Customer Reviews

Postcards From Last Summer

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
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Cute Book. It follows 4 friends from tweens through their late twenties as they navigate the roads of romance and friendship during their summers in the Hamptons.

Lindsay is the main character who is the only one whose chapters are narrated in first person. She seems to be the heart and soul of the group. I loved the aspects of the book that revolved around Lindsay. Her family are not the super rich Hamptonites that everyone immediately thinks of when they hear the term 'The Hamptons'. But rather her grandparents bought their house back when the area was mostly farmland and before it became 'The Hamptons'. A lucky piece of real estate that is still lived in --full of her big Irish family. Her mother is the mother figure for all of Lindsay's and her brothers' friends. Their house has an open door and is a ready refuge for anyone in need. The scenes of people gathered around the huge table, eating her mom's cooking, joking with each other and getting sage advice were great.

Darcy is one of Lindsay's best friends. She is the stereotypical Hamptonite. Rich, spoiled, Blonde, tan, and with a lot of the 'mean girls' spirit roiling around inside her. You want to dislike Darcy at first. But she actually has the best redemptive arc in the story. She grows up and out of her spoiled brat ways in a manner that felt really believable.

Tara is the African-American princess who tries to live up to her mother's exacting standards. Of them all, I thought Tara's story arc was both the most frustrating and greatly satisfying. Frustrating because much of it was mired in racial identity issues that often plagues non-whites in some stories. But satisfying because I was happiest at her happy ending.

And finally there was Elle who was absent for a lot of the first part of the book except as a reference or remembrance. She kinda hovered over the story in a way that felt almost too influential for someone who hasn't been a real part of the girls' set since she was about 14. But when she returns she does so in grand fashion and quickly and effectively re-inserts herself into the circle of her friends.

This book is the quintessential beach-book in more ways than one. It is a fun, fast chick-lit book with lots of romance and everyone gets a Happy ending. A little light on the character development and the conflicts were almost non-existent. Even so it went down real quick and easy

Roz Bailey's book is a fun romp into the past of four best friends, who at times are not best friends at all. Lyndsay starts her book off with a book within a book. She's pushing thirty and back in The Hamptons, pregnant, at her own book signing. The movie Now and Then released in 1996 with Demi Moore and Rosie O'Donnel is similar to this book, except for the fact that Darcy, Elle, Tara and Lindsay's perspectives from the late 1990s are all interwoven into one storyline.

But both the aforementioned movie and Postcards From Last Summer display the kindness, beauty, and sometimes anger that all froth to the top in close-knit friendships.

These are friendships with girls who have become women and how those friendships affected their lives. One girl is the wealthiest and loses it all, drops out of college and gets pregnant. Another didn't know she was wealthy and finds this out after her parent's death. Another pursues her initial dream of becoming an attorney. All the while Lyndsay has been labeled the narrator of their lives.

Angst, love, rejection, boys, and learning how to grow up bind these four friends together. They've known one another since they were six or seven and played on the beautiful beaches of The Hamptons their entire life. Lyndsay's family is the one that has been at The Hamptons the longest, her parents own her grandmother's home, which they'd never be able to afford in 1990 dollars. Yet, everyone seems to swing like a pendulum around Darcy, who is attractive, petite, monied and destined for greatness until her dreams come shattering down upon her. All her friends rally to support her during this time, which is a testament to the strong bond female friendship holds.

Armchair Interviews says: Chick lit with a twist. Current events are woven through the book and The Hamptons are stunningly portrayed, both which make the book more than chick lit.

From the moment I started POSTCARDS I was captivated by the world created by the author. The cover copy does not do this novel justice. There's an element of wondrous escape to be immersed in this book, along with the recognition that these women experience events and rites of passage that are achingly familiar to all of us.

Not to give away the plot, it's the dynamic among these female characters that is so real and entrancing. I felt like I knew these girls. By the end of the story they were like childhood friends. Fortunately, all ends well, but not before I misted over at the sad turn of events once or twice.

I'm holding onto my copy of POSTCARDS but have bought three for my longtime friends. It's a great book to give someone going through one of life's tight squeezes, as well as a nice gift for friends who simply enjoy entertainment. Sort of a prime-time take on BEACHES.
If you have the time to get hooked on a good read, I recommend POSTCARDS FROM LAST SUMMER.

This is an entertaining book. I have noticed lately that our entertainment seems to make an extra effort to use the Lord's name in vain. It is used in this book in many places and I don't understand why. I am reading along and then I am forced to think those words as I read it. Curse- describe sex scenes, whatever, but why is it necessary to insult God?