Amy Bloom's Away: Thalia Book Club Audiobook (Unabridged)

" Superb. beautifully written, great characters, deeply engaging story. "

" Great characters, an interesting but fun read. "

" Beautifully written and very movie. A rare book for me as it was often dark and I still loved it. "

" a book about a journey of one woman from America to Russia with crass language throughout "

" I felt compelled to finish this book, but it was a book I thought several times of abandoning. Early on, the reference to Nanking was jarring (both being historically incorrect and an unusual writerly interjection with third person omniscient point of view). The book's narrative structure was strange, but it wasn't the book's main problem for me. What bothered me most was the inconsistent characterization. I frequently found the characters, or their actions, implausible. I didn't trust the use of research in the book. "

" Unlike most of the books I read. Bought it at Costco for the colorful cover. Lillian gets into a lot of very strange situations. I dont really like narrator's that know things that the characters couldnt possibly know. Other than that I liked her and enjoyed the book. "

" Bleh. Totally disappointed and weirded out. Sorry, I didn't like the sotry or the characters. I skimmed in the end I was so bored of it. "

" Lillian Leyb certainly had an interesting life. It is hard of us in this day and age to conceive of the hardships she endured to try to find her daughter. And when she instead found the love of her life, she almost lost him, or really lost him? The end kind of left me wondering. "

" I really enjoyed this book. You learn much about life as an immigrant in the Lower East Side, traveling across the country during the time period, as well as the sexual mores of the time. "

" Can't quite get into the plot. "

" Definitely "heartbreaking and romantic" as stated in the synopsis. "

" Great book! A must read. "

" Can you have a happy ending with no happy ending? Liked the realism of the main character. She did what she needed to do to survive as did others in the book. The portrait of early NY also interesting though not comprehensive; she leaves to soon. "

" I didn't care for this book. "

" I like my books to be straightforward. A to B to C etc. I felt this book was all over the map, especially at the end, where it was hard to tell what was true and what was not. "

" not blown away...thought I would be by the hype. beginning and end were good. too much stuff in the middle... "

" Not quite a bodice-ripper, but close. Historical fiction of survival and longing, essentially a romance. I stayed up late devouring this novel, so eager to escape into the dirty and rough landscape. "

" shying away from rules but not taboos, bloom is engaging as always "

" It started off well enough and seemed to have potential to be a good story. Unfortunately, it suddenly got a bit stupud and the rest of it was quite painful to read. A waste of time. "

" Powerful descriptions; fast-paced plot with fascinating characters "

" An absolutely enornous "little" book. Amazing style and scope. You will love Lillian so much it will hurt. "

" Amy Bloom is my favorite short story author on earth. Why she cannot write a novel is beyond me. "

" Why have I never before read Amy Bloom's work? A magnificent, sweeping tale of a woman/ mother demonstrating amazing resilience and enduring hope. From the very first page, I found myself swept away into Lilian's world, and I did not depart until I closed the cover. A beautifully written story. "

" didn't care for the language or innuendos "

" Ms. Bloom writes beautifully, and the story of these characters is wonderfully told. I especially enjoyed the historical settings and travels Ms. Bloom described. "

" Strange. I liked this book. But I didn't love it until I finished it. Strong character development and lots of history. Loved it! "

" The peripheral characters had more personality than the main character. Depressing, but not in a moving way. Disappointing. "

" I really liked the fact the author let you know the outcome of each of the characters who pass through Lillian's life as she moves through hers. It was very satifying. "

" Hailed as a "literary triumph" by the New York Times, "it is also a classic page-turner, one that delivers a relentlessly good read." I couldn't agree more! "

" I gave this book one star only because I admire anyone who gets a book published. The writing never drew me in - the prose was always awkward and never flowed. Could have been a great story. "

" Never did finish reading the book. I made it half way but I always wanted to pick something else up rather than this story. I found it depressing. "

" amy bloom manages to write a sad and difficult story humorously .Lillian just does not think of herself as a victim even though so much has gone wrong for her. Then she makes a brave difficult decision and though we dont see how she can succeed we really hope she does. "

" Can't remember much about it, but I do remember that I found the ending very satisfactory, when all the way through I wondered how she could possibly make it turn out right. "

" I really enjoyed this book until about page 100. After that it becomes a bunch of different fragmented stories containing the same main character. The ending is unclear as to weather it is a delusion or reality. "