is slightly more original, but generally nothing new. Still, it's an enjoyable read anyway.

[Cammie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a fun Soap Opera read.

[Pauline · Rating 4 out of 5]

As always a nice easy read from this author. This book is a bit more modern than normal.Still very good though.

[Kirsty (BookBlogger) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kitty and Her Sisters by Maureen Lee

At the age of nineteen, Kitty McCarthy has decided she is going to live a life less ordinary - although she doesn't know quite how to go about it. What she does know is that she doesn't want to get married and raise children in Liverpool like her elder sisters: Claire, who is a mother-hen; easy-going Norah and elegant Aileen. But Kitty's resolve is tested by the unexpected direction her life takes.

The combination of an impetuous youthful decision and a chance meeting twenty years later are to have momentous repercussions that will stay with her for ever, and it is her sisters who are the constant thread when other relationships come and go. They know her best, they say, and in the end they know what's best for her - although Kitty would almost certainly disagree...

This is not the sort of book I would usually choose but I was lent the book so felt obliged to read it. It was a quick and easy book to read that just didn't grab my attention. It started out so promising but the ending was disappointing.

Rating 3/5

[Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Every author is writes at least one dud in their career and for me this is Maureen Lee's dud. It started promising. Kitty a determined young woman who swore she'd never marry and have children and live like her sisters and mother. However it went downhill when she got pregnant. Then it got even more boring and hard to push through. Aileen was a horrible selfish person who abandons their adopted child because you get pregnant with your own? Then the story moves into soap opera territory and I'd say Flowers in the Attic territory with quasi incest going on. Affairs with men who she was once a nanny to, then her daughter marries that man and she feels jealousy. Yuck. It was somewhat readable but if this had been my first Maureen Lee it would've sadly been my last, but I know she's capable of great writing and will easily forget this one and move onto the next.

[wheeliereads · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, it was quite a long book though which I struggled with. I chose this as my mum is from Liverpool, born in 1950. When I started the book there was a character with the same name as my uncle! Same first name and surname, he married Norah and my uncle married a Norma! Later in the books there is another character with the same name as nan’s married name, the same person who is mum to the uncle. She remarried so his name was different but these coincidences blew me away!!
I really enjoyed the story and will look out for the author’s other books.

[Macarena · Rating 3 out of 5]

No puedo ponerle 5 estrellas, porque lo encontre soso (esa era la palabra!!). Un libro impecablemente bien escrito, se deja leer muy bien. Pero la historia es si , es sosa, tiene algun par de puntos altos como cuando Kitty esta en Belfast, ahí uno piensa, Ok ahora agarra vuelto, pero no volvemos al mismo ritmo bucólico.
Ahora, lo leí tranquilamente, en ningún momento pensé en no terminarlo, pero una vez terminado es de esos libros que pasaran sin pena ni gloria.

[Cherop · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book based on the recommendation of another. It wasn't quite what I was expecting. I guess I thought it would be more like Rosamund Pilcher's books, giving a cosy, comfortable feeling in the reading of it. The second half of the book was better than the first half. I will check out more of this author's books.

[Mary Geraghty · Rating 4 out of 5]

A run through the decades

A really good story of life in the family. It was interesting to see the characters over the different timelines and how their lives changed. A lovely read. 🏡

[Asunta Lopez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buenísimo!!!!!!!
De los que no puedas dejar de leer ni para dormir. Un retrato coral de una familia no muy pudiente en el Liverpool de los años 50, 60, 70 y 80.
El personaje de Kitty es entrañable: se ha quedado anclado en mi corazón para siempre

[Betsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit of a soap opera but a fun summer read. There was never a dull moment with these sisters, and so many babies I needed a family tree chart! Maureen Lee can certainly write a good saga!

[Tania Batten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Did she live a life less ordinary?
She still had a couple of children without the marriage
Very good story was just written as if the author was in a hurry to get certain events out there

[Rowlie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great tale of a family with all it's quirks and foibles.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved this family saga through 3 decades, but so many people to keep track of.

[Cecile Paddle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it!

[Wendy Hill · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good. Tells the tale of family's ups and downs. An enjoyable read

[Francisco · Rating 2 out of 5]

Esto de coger cualquier libro que haya por casa para llenar horas de transporte público a veces tiene estas cosas... Novela intrascendente, de "valor humano", con un personaje al que le ocurren más incidentes en su vida que a Papillón... Narración correcta, sin más, con algún momento de interés, en la que lo más interesente puede ser la técnica de foco sobre determinados momentos de la vida de la protagonista. Y nada más, que tampoco está el patio para muchos lujos.

[Louise Lacy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was worried about this book being written in the first person but as the story progressed I found myself not wanting to put the book down. I found it queer that Kitty would fall pregnant when she knew that she didn't want children or marriage and I felt that her daughter was too forgiving.

Overall I enjoyed the book and loved the little cottage that Kitty found herself living in.

[Anthony L · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another excellent book. Not as outstanding as say The Leaving of Liverpool or Martha's Journey, but very interesting, with great character development, creativity (the true father of Eve's nephew Jake...) and themes (Kitty declining first offer of marriage...).

[Winna · Rating 3 out of 5]

pretty unpredictable. the story. anyway, pretty amusing.

[Joan Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

VERY NICELY WRITTEN IDEAL FOR PEOPLE WHO LIKE EVERY DAY LIFE STORIES

[Sharon Reeves · Rating 4 out of 5]

I felt very involved in this story, like I knew the whole family. I thought it was a great story, following all the sisters. Well written, and recommended for any Maureen Lee fan.

[Clare Calder]

Nice 'no concentration needed' book.