March 23, 2009
5 Minutes for Books — Everyone is Beautiful
Today’s book review comes from Dawn, our newest staff reviewer over at 5 Minutes for Books. She invites you to visit her at my thoughts exactly, if you’re a fan of cute kids or random thoughts, which both appear in abundance on her blog.
Have you ever found yourself gulping down the words from a book at an alarming rate because you no longer have any sense of the actual world around you? Have you ever connected with a fictional character in such a way that you think there’s possibly an eerie force at nature that led you to the book in the first place? Have you ever had trouble actually seeing the print on the page because of the massive amount of tears streaming down your face? I can honestly answer yes to all of the above about Katherine Center’s new novel, Everyone is Beautiful.
This is the story of Lanie, the mom to three young boys and the wife to a composer trying to make his mark on the profession, who is literally beginning a new chapter of her life at the onset of the story, moving her family from Texas to Massachusetts to support the aspiring career of her husband. Notice how that description mentions nothing particularly personal about Lanie?
Yeah, so would she, because that’s what she’s realizing her life has become– who she is can only be defined in relation to the people around her. A mother. A wife. That’s the scope of her life, and she has trouble recalling the self she used to be before these new identities took top billing in her life. An epiphany of sorts results, triggered by being asked the worst possible question ever by a stranger, leading her to add “change your life” to the top of her never ending to-do list (Ever been asked when you were due… when you weren’t pregnant anymore? Oh yes, worst possible question ever.) She soon comes to find that she may have changed more than she bargained for.
You could call this novel a treatise on modern day motherhood, parenting and marriage all wrapped up in an entertaining and wholly believable contemporary story. I’m drawn to fictional works that portray women and mothers in all their glory, often struggling with the messes that come with regular life and trying to find their particular path in it all. (Oh yes, I am what I read.) This book definitely had that overarching theme, but there was something else. I’m not even sure that I can put my finger firmly on it, but I’ve read enough novels in my day to know that this one was different.
Perhaps I come to this novel with certain characteristics that made me predisposed to connecting with it– I also have three young children, I also have a love/hate relationship with my own body, I also find myself often wondering what happened to the ‘me’ I used to be… but I think it was even more than that. The voice of Lanie speaks with such ferocity when she describes the fear that mothers live with about the vulnerability of their children’s lives, or the drudgery that can so easily swallow a marriage when you are surrounded by young children, or the physical imperfections that are an undeniable fact of life. Lanie goes beyond simply being a realistic character- as I turned the last pages, I felt as if I lived this story, instead of just spending the last day consuming it in a few extended sittings.
This book will find a very special place on my bookshelf, and it is definitely shooting to the top of the list of the books I (annoyingly) tell my friends they just have to read. Far be it from me to tell you, people whom I’ve never met, what to read… but I think you’re just going to have to trust me on this one. If I’ve sold you on this book, you can head over to 5 Minutes for Books to see the video trailer to get just a tiny taste of what this wonderful novel has to offer.
Please leave a comment to win one of three SIGNED copies of Everyone is Beautiful. We’ll announce the winners in next week’s column. This contest is void where prohibited and subject to our terms and conditions.
We’re thinking of doing some sort of bookclub with this book, so if you are interested, be sure to follow us at twitter.com/5M4B and keep an eye on our feed for details.
The winner of Sixty-Five Roses: A Sister’s Memoir is #32 Denise.
If you did not receive an email from me, please send your full shipping address to me at 5minutesforbooks(at)GmailDOTcom.
Edited by Susan to Add:
You’ll love these videos featuring the book:
“Everyone Is Beautiful” Trailer
Excerpt from “Everyone Is Beautiful”
Filed under * Feature Columns, 5 Minutes for Books, Books, Contests by
Comments on 5 Minutes for Books — Everyone is Beautiful
Everyone is Beautiful @ 12:01 am
[...] Check out the following video for a taste of some excerpts, and then head over to 5 Minutes for Mom to read my complete review and enter to win one of three signed [...]
Beloved Mama @ 12:13 am
I would LOVE to win- I’ll head over to the review ;O)
Kelli @ 12:20 am
I need a book that I can get into! This one sounds great!
phyllis @ 12:21 am
i really enjoyed her first book (which i won on a blog…lol) so i’m sure i’ll enjoy this one too! hope i win:-) great review.
Robyn @ 1:08 am
I am reading her first book right now and have heard so many wonderful things about “Everyone is Beautiful” I would love to win a copy.
Susan @ 2:08 am
Isn’t this book AMAZING!!!!
You’ve gotta watch these videos on YouTube
Trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPwTrTaZRm0&feature=related
Excerpt from the Book:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVg8kupPO8Y
Amber G @ 6:15 am
I would really love to win this book!
debbie c @ 6:28 am
I’m always looking for a good book to read and a new author I haven’t read before. Hope I win, but, if not I at least I know a book to go get.
Thanks.
Breezy's Mom @ 6:37 am
Sounds like a good book. Would love to win a copy.
Angie @ 6:44 am
I love to read – this one sounds great!!!
Shirley Rogers @ 6:52 am
Sounds like a great book. I’d love to win it.
Heather @ 7:05 am
I would love this book too! I hope I win!
susan varney @ 7:21 am
love to read -hope to win
Jamie @ 7:44 am
Sounds like a great book!
Jamie @ 7:45 am
I’m a subscriber.
rachael s @ 7:52 am
i have heard so many wonderful things about this book, i would love to win!
katie @ 8:27 am
Loved the trailer, would love to win this book.
Sharon @ 8:30 am
This sounds like a good one! I’d love to read it.
she @ 8:55 am
i’m a book addict and this sounds like a great one! please count me in for the giveaway!
i’m actually giving away 15 books for ubp09 on my site! enter to win!
Corinne @ 9:03 am
I love winning books!!!
Jackie @ 9:13 am
This book sounds like a good one. Following on twitter in case you do a club.
Mandee @ 9:18 am
wow i’ve been looking for a new book and this one sounds great! i would love love love to win it!!
Heidi @ GGIP @ 9:23 am
I’d love to win!
randi oaklief @ 9:27 am
This sounds great!
Isabel @ 9:29 am
Sign me up. Thank you!
kris @ 9:30 am
Sounds like a great book!!!
corinne @ 9:37 am
Sounds great–and I LOVE that cupcake on the cover! I’d love to read it.
SANDY @ 9:39 am
would love to read this
Donna Slice @ 9:39 am
I would be thrilled to win this book. We moms rule.
SANDY @ 9:39 am
subscriber
SANDY @ 9:39 am
newsletter
Heather J. @ 10:12 am
I recently recommended this to a friend (without having read it myself) and she LOVED it. I’d love to be able to give her a signed copy, since hers was a library book.
Please enter me.
Heather J. @ 10:12 am
and I’m subscribed through Google Reader
Mama Zen @ 10:28 am
This sounds fabulous!
Mama Zen @ 10:29 am
I subscribe to the newsletter.
Betsey @ 10:33 am
getting this book one way or another!
Angela C. @ 10:33 am
I would love to win. Thanks for the giveaway.
accoupons at gmail dot com
Michael Capp @ 10:34 am
I’d love to win!
Beth @ 10:35 am
Sounds like a book every mom should read! An autographed copy would be awesome.
Andrea @ 10:42 am
This one is on my ‘To be read list’! I’d love to win!
Tami @ 10:47 am
Sounds like a great book. I would love to win and read it!
Occupation: Mommy @ 10:56 am
This sounds like a great book!
Deb M @ 11:14 am
This books sound perfect for getting us out of the “cabin fever after long winter at home with kids” mode. Thanks for a great giveaway!
Rhonda Struthers @ 11:32 am
I need a new book and this looks great.
Mozi Esmes Mommy @ 11:41 am
This looks interesting – I’d love to read it!
Stacie @ 11:50 am
I need a new book and it sounds great!
Lolli @ 12:03 pm
I’d love to win this book! It sounds great!
courtney @ 12:18 pm
this looks like a great book and great idea about a book club! would love to win!
Jenn @ 12:40 pm
Looks like a GREAT read!
Alicia Webster @ 12:43 pm
I have three kids also (a three-year-old, a two-year-old, and a one-year-old), and I am shocked at the differnce between the pre-marriage/kids “me” and the post-marriage/kids “me”. When I was single, I used to think poorly about moms who had clearly let themselves go. Now I am the embodiment of that particular sterotype, and I never would have predicted it. I give my family everything that I have, and there is nothing left for me. Do I think that is healthy? No. But the guilt that consumes me when I try to have a little “mommy time” makes it all pointless.
Alicia Webster
5webs@comcast.net
Megret @ 1:18 pm
I’d so love to read this book! Thanks!
Megret
musesofmegret(at)gmail(dot)com
Megret @ 1:19 pm
I’m also a subscriber
Karen B @ 1:20 pm
I have grand/greatgrandkids now and their moms are going through what I did back in the 60s-70s-80s. Would love to win and pass it on after I’ve read it!
Karen @ 2:17 pm
I can’t tell you the last book I read that wasn’t about parenting! I am very interested in this book and would love to win. If I don’t win, I may just visit Amazon and get it for myself. Thanks for offering this contest and for the chance to learn about a good read.
Susan @ 2:22 pm
This looks like a good book. Thanks!
Debbie @ 2:43 pm
Please include me in your giveaway.
Thanks
Debbie
debdesk9@verizon.net
Brandi @ 3:01 pm
I need a great book to read! I have been struggling finding great books at the library…it is hard for me to pick out a good book from all the masses
Rhonda @ 3:39 pm
Sounds like an excellent read!
IE Mommy @ 3:46 pm
The more I have to read, the happier I am! Wish me luck.
Sherry @ 4:29 pm
Sounds like a great read, thanks for the chance to win!
C. clemens @ 4:31 pm
would love to win
tracey @ 5:14 pm
Count me in!
kendra @ 5:21 pm
thanks for this opp!
James Jenkins @ 5:36 pm
wow
Krista @ 5:45 pm
I would love to read this book!
Martha C @ 5:51 pm
I am also the mother of three but my kids are getting older and I have found my way back into my line of work so I have a bit of myself back. I’d love to read this and share it with my book club. Thanks for that opportunity.
christopher h @ 5:59 pm
love to win this
Donna R @ 6:46 pm
I’d love to win this. Thanks for the contest.
Jen S. @ 6:56 pm
would love to win!
Jennifer Elliott @ 7:10 pm
This looks awesome, thanks for the chance!
shannon Baas @ 8:08 pm
neat book.
Denise @ 8:33 pm
I’d love to read it, thanks!
Danielle @ 8:53 pm
This looks like a great read. I’d love to win it!
Lucia @ 9:17 pm
Another great review, Dawn. Would love to win this book…keeping my fingers crossed.
Holly @ 9:23 pm
This sounds like such a great book. I would love to win a copy.
Shannon H @ 9:24 pm
I’d love to read this, so please count me in. Thanks!
Jen @ 10:09 pm
Sounds like a book I could relate to!!
angie @ 10:16 pm
sounds like lots of fun from a great book
shopannies@yahoo.com
MommyAmy @ 11:54 pm
I’d love to win! Sounds like a great book! I’m gonna recommend it to my book club.
Faythe @ 12:00 am
This sounds like a great read. something I need at this time to bring me back into basic sanity! Is that possible anymore??? I figure laughter & sounds like I will relate to the character will fill the spot!
Everyone is Beautiful sounds just right for me!
thank you !
Tanna Moddison @ 12:04 am
I find myself reading more lately, and this sounds like the perfect book to add to my growing (again) collection! Thank you!
Adrian Lamont @ 1:07 am
This is great, count me in.
Brook @ 2:52 am
This book looks wonderful, I would love to win!
Meredith Rogen @ 3:35 am
I heard this is an amazing book, I’m looking forward to reading it!
edj @ 7:45 am
Ah yes. I can agree with that title for everyone but myself. I’d love to read this. Please enter me. Thanks.
Alice C @ 7:46 am
sounds great
Nicole @ Heres The Diehl @ 8:23 am
This sounds like a great book! Thanks for the giveaway!
Nicole @ Heres The Diehl @ 8:24 am
i subscribe to your feed.
Nicole @ Heres The Diehl @ 8:24 am
i have your button in my sidebar.
Alexia @ 9:13 am
I’d love to win a copy! It sounds like a great story.
Teal @ 10:04 am
This book sounds like just the thing I need right now! Great review!
Mary Ward @ 10:49 am
I read her first book and just loved it. I’d really love a copy of this one!
tanya @ 10:57 am
This sounds like a wonderful book!
twincere[at]hotmail.com
Susan C @ 11:10 am
You have definitely sold me. I would love to read this book, it sounds like just what I need right now!
Linda Chaput @ 11:16 am
Thanks for the contest.I hope i win this one.I am a subscriber.
Nancy @ 1:22 pm
This sounds wonderful, please enter me!
Angela J @ 1:30 pm
I’m always looking for the next book to read.
Tarah @ 1:53 pm
This sounds like it should be my next read!
Susan Smith @ 4:07 pm
sounds like a good book
Marla @ 4:11 pm
This sounds like a really good book I would love to read. Please enter me in the contest. Thanks!
koinonia572001@yahoo.com
Gina Stratos @ 4:55 pm
Really does sounds like a great book
gkstratos@yahoo.com
Jason Nickolay @ 5:17 pm
This looks like a great read. Thanks for the chance
Becky @ 8:01 pm
This book sounds wonderful. I would love to read it. Great giveaway – signed copy! Thank you!
Ellen C. @ 8:28 pm
I’d love to give this book a read. Thanks for the chance.
Djp @ 8:32 pm
great, i need a new read
Christina G. @ 8:43 pm
Sounds like a great book. Thanks for the giveaway!
Gabriel J. @ 10:29 pm
Please, enter me, great prize!!!
Faythe @ 10:37 pm
I love your review.
I am a new subscriber to the e-newletter.
Evelyn @ 11:57 am
looks good
SHARON @ 3:17 pm
i’d l♥ve to win this book .. sounds like a great read!
mary bailey @ 9:39 pm
I’ve often wondered if I was alone in marveling in the beauty of my soft, post-baby, squishy belly. This books sounds like one I will adore. I’d love to win it!
Marianna @ 11:32 am
Looks like a great book, I’d love to win!
victoria lynch @ 12:20 pm
I just read my last new book and this looks like one that I would enjoy
thanks for the giveaway!!!!!!!!
quiltingreader @ 1:33 pm
Sounds like a good book.
Terra Heck @ 5:09 pm
I’d like to read this book. Thanks.
Vicky Boackle @ 8:10 pm
i would like to read this.
Pamela S @ 1:06 am
Thanks so much for the giveaway!! I love all kinds of books and would love to read this.
Steve Scott @ 8:56 am
I need to feed my wife’s reading addiction.
Sarah @ 11:25 am
enter me!
Jessica @ 6:20 pm
This sounds like a great book from what I have read on it. Would love to read this one.
jesskaufman{at}hotmail{dot}com
Christina @ 6:42 pm
This sounds like a great book and a cautionary tale (that all women should remember) about giving to others too much and losing one’s sense of self in the process.
Sara Amos @ 7:46 pm
This would be a great book to share with my sister who is a high school English teacher. I would love to read it also
Jean F @ 7:47 pm
Its sad that women spend so much time judging themselves by unobtainable standards-of beauty, accomplishment…
Bryanna P. @ 12:25 am
Awesome book… =D
Molly Capel @ 12:32 am
I would love to read this book. It sounds really different than what I normally read.
Kristen Hendricks @ 2:52 am
I would love to win this book so I can read it. It sounds like the type of book that I could relate to so much. This is a great giveaway. Thanks.
J Chaborek @ 3:51 am
We just got a new condo, would love to read this while at the side of the pool. Thanks for the giveaway!
Diane Baum @ 8:20 am
sounds like an interesting read
Amber B @ 9:06 am
Reading unlocks the mind? ambpool(at)hotmail.com
veronica sandberg @ 10:30 am
want to win this
Samantha Miller @ 10:30 am
This book sounds really good. Thanks!
Hesper F @ 11:00 am
Looks like a fantastic read!
KarenPr @ 12:21 pm
Great contest, please enter me.
KarenPr @ 12:22 pm
I’m also a newsletter subscriber. Thanks.
Ellie W @ 12:28 pm
Sounds like a great book. Thanks for the giveaway. Please enter me.
nancy waychoff @ 1:47 pm
my 12 yr old has too read 10 books a month for her reading class i hope this will be one of them
Karen Gonyea @ 3:39 pm
Count me in
Ed Nemmers @ 3:56 pm
Great book cover!
Brenda Park @ 4:05 pm
This sounds like a great book, and your review was awesome too. Thanks for the chance to win a copy.
Belinda Shaw @ 4:36 pm
Your review really peaked my interest in this book! I’d really enjoy reading it!
Terrisa Swift @ 4:46 pm
I would love to win, never one anything
shawna f @ 5:46 pm
Would love to win!
nancy waychoff @ 6:36 pm
i like he book cover
Brenda S. @ 7:18 pm
This book sounds like a good one. Thanks!
Candie L @ 8:02 pm
I have been disappointed lately with the books I have read. I need something that will absolutely capture me and make me feel lost. Thank you
Kathy @ 8:14 pm
looks like a great book
Kathy @ 8:14 pm
subscriber
Wendy Wallach @ 8:15 pm
always looking for a new,good read.
madamerkf at aol dot com
Janice Wright @ 8:17 pm
This looks like an excellent book. Thanks for the wonderful giveaway!
Stephanie @ 8:39 pm
This sounds like a good read!!
Ashley @ 10:32 pm
i would love to win this! it looks like a great book to read
Rachel Newman @ 11:07 pm
I love losing the real world and entering the world in a book. Thanks for this opportunity!
ladyspy79@aol.com
Betty C @ 12:06 am
I’d love to win this. I need new reading material.
Renee G @ 12:59 am
I’d love to read this.
rsgrandinetti(at)Yahoo(dot)com
Robert Moseley @ 2:25 am
This sounds like a good one!
Chrysa @ 2:35 am
Looks great! Thanks for the giveaway!
Donna C. @ 7:51 am
Looks like a great book.
Lily Kwan @ 9:31 am
Please enter me into the contest. Thanks!
R Hicks @ 10:46 am
Looks like a great read!
Cassandra @ 11:13 am
I would love to win–thanks!
Veronica Garrett @ 12:01 pm
This sounds like a great book. I would love to win it.
Jack Davis @ 12:14 pm
I really want to win this book for my daughter who loves to read! And who know she may share it with me! Thanks
Gina Benway @ 1:10 pm
thanks for the contest. I just love getting into new books!
Timothy Sternberg @ 1:20 pm
I would Love to win.
Paula J hephner @ 1:51 pm
runnin out of stuff to read, it sounds wonderful!
Renee We @ 1:52 pm
It is an ever changing world that we live in. We change too.
Marcy Strahan @ 2:30 pm
THIS SOUNDS LIKE SUCH AN INSPIRING BOOK!
I WOULD LOVE TO READ IT!
I COULD TRULY USE A DOSE OF INSPIRATION RIGHT NOW!
Meghan @ 2:45 pm
This book sounds simply fabulous!!!!!
Cheryl F. (The Lucky Ladybug) @ 3:04 pm
I’d love to read this
*Thanks* for the giveaway!
dorothy l @ 3:09 pm
sounds like a great book
Beverly M @ 4:49 pm
This sounds like a book, I would enjoy reading. Thanks for having the contest!
Heather @ 8:08 pm
Sounds like a great book!
amy h @ 8:22 pm
This book sounds wonderful!! WOW!! Thanks for the chance to win!!
Mandie McBride @ 8:25 pm
I would love to read this one! Sounds really good.
Esther @ 8:33 pm
I would love to read this book!