Customer Reviews

Between Friends

5 star:		(63)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Once an avid romance reader, these days with a few exceptions I hardly ever read from this genre anymore. And while I was familiar with the name Debbie Macomber I never did read any of her books. But when I came across Between Friends by Debbie Macomber while browsing at the library and read the dust jacket I immediately became interested in this title. I am, a real fan of books written in the epistolary form. Books whose stories are presented as letters or diary and journal entries and today may even be e-mail correspondence. My favorite titles written as epistolary novels include A Woman of Independent Means, Between Heaven and Sky, These is My Words and more recently Dear Stranger, Dearest Friend. And to this list I can now add Between friends which has a permanent place on my favorite books list of 2002.

The year is 1948 when Lesley Adamski and Jillian Lawton are born in Pine Ridge, Washington. And while they become life long friends, their families couldn't be more different. Lesley's parents marry after she is conceived and there never seems to be enough money to care for her and eventually her five siblings. Her father who works on and off in the mines enjoys drinking a bit too much while Lesley's mother works hard to keep the family together. With excellent grades Lesley hopes to attend college until history has a way of repeating itself and Lesley finds herself marrying her high school boyfriend.

Jillian's life is in sharp contrast to Lesley. As the only child of a Judge and his wife
Jillian is afforded a life filled with a beautiful home, wonderful trips, pretty clothes and her own car at 16. Jillian is able to attend college in New York and becomes a fast paced lawyer although a high school romance will leave her heart broken and unable to move on with other men.

Throughout the years, through good times, bad times, victories and tragedies the friendship of these two women help to anchor and sustain them no matter what life throws their way. They manage to always be there for one another even when they are miles apart from one another. At first we watch them as young girls writing notes in class to one another, then as teenagers writing in their journals, as young wives and mothers in letters crisscrossing the country and finally as middle aged women corresponding through electronic mail. We are also privy to other pertinent correspondence in their lives like graduation invitations, wedding invitations, birth

announcements, telegrams from overseas and obituary notices. And as we read the lives of these two women lay out before our eyes and we get to know them as if they are our family.

I really loved the characters from this book and the time period when it was set. From the two women's writings the author also touches on many historical events. From the civil rights movement to the assassinations of the 60's to the tragedy of 9/11/01, this book is a wonderful representation of what it was like to grow up in the 60's For me, a child of the 60's and the same age as Lesley and Jillian, this book was a walk down memory land which I won't ever forget.

This is by far one of the best books I've read in a long time. I loved last year's THURSDAYS AT EIGHT, but this time Ms. Macomber outdid herself. BETWEEN FRIENDS is the story of the lifelong friendship between Jillian and Lesley - The story is told uniquely through the use of letters, journals entries, emails (later on in their lives), wedding & birth announcements, newspaper articles - even the occasional gas station receipt! You follow Jillian and Lesley from the day they were born (through the birth announcements of their parents) all the way up through the summer of 2002. What is so wonderful and makes this novel worth reading again and again, is how Ms. Macomber uses actual historic events to tell this story and move the friends through life. You will read about how Vietnam touched both girls and had a lasting affect on Jillian; how they each felt and reacted to the assassinations of JFK, Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy; what their feelings were about Women's Lib; connecting to each other via email and going "online"; even the tragic events of Sept. 11th are briefly touched upon (only wisely, Ms. Macomber spent little time on this subject and only used the event to explain the feelings of the two women today). You will see Lesley and Jillian experience life & death, the birth of children, loves of their lives entering and leaving; and the joys and heartache that see them through 50 years of friendship. You will witness not only the love Jillian and Lesley have for each other, but the love for their family and friends and the love these people have for each of them. Sometimes funny, plenty reminiscent, but mostly heartfelt, this story will stay with you forever and I guarantee you will return to this book again and again over the years if for no other reason, then to relive some point and time in our history that may have had a similar affect on you and your life as it had on Lesley and Jillian. Bravo Debbie Macomber - it will be difficult to top this one! (but I know you'll try!)

I loved this book! I loved everything about it, the format, the women, the secondary characters, all of it. This is Jillian and Lesley's story about friendship and changing times. Formatted as diary/journal entries, notes, letters, newspaper clippings, and e-mails, we see these two women from the time they were born (1948), all through their school days, marriages, wars, children, lost loves, acts of terrorism, and medical scares.

Though they are both so different (Jillian's family is very wealthy, while Lesley's is just the opposite) they manage to always be their for one another. Even after Jillian moves from Washington State to New York for school, and eventually her job.

Lesley got pregnant and married young (to a dead-beat lowlife) and never left their little town, while Jillian was off to the city for school and big dreams. There was not a part of this book I didn't like. I read it every chance I could get, and now that I'm finished, I'm mailing it to my best friend back home. I definitely recommend this book for women, and I can't wait to read more from Ms. Macomber!

this book will bring back many memories. Written using letters, newspaper clippings, post cards and e-mails, it follows the friendship of Jillian Lawton and Lesley Adamski from birth to the present day.

It chronicles all the changes we've gone through in telling Jillian and Lesley's stories. Parents, marriages, children, bad times, good times - they're all here. And through it all, their friendship endures.

The format is so very easy to read - Jillian and Lesley are likeable (for the most part) - neither one is perfect so it is very true to life.

If you grew up in the 50's - or have a best friend from childhood - or both!, this is a wonderful read!! You'll have to buy an extra copy for your friend cuz' its a keeper!

I normally do not read the genre that Debbie Macomber dominates, but I 'discovered' her wonderful stories, good writing, and always interesting 3 diminsional characters. And, I became hooked on Macomber, especially her Cedar Cove series.
Between Friends is a wonderful story that kept me turning the pages long after bed-time. Beautiful Jillian and Smart Lesley are as opposite as can be, and that's exactly why become and stay best friends throughout their life. Diary Excepts, Newspaper clippings, letters, as well as 'real time' scenes propel the reader forward at amazing speed with tremdous concern for the girls, who blossom into young women, mothers, and finally to professional middle aged women.
Problems, Very Big and small, do not exist exclusively in the poor side of town as Jillian and Lesley reveal their stories to us readers and to each other. Their laughter, tears, heartaches, joys, triumps, defeats become ours from the first page to the last satisfying page.

The two women were born in 1948 in Pine Ridge, Washington. The location, the year, and their gender are about the only things these two women have in common. So how could Jillian Lawton and Lesley Adamski remain best friends and confidantes into the new millennium?

Jillian, the daughter of wealthy parents attended college while Lesley an unwanted child who forced her parents to marry repeated the same mistake as her own mother by having two children while still a teen. Yet from the Eisenhower through Desert Storm and the Clinton scandals they exchange first letters and later email as they describe what is happening to each of them during the various decades of the latter half of the twentieth century.

BETWEEN FRIENDS is an insightful look at five decades of America through the eyes of two friends living totally different lifestyles as the country goes about its changing business. The story line is an excellent look at the times starting with their childhood during the I like Ike decade to their teen years hindered by Nam and Watergate and finally to the naughty adult era of the eighties and nineties. Lesley and Jillian constantly communicate the "thrill of victory and the agony of defeat". These two wonderful female characters empower readers to see Debbie Macomber at her best as the dynamic author provides a powerful look at the American half century reminiscent of Billy Joel's tune, We Didn't Start the Fire, but with much more depth.

Harriet Klausner

There isn't any thing about this book that I didn't like. It grabbed my interest from the very beginning and had me reading it until the wee hours of the night, I just could not put it down. I fell in love with the characters and felt as though I were a part of their friendship. I especially loved the format of this book: journal entries, letters, etc.
I highly recommend this book!

Between Friends is an excellent book about just that...between friends. Two women from different backgrounds & lifestyles are best friends and we see they never lose contact with each other. They keep each other informed thru letters, invitations, announcements, phone calls and eventually e-mail. Whether their news was exciting, sad or just a quick update on every day events, they were compelled to share everything. I loved the style in which the book was written....personal journals, postcards, letters, etc. making it a quick read (I finished this book in a day). I also enjoyed it because it reminded me alot of my mother and her best friend. Whether you are young or old, this book is one I feel anyone would enjoy. It's not too often that I read a book and it moves me to tears. If you haven't read it yet, what are you waiting for? Buy it or borrow a copy....you won't be sorry!!

When I first started reading I was concerned about the style in which the book was written but I found that I just could not put the book down! It only took me two days to read! It was cleverly written and I really enjoyed both getting to know the people of Pine Ridge Washington,and at the same time reliving some of the most life defining times of history. I was amazed at recalling all I myself have lived through! When I was not even half through, I already felt as if I was part of the close knit circle of friends and family. As if I knew each character personally.

... why did I buy a book written like this? I was ready for some light reading, but how could I get into a story told through letters, notes, journal entries, clippings, and (how refreshing!) email? Well what a surprise I got. And what a fun re-cap of events of the latter half of the 1900s!

The book was quite engaging, and although too fast a read (character development somewhat jeopardized), it was unique. To the reviewer who complained about it's predictability, I'm going to counter with the assumption that the predictability was not distracting, but entirely intentional. We were supposed to know what was going to happen. Readers can appreciate the characters' innocence of the future - the events that we know in our past. And Ms. Macomber did a wonderful job of achieving this paradox. I will be reading more from her.