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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Another wonderful book from Berg - although not her best,
By "neeterskeeter27" (http://www.neeterskeeter.com/new) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Range of Motion: A Novel (Paperback)
I don't know how many wonderful books I've read by ElizabethBerg, and Range of Motion keeps the same great standard. It is full ofbeautiful prose, moving emotional scenes, and realistic dialogue. Itis the story of a woman whose husband is in a coma. Thoughout thenovel she must deal with the pain it is brining her to see her husbandso far away, and she also must help her two young daughters face the same feelings. The book backtracts to discuss the relationship between the woman and her husband before his accident, and the reader can see it is a rare story of true love. That makes his condition all the more sad, because for the first time in her life since she met him, she must deal with the absence of the love of her life.An interesting subplot in the novel was that of the main character's best friend and her failing marriage. This relationship was painted in such a way that it drew much sympathy from me, and I felt that the best friend really came to life in the book. A weird quirk in this novel was the character of a ghost, an old lady who used to own the main character's house. I realize that the ghost helped the woman cope in her lonliness, but I felt it was unrealistic. I guess the main character temporarily went crazy, and this led to hallucinations and talking to the ghost. This part was supposed to be touching, but to me it was fake. And although most of the imagery was fantastic, there were some points at which I felt it was a bit forced. I felt that the images in Berg's other novels were much more natural. These were the only problems I had with the novel, and I loved the plot and the characters. For those who have never read a Berg novel, I recommend starting with one of her other ones, such as Durable Goods, Joy School, or What We Keep. But for those who are already familiar with Berg, Range of Motion, although in my opinion not her best, will not let you down, for everything she writes is great. **NOTE: I am only giving this book 4 stars because I am comparing it to other Berg books. However, compared to all books in general I would give it 5 stars. :) END
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Another fast read by Elizabeth Berg.,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Range of Motion (Paperback)
RANGE OF MOTION by Elizabeth Berg is the story of Lainey, whose husband Jay is in a coma due to an icicle falling on his head and knocking him out. Lainey sees the humor in all this, and at the same time tries to deal with a future that may not include the love of her life. Her emotions are up and down and she prays and hopes that he will awaken one day. She tries all sorts of things to bring him out of his coma, bringing to the hospital things from home that may stir his mind and help bring him out of the coma. She also spends a lot of time reminiscing about time spent with Jay, the romantic things, the every day things. At the same time, Lainey notices how her two children are dealing with this tragedy. The oldest Sarah does not seem to be coping well at all, and at times refuses to even see Dad. Lainey struggles with her emotions, and gets support from her neighbor Alice, who is going through some rough times of her own. The book gets into Alice's troubles, where she is worried that her husband is having an affair with someone at work. The conclusion to this subplot was rather interesting, and I was glad that it got resolved! (The reader was not left hanging). I think this is my 4th book by Elizabeth Berg, and as with the others I enjoyed reading it a lot. However, I don't feel this is my favorite of her books. I was expecting something with more substance. The book was well-written as all her books are, but I felt that she could have delved more into Lainey's past with Jay and maybe got more into detail about the relationship with the two daugthers. Overall, though, this was a good read!
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gets under the surface of things, and sticks with you,
By
This review is from: Range of Motion: A Novel (Paperback)
This was the first book I read by Elizabeth Berg. It was one of those happy accidents where you decide to try that book in the bargain pile by an author you don't know, and it turns out to be one of your favorites. I love the tenderness of Lainey's relationship with Jay, how she so deeply misses him, the images of how hard it is to have your partner in the terrible limbo of a coma, and how hard it must be to be the only one who believes he'll ever wake up. Lainey's internal dialogue is very interesting, how her view of the world both evolves and doesn't while she deals with her situation. And as with all of Elizabeth Berg's novels (at least the several I've read), you can't help but find cause for optimism at the end, no matter what happens.The images that stick with you are the way she uncovers the beauty, the poetry, in the most everyday things. That's a hallmark of her writing. It tends to point out why you should tell your partner and your children why you love them, why you should remember to look at the sunset, stop to catch snowflakes on your tongue, etc. Just read it. Especially for this book, but to some degree for all of her novels, it's hard to describe the charm of Elizabeth Berg's writing.
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