Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: Nursery Crimes by Ayelet Waldman ISBN: 0-425-18000-X Publisher: Prime Crime Pub. Date: 10 July, 2001 Format: Mass Market Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.83 (29 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Looking forward to the next in this excellent series
Comment: I hate it when moms get asked the question, "Do you work?" Heck yes! Juliet Applebaum, the heroine of this wonderful series, can add another dimension to her answer ... she's also an (unofficial) private investigator. In this story, Juliet becomes suspicious when the principal of an elitist L.A. nursery school is mowed down in a "hit and run." Braving berserk studio executives, internet intrigue, doubting friends, skeptical L.A. cops (who think stay-at-home moms suffer from a dubious intellect), Juliet solves the crime.
What makes this book so delicious is Juliet's sense of humor and honesty. She freely admits that her daughter can be darn annoying and that she is ambivalent, even resentful, of leaving her job as a Harvard-trained public defender to stay at home with her pre-schooler and soon-to-be born son. She acknowledges the joys of marriage and motherhood, too, but her free and funny expression of competing thoughts is refreshing. The other characters are also very realistic and fascinating (including a Hollywood A-list best friend who has her own motive for undermining Juliet's investigation.) L.A. with its celebrity-worshipping milieu serves as a riveting backdrop for the action.
Although I solved the mystery about a chapter before Juliet did (and I'm no sleuth), I still found the book very much worth reading. Juliet is an immensely likable character and I found myself wishing she were real because I know I would enjoy her company.
An interesting literary aside: Ayelet Waldman, the author, is married to Michael Chabon, acclaimed author of Wonder Boys and The Adventures of Kavalier and Clay.
Rating: 5
Summary: A mystery starring an endearing stay at home mom -what fun!
Comment: I read this one in a single gulp and had a blast doing so. Author Ayelet Waldman has created a wonderful new sleuth in Juliet, a stay at home mom with a toddler, a woman dying to go back to work - until she becomes pregnant with her second child and her career plans are put on hold. Resigned to staying at home, Juliet is less than perfect on the domestic front, finding life with a toddler hard to take at times. As Juliet herself says, " I wasn't any June Cleaver. I did all the things mothers aren't supposed to do. I yelled. I was sarcastic. I let her watch TV". Clearly, Juliet needs an outlet besides mothering. Then Juliet's daughter, Rudy ("half adorable..angel, half street urchin from hell") fails to ace the admissions interview at the Heart's Song school. Shortly afterwards, the principal of the school killed and Juliet has a new mission - she decides to solve the crime. The details are what set this book apart from the average mystery - Juliet's frustration living among overly ambitious parents striving to get their toddlers into the best schools, her difficulty balancing her desire for a career with her decision to stay home and her humorous attempts to solve a crime without alienating every "suspect" ( in other words, she isn't the most tactful detective). Waldman catches the subtle nuances of suburban life (albeit suburban Hollywood life) perfectly. I hope to see more from this new author and am looking forward to getting her next book, The Big Nap.
Rating: 5
Summary: 5 star review from Timeless Tales!
Comment: from reviewer J.P. Sydney
Juliet Applebaum isn't cut out to be a working mom, but she isn't cut out to be a stay-at-home mom either. A former public defender, Juliet can't step away when she's thrust into the middle of a murder mystery.
All Juliet had wanted was for her two-year-old daughter, Ruby, to get into the prestigious Heart's Song School in Los Angeles. The initial meeting and interview don't go over well and they aren't offered the application for enrollment. Taking it in stride, Juliet and her husband, Peter, a screenwriter, begin to leave. But another man becomes violent with Principal Abigail Hathaway, demanding an application. Peter gets between the man and the principal and everyone leaves. Juliet would never have given any of this a second thought if later that night she hadn't heard of Abigail's untimely death by a hit and run driver.
Juliet can't get the violent encounter out of her mind, and involves herself in the police investigation. Using her connections at the Public Defenders office and some unique sleuthing skills (taking her daughter to a park near one of the suspect's homes so she could question the nanny), Juliet delves deeper into the background of both the victim and every suspect. But what starts out looking like a simple rage killing becomes more complex as Juliet learns more about the victim and the secrets she'd been hiding.
Ms. Waldman is very much like her character Juliet--a former public defender who is now a stay at home mom. I'm thankful for the transition because Ms. Waldman does a phenomenal job creating a fun, fast-paced mystery that I read in one sitting. Although Nursery Crimes is Ms. Waldman's first book, she's already found her voice. Smart, witty, and entertaining, she had me hooked from the very first page. Both Ms. Waldman and her heroine are women to be respected and admired for their accomplishments, and I can't wait to spend more time with Juliet in her further adventures.
 |
Title: The Big Nap by Ayelet Waldman ISBN: 0425184528 Publisher: Prime Crime Pub. Date: 02 July, 2002 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
 |
Title: A Playdate With Death by Ayelet Waldman ISBN: 0425191044 Publisher: Prime Crime Pub. Date: 01 July, 2003 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
 |
Title: Death Gets a Time-Out by Ayelet Waldman ISBN: 0425190145 Publisher: Prime Crime Pub. Date: 01 July, 2003 List Price(USD): $22.95 |
 |
Title: Daughter's Keeper by Ayelet Waldman ISBN: 140220096X Publisher: Sourcebooks Trade Pub. Date: October, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.00 |
 |
Title: How to Murder a Millionaire by Nancy Martin ISBN: 0451207246 Publisher: Signet Pub. Date: October, 2002 List Price(USD): $6.50 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
