THE GIRLS [Import] [Paperback]

LORI LANSENS (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: VIRAGO PRESS LTD; New Ed edition (2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1844083667
• ISBN-13: 978-1844083664
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 7.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (167 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,672,916 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lori Lansens was born and raised in Chatham, Ontario, a small Canadian town with a remarkable history and a collection of eccentric characters. Living with her family in southern California now, she could not resist the pull of her fictitious 'Baldoon County' when she set out to write The Wife's Tale. She took the journey, along with her main character, from Canada to the Pacific Coast of America, where she enjoys the sunshine, and has learned a thing or two about transformation. She has written several screenplays and is the author of two previous novels, The Girls and Rush Home Road.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

80 of 86 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enchanting. Superb., July 9, 2006

By 

L. Quido "quidrock" (Tampa, FL United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Girls: A Novel (Hardcover)

Like other readers, I, too, am having a hard time moving on from the novel.

Like Alice Sebold's "The Lovely Bones" and Audrey Niffenegger's "The Time Traveler's Wife", Lansens' "The Girls" owes its initial fame to a jaw-dropping concept, namely, a first person(s) fictional account of conjoined twin girls. Unlike those books, there is a fundamental joy brought forth from the sadness of the imagined situation. The two points of view, told in distinctively different voices and with different type settings, dance and weave with each other. Lansens, who has written for films and has an earlier novel, has a rich imagination coupled with a distinctive use of dialogue. But it is her gift for metaphor, and her voice that speaks of writing that causes the book to sit and simmer in your brain, ruining your concentration for those that come afterword....as Rose, the larger twin, the writer:

"Words leak from my brain. Seep out my ear. Burble from my crooked mouth. Splash on my shirt. Trickle into my keyboard. Pool on my warped parquet floor. At least they're not gushing from my heart.....I catch the words as they fall. My hands smell. And the place is a wreck. From all the spilled words."

Magnificent. The best book of 2005. Buy it, luxuriate in it.

66 of 73 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unforgettable, Heart-Wrenching, Inspiring, Awesome Story, July 5, 2006

By 

Marion "[e-mail]" (Louisiana) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Girls: A Novel (Hardcover)

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, but was floored by the beautiful writing, the prosaic metaphors, the sheer beauty of the entire story. . . not something you'd expect in regard to a tale of conjoined twins, fiction or not. It truly touched my soul and made me look at life through different eyes. I can only count on one hand the books that have affected me like this one.

When I read the last few pages yesterday, I was weeping. I didn't want the book to end. It wasn't a sad ending, I just didn't want the story to EVER end. I don't like giving book reports, but suffice it to say that this book will move into your heart and soul after you read it and will never completely leave you. A magnificent book, pure and simple. It deserves 10 stars and a Pulitzer Prize.

22 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Unique Story, March 14, 2007

By 

Kim Robinson "siammuse" (Duluth, MN. United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Girls: A Novel (Hardcover)

Lori Lansens must be a poet--Her words are lyrical and lovely-- and flow on the pages effortlessly. She makes the reader fall in love with Rose and Ruby; I know I did. And of course, Aunt Lovey!!! Unconditional love can save the world. Can't it?

I loved the chapter where Ruby experiences her first orgasm. Miss Lansen, How did you write this so beautifully--so eloquently?

I gave the book 3 stars because I was bored with the chapters about traveling to Uncle Stashes home in Europe (it did not add to the story or push it forward) I wanted more about Rose and Ruby---not Uncle Stash!

I wanted more insight about how people viewed these conjoined twins--they appeared to be accepted everywhere and by everyone--and this did not ring true to me. Most people would be fascinated, surprised, appalled, and terrified.

All in all--I liked this book and would read another by this articulate poet, Miss Lansens!