Customer Reviews

Mail

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Such a funny, smart, satisfying novel! I rooted for its heroes, with all their lovable warts and failings, and laughed aloud at the sly social satire that captures a Joyce scholar/pompous ex-husband and a socially ambitious widowed mother in all their meddlesome glory. Delicious, warm and insightful like the best company. I recommend MAIL wherever I go, and delight in finding a friend who hasn't read it so I can wrap one up!

I was a bit disappointed with this novel. Though it got lots of rave reviews, I found the plot slow in parts. The writing was pretty good, although I found the frequent references to being a writer tiresome (e.g. "if I weren't a writer, I would say his eyes were as deep as pools" -- you ARE a writer so think of something better). I am always suspicious when the main character does an about-face in the last 40 pages of the book, so the ending was a letdown. But overall, I enjoyed reading the book. A light diversion, and the issue of class consciousness in the US is an interesting one that hasn't been explored as often as it might be.

The main character of this novel is charming, the plot on its face is interesting, and the book is written with a fine sense of humor. However, it was difficult to understand the motivations of Katinka, the main character. Why is she so interested (from essentially the first page of the book) in her mailman, a man who is not written as particularly interesting, bright, or even available? The author gives us no clue as to whether Katinka is merely lonely, or an incurable romantic dreamer, or a social egalitarian, or perhaps simply immature. It seems we are just meant to take for granted that a Harvard-educated writer would form such a liaison. A series of other events then unfold, the motivations for some of which are also unclear.

Although I enjoyed this book, it was somewhat of a chore to read in spite of its light, breezy style, and I agree with the earlier reviewers who found it flat. However, I am impressed enough by Medwed to read her next novel when it comes out in paperback.

I would certainly classify this novel as genre fiction- A Romantic Comedy. As with all genre fiction, it is what it is. You either like it or you don't. But you can't try to analyze it into something that it's not. If you try, you'll only be disappointed. My advice with this novel is to enjoy it for what it is- a nice romantic comedy. You can try to break it down in terms of whatever literary concept suits you, but that might be unfair to the author and the book. After all, would you analyze something more literary from a genre fiction perspective? Never. So why try to analyze this from a literary perspective? It's a very light read and thoroughly enjoyable when absorbed from the right perspective.

Medwed's debut novel relates the romantic and literary exploits of Katrinka O'Toole. Given thatr Katrinka is mostly a frustrated wirter and lover both, the exploits are somewhat chaotic, obsessive and disjointed--but that's where the fun comes in.

Over and above an adept hand at romantic comedy, Medwed has a nifty ability to cleverly encapsulate and parody the aloofness, snobbery and liberal goings and general absurdities attendant to life in and around Harvard, a skill which also adds to the fun of the book.

This is a debut novel and some of the expected flaws attendant to such an effort are present--the books a tad disjointed, a few of the characters are mere characatures--but overall it's a fun book & a pleasant read. It's plane or beach fare-not too demanding and mostly rewarding.

I love the premise of this novel and I enjoyed the characters. I did, however, find the novel a little slow going at times. But I honestly cared about Katinka and the people in her life and I wanted to find out what happened in the end. The best thing about the book is it's non-happily-ever-after ending. The book reads like a slice of life, ending with the open-endedness that life always has until it's over. I especially enjoyed Katinka's relationship with her mother (i can certainly relate) as well as her falling in love with little Max (what a cutie).

I would have liked to have given this book 3.5 stars but unfortunately that wasn't an option. I recommend this book if you are looking for well-written, well-developed characters in a charming setting but aren't in need of fast-paced action.

I recently started this book on an airplane and, for the first time, I wanted to stay in the air as long as possible. Katinka O'Toole is a deeply complex character whose daily struggles with the pressures of familial and social expectations are presented with wit and humor. She is surrounded by a cast of characters all of whom are colorfully painted by Medwed. In fact, the author is even able to breathe life into a sack of flour. The theme of class and status inherent in this novel adds a level of depth and intellect to an already entertaining story.

Katinka O'Toole is 35 years old and is recovering from a short marriage with a Harverd Proffeser. She is strugling to find her place in the writing world when she gets a breakthrough letter who is delivered by the mailman she has fallen in love with.

The man Katinka's mother is dating, who happens to live in her apartments, his daughter and son-in-law have the perfect blind date for Katinka. Jake Barnes is brought into her the picture. He is a classy guy and very polite although he has curly red hair on his knuckles. With all the love and madness surrounding her, she is just having fun.

This book was cute and full of suprises and fun. If you enjoy saucy romances, this book is for you but if you get bored easliy and you are more in to anger and death, this book definently isn't for you. ENJOY

This book was well-written for the most part, but Katinka was a little hard for me to like. Here she is, an intelligent woman, and could she be a little more promiscuous? I thought that this book was enjoyable to a degree, but that the plot just lacked something and wasn't exactly gripping. It's not a bad book, and some parts were very enjoyable, especially those sections involving the adorable Max.

A friend gave me this book in the midst of my tending my newborn baby--and guess what, I kept reading while diapering, while nursing, while I should have been sleeping. I couldn't stop. The characters were so real they were breathing off the page, the prose so sparkling and full of surprises I couldn't stop smiling, and the plot so delightful and ingenious that I cannot wait to read the next effort of the supremely talented Ms. Medwed--in fact I've already ordered it from Amazon! More, more, Ms. Medwed!