Customer Reviews

Doing Good

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Pamela Morsi has been tied with Lavyrle Spencer as my favorite author ever since reading, GARTERS. She's excellent at making everyday believable charaters that you can care about. This one proves to be the same way. I enjoyed the book, but prefer more of a romance story, like in her previous books.

This story is just what the title states. Jane keeping her promise to God, of "doing good" the rest of her life, if he'd let her live. You get to follow Jane Lofton's growth, in family issues, charity efforts, and new friendships. Jane doesn't actually find romantic love until the last quarter of the book.

This isn't a book I'll be reading again, as I've done with her other books. Pamela Morsi does know how to tell an interesting story though. I'd suggest buying a used copy or checking it out from the library if, like me, you prefer more of a romance. I highly recommend buying some of her other books HEAVEN SENT, COURTING MISS HATTIE, GARTERS & THE LOVE CHARM. I've read all of these several times.

I am a reader of both historical and contemporary romance who has found myself reading even more contemporaries than historicals as of late. I am also a huge fan of Pamela Morsi's (her book GARTERS makes my Top 10 of all time reads). Since I like contemporary novels and really do enjoy first-person narratives, I was happy to see Morsi give this a go. And I wasn't disappointed. I very much enjoyed this foray into Jane's mixed up world, and every much enjoyed Pamela Morsi's foray into contemporary women's fiction. Although there is romance in the book, I would definitely call this book women's fiction as the romance isn't the main focus. Would appeal to fans of Jennifer Crusie, Millie Criswell - both of whom use comedic relief and a great turn of phrase to entertain as well as tell a good story, but think readers who enjoy books by mainstream women's fiction authors such as Barbara Delinsky, Jane Heller, and others will also enjoy DOING GOOD.

The book starts off with Jane Lafton, a woman who is "doing good" as in quite alright, thank you, who got into a car accident. She is saved with barely a scratch, but her scare got her thinking about her life, and how she wants to change it. With this resolution the heavy gears of change are set into motion, first slowly, then, as gears are wont to do, the changes in her life become much more profound.

This was not the most well-written book I have ever read, there were not a huge amount of fancy prose or spell-binding cliff-hangers, nor was this a romance in the true sense of the word. However, this was definitely a book that challenges you to take a good look at your life, and, even if you think you're "doing pretty good", as Jane Lafton thought of herself, there's always room for a small shift in priorities. I can honestly say that Pamela Morsi made me take a hard look at my own life, not to say I was exactly like that, but thinking through life, and growing, is what life is all about. This book had a tremendous amount of insights that I've never come across before in a book, romance or otherwise, and you can tell that Ms. Morsi really thought through her subject matter very deeply before writing this novel. I've read some other books with similar themes, with the protagonist going through a near-death experience and changing her life, but usually it transforms into a divorce, a career change, etc. Although Jane does go through those things, it is portrayed very differently, as a natural progression of her personal growth rather than a desire to actually change her life. Ms. Morsi also changed my views on divorce - until now I never thought there was such a thing as a GOOD divorce, I always thought that a divorce should be fought no matter what, but this book changed my mind. I am actually quite an opinionated person, and a pretty critical one, too - it takes a good deal to impress me. "Doing Good" impressed me very much.

If you're looking to change your life - even a little bit - you simply can't get a better how-to manual than "Doing Good". Thank you, Pamela Morsi.

Wow! What a different type of book. I had picked this up at the used book store a couple months ago, and it went to the bottom of the pile. Well, when I ran out of stuff to read I grabbed this.

The back with the divorce and everything kind of put me off. This book is really fun and worthwhile. I think that it should appeal to almost everyone.

A selfish socialite gets into a car accident and an elderly man from a nearby nursing home saves her from iminent death, and after meeting the guy, you knew it had to be from up above. While trapped in the car, she begs God to do better in her life and to do good things.

The car changes her from a selfish social butterfly to someone who looks more practically at the world, and how she can help. It was a very feel good story, and had some humorous moments. It walked her realistically through a divorce whose time had come to dealing with and finding a balance with her 19 year old teenager. It also found her discovering who she was as a person.

I think most women can relate to this book. Definately get it!!

This is one of the best books I've read in a long time!
Jane Lofton thinks she has it all. She'd grown up as a nobody, wanting to be a somebody. Now she belongs to the country club, she drives a fabulous car, and she's married to a rich man from good lineage. But when an accident almost takes her life she makes a promise to God that she feels she has to keep. Her journey brings her to the realization her life hasn't been perfect, but it's never too late to change.
Pamela Morsi not only gave me a wonderful book that I couldn't put down until I read the last page, but she made me realize that even though I may never see the end result, little things do make a difference.

Not having read Morsi before, I was unencumbered by expectations of a pure romance novel. What I discovered was a very readable story about a very likable character struggling to grow into the person she would like to be. Having made a promise to God, under extreme circumstances, to do good for the rest of her life, Jane finds that to be easier said than done. Her idea of doing good doesn't always work. But, persistance pays off and, despite some trite coincidences in the story line, the author gives us an enjoyable yet thought provoking woman's story.

I love Pamela Morsi books and was skeptical about an contemporary novel. I loved it. The transformation of the main character is fascinating to witness. She goes from a self-centered snob to a caring, giving, thoughtful person. It's interesting to see how the people in her life react to the changes she is experiencing. This book is really a good read.

When she was Jane Domschke growing up in impoverished Sunnyside, she had one goal and that was to get out of the wrong side of town. Jane succeeds by marrying into a wealthy family. She and her spouse David have one child, Brynn away at school, and Jane becomes a five million-dollar realtor. Her world seems perfect though her husband cheats and her daughter disrespects her whenever they talk.

Everything changes for Jane when an 18-wheeler tanker crosses the median of the highway and crashes into her car. Jane, trapped with smoke and gas all around her, prays to God that if she is rescued she swears that she will do good things from now on. Septuagenarian Chester Durbin unexplainably saves Jane's life. Jane makes efforts to do good deeds, but learns that good is in the eye of the beholder and that her intentions rarely pan out as expected. Still even with David leaving her and Brynn fleeing with her therapist for Europe, Jane rehabilitates herself with the help of Scott Robbins born on her side of the tracks.

DOING GOOD is an engaging contemporary morality tale that the audience will relish because of the complexity of the world that Jane is just beginning to explore. The story line shows how difficult and complicated society is as Jane's attempts to perform good deeds often go astray ending with questionable results. This includes the seemingly simple, symbolic and innocent act of giving Snickers to Chester. DOING GOOD is a great tale that deserves wide reading as Pamela Morsi demonstrates that sound bytes or even hard work do not necessarily solve social issues.

Harriet Klausner

I'm been a fan of reading, anything but romance. With Doing Good, I found the novel presents everything that happened to Jane in a chronologically smooth order. It was a quick read and worthwhile your time and attention. Though fun as it is, I sill found the sudden change and acceptance to change in Jane's character very unrealistic in the present world we live in. It is very hard for me to imagine a successful and wealthy woman would change from being refined into a selfless lady, and even in love with a handicapped man. The illustration of Jane's relationship with her daughter is also very weak, as the author didn't really get to the core of their trembling situation, but kept on repeating that Jane was the cause for the failure.
After all, I had fun reading the novel, and may be reading some others of Pamela Morsi in the near future!

This book is less plot driven and more about people and the way they interact - not my usual cup of tea. But I actually enjoyed the book, and it kept me reading. The main character was intriguing, and while there was a touch of the mysterious (perhaps supernatural), it wasn't so much that the book couldn't stand on a logical basis. The relationship between mother and daughter was very vexing, though, and that is an aspect of the book that probably should have been toned down (though I suppose such an over-the-top relationship dynamic might be plausible in this day and age) to be truly likable and believable. Overall, a decent character study, if nothing else, and it can be read either as fluff or substance, depending how you take it. And if we could all be motivated by the "seven levels" of giving and earning our "points," well, that would be an improvement to society!