Customer Reviews

Club Sandwich

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

In the opening chapter of CLUB SANDWICH, Ivy Schneider is off and running... her mouth.

"No one's ever accused me of being balanced. If childhood maps out future beliefs and actions, it's no wonder I veer to the right when walking down the sidewalk. If I spin, I twirl right. If I dance, my right foot leads. Perhaps my left-handedness dictates this bent, but I know better. I even look conservative with my understated pageboy, my Keds, and my sundresses. Now if I chose orthopedic sandals, I'd look like a member of PETA. And dreadlocks on this stark white woman? That might land me a delegate position to the Democratic National Convention."

In this rambling narrative style, Ivy continues to wax reminiscent about the Cold War, growing up in a fundamentalist Christian church, her mom's virtues, Stephen Tyler, and hot baths. In one fell swoop, author Lisa Samson provides a neatly developed character whose life is anything but. She's a mother of three, part-owner of the family's restaurant, and a columnist for the local paper. Her mother is elderly, her no-good father only comes around for free meals, her brother is a womanizer, and her sister is self-absorbed. Oh yeah. And her husband is never home. For the last three years he's spent ten months of the year on the road as a singer.

"I'm a little mad right now," Ivy tells us, also still in the first chapter. "I haven't heard from my husband, Rusty, in three days. Granted, he's busy singing tenor for a traveling gospel barbershop quartet, Heavenly Harmonies, but would it be so hard to turn on the blinkin' cell phone before the concert begins and just say hi?

Frankly, I'll take anger over dear any day. At least anger buffs you up.

Lemons out of lemonade. Hmm Well, let's see now. Three days incommunicado may just equal that new light fixture I want for the front porch. Oh yeah. Drink up, Rusty. I just won this one."

Ivy may have "won" that one, but her busy (and lonely) life is quickly stretched to the breaking point. Her mother falls and begins to suffer from dementia, so she moves in with the Ivy brood. Then the no-good dad needs a place to stay. And, wouldn't you know, so does Rusty's dad. Before you know it, Chez Schneider is a glorified boarding house and Ivy finds herself firmly sandwiched between serving the needs of her parents and the needs of her children.

It's from this predicament that the book derives its name. Samson says she was inspired to write the book, in part, because she too was caught in this sandwich for four years. But while Ivy does form a support group of women in similar situations, these characters remain in the margins, probably to the detriment of the book. It would have been nice to see and know more of them. As it is, the major players are Ivy and her family members. And Mitch, the old flame she considers reigniting in her husband's absence.

Some will find the narrative flow, which often resembles an ongoing dialogue between Ivy and herself, engaging. I found it scattered, an inadequate shortcut to character development. But the topics that CLUB SANDWICH tackles --- adultery, economic strain on marriages, caring for parents and kids, handling adult siblings, etc. --- are especially pertinent to many women today. Figuring out how to be a servant without getting stepped on is tricky, and Samson explores these tensions with compassion and humor.

--- Reviewed by Lisa Ann Cockrel

CLUB SANDWICH is a great picker upper read and discuss with your girlfriends novel. Women everywhere regardless of age or marital status will identify with IVY in this Approval Addiction generation.

Join IVY and the other women of Club Sandwich as they forge a friendship and rock solid faith while learning firsthand the reasons why they all need each other to survive.

Enjoy CLUB SANDWICH today!

Happy Reading!

Reviewed by Marina Woods for [...]

In the Baltimore suburbs, Ivy Schneider finds life overwhelming. She writes a newspaper column, works at the family restaurant, raises three kids including one in diapers, insures her widowed mom gets her dialysis treatment and has no time for herself. Her spouse Rusty tours with the Heavenly Harmonics gospel barbershop quartet and is away from their bed quite often, failing to accompany her to her twentieth high school reunion.

At the end of her rope, Ivy feels all alone and squeezed from all ends. She places an ad for other individuals trapped as the sandwich generation to contact her. To her surprise several folks do share her feeling that the world is collapsing on her. Together they form CLUB SANDWICH to help one another cope. A stunned Rusty cannot believe his wife depends on strangers rather than him, but how he acts now that Ivy has formed a support group remains to be seen.

This is a deep family drama that centers on the pressure of being the sandwich generation struggling to care for ailing parents and nurturing children at the same time. Ivy is a terrific superwoman feeling the weight of the world with no, one including her spous,e to help her balance her responsibilities until she forms the club with similarly "trapped" soul mates. Lisa Samson provides a deep psychological character study that showcases a growing phenomenon.

Harriet Klausner

Good book, easy read, especially since this is a place in life where many of us are right now. Food for thought.

This book is the best and funniest christian book that I've read in
years. Iv'e already raised my family but if you are raising up children and feel like the world is on your shoulders, you won't after you read
the life of Ive Schneider, she can handle most everything in life and with
humor besides. I would recommend this to all women young and older.

Sampson can pull a reader into the story so well. The characters are well rounded. It took a me a chapter or two to really get into it- once I was, I was sad it ended.

I love Lisa Samson's books. Even though her heroines lead lives that are nothing like mine she still manages to find the beat of my heart and put it down in words so I can clearly see my strengths and my flaws. Reading her books is not only entertaining, it is rewarding and cathartic!

With a son off to college and ailing parents across the country, the theme of the book hit home. I love Lisa Samson and would purchase a Lisa journal of blank pages if need be.

Go out and pick up this book. Start your own club. But tell everyone about Lisa Samson and her terrific new book!

Women everywhere are feeling overwhelmed, overworked, and under-appreciated. Many of these women are caught in the sandwich generation. They are caring both for their young children and their aging parents. This book is written for women everywhere but especially for the women of this generation.

Ivy doesn't know if she can give anymore. She's the only responsible child in her family and takes care of her mom, dad, father-in-law, three kids, helps run a business and writes novels. Her husband is in a traveling barbershop quartet and only comes home a few weeks out of the year. Her brother and sister are not willing to take on any added responsibilities when their mom gets sick and they are constantly guilting Ivy into being the family savior. As Ivy reaches her breaking point she finds that she is not alone and begins finding other women in her situation. As they become friends she realizes that it's okay to say no occasionally and that she can't be superwoman all the time.

The beginning of the book is an introduction of Ivy and the strange world she grew up in. It's very brash and not very relatable. I was tempted to stop reading after the first few pages as I didn't think I would like the book. I was glad that I did stick with it in the end. Once we get the opening introductions out of the way the writing gets much better and the book doesn't jump around quite as much as it did in the beginning. Ivy is very whiney throughout the majority of the book and she could be very annoying. She also seemed pretty real even in her whiney state. We all complain in our head at times. I wished she had gotten over her whining as it detracted from the story. Also, the book didn't really develop the club sandwich women very much which is surprising since the book's title is based around that group. They were a minor part of the storyline and I think it would have made the book much better if they had been a greater part of the story.

Despite these minor flaws I really got pulled into the book and found myself caring for the characters. I wanted everything to work out for Ivy and her family and wanted to know the outcome of each story lines. It's a good book for anyone who feels stretched by their families.

I was very pleased with the condition of the book and also the prompt shipment of the book.