Book Review: Mrs Everything
17.03.2021
Book Review| Mrs Everything by Jennifer Weiner
Although there’s no need to play favourites, in my January reading wrap up I popped this multi-generational family saga in the number one spot and I have to admit it’s still standing strong two months on. I won’t pretend there isn’t fierce competition now (again it’s not actually a competition I promise) but every time I think about this book I get a little buzz of warmth that suggests it’s also going to be one of those that stay with me for years to come.
Mrs Everything is, in many ways, the perfect novel as far as I’m concerned. Traversing the US over three generations of one family, it’s full of complex, messy, interesting characters (most of whom are also female), tackles the mother/daughter relationship, explores the Jewish immigrant experience and the civil rights movements of the sixties as well as beautifully written storylines dealing with eating disorders, mental illness, sexuality, duty and violence. It does all of this while consistently pushing forward with a twisty-turny, compelling plot. It’s genuinely exactly the kind of book I would love to write. So my hat is off to Jennifer Weiner, my new hero.
I’d only read one Weiner novel prior to this one and that was Big Summer, a sort of murder mystery, body positive romance which was also really good. Again, it managed to combine so much into a compulsive read and certainly made me eager to try more of her books. That said, Mrs Everything felt like a totally superior novel to me in every way and I’m not sure which (if either) of these two are more indicative of Weiner’s usual style. Something that does link the two however is her treatment of how women feel about their physical size. Both Bethie in Mrs Everything and Daphne in Big Summer have very complicated relationships with their bodies and how they deal with this is well explored and essential to their storylines. While Daphne grows up (in the modern day) to become a well-known body positivity influencer, Bethie (back in the 1950s) has much less access to supportive and healthy role models and spends many years treating her body badly, binging and dieting obsessively as a way to deal with her emotions. Sadly, many people of all genders struggle with such issues but Weiner definitely captures the unique way in which they can be part and parcel of growing up female in society.
I think it’s worth noting that although my praise now couldn’t be greater, I didn’t instantly fall in love with this novel. If you’re a consistent reader of this blog I appreciate that I’ve said this a lot lately and I’m sure that’s also a reflection of my current state of mind and lack of focus. In this case however I think it’s important to mention that the two friends who also read this alongside me both reported similar concerns and lack of engagement at first which worried me as I’d chosen the novel for us! There’s a key point within the first few chapters that grabbed all three of us and after that we all loved it. So, look, all I’m saying is if you do give this one a go and you find yourself feeling a bit so-so at the beginning, do hang on in there because it gets SO GOOD!
Though I’m sure it’s a delicious read however you enjoy it, if you’re part of a book club or someone who likes buddy reads I’d definitely suggest this book for that. Often I find it a little irritating to be bound by others’ schedules when I’m loving a book so much but this one was excellent to discuss, particularly with other women and I think if I’d been reading it alone I’d now be pressing it desperately into my Mum and sister’s hands, begging them to quickly read it so we could discuss!
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