Customer Reviews

Why Moms Are Weird

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I literally could not put this book down and read it in one sitting. I've always been a fan of The Ribon Writing, and this may be her best yet. Buy this book - you won't regret it!

I read 'Why Girls are Weird' and thought the whole situation was really funny. I was expecting this book to be the same way. I was wrong, but not disappointed. I think this book was a bit more on the serious side and there's some heavier things going on with the main characters, Benny and her family.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading it and hope Pamela Ribon decides to write a third book soon!

This book was just so great. Pamie developed the characters so well, and has such a talent for being funny without killing the jokes. My heart was pounding during a few of the situations, and other times I was laughing and other times tearing up. It also kept me guessing until the end what Boobs was going to do with her life.

Pamie is much more talented than many of the more famous chick-lit writers out there already, and I can only imagine who she'll cast to play Boobs when this is made into a movie.

After reading "Why Girls are Weird", I had immediately preordered this book. It was worth the wait-I loved reading about "Boobs" and the dynamics between her and her mother and sister. I read several chapters aloud to my mother who laughed heartily. Just goes to show, it's not just funny to the 30ish chicks-it's funny all the way around!

WHY MOMS ARE WEIRD by Pamela Ribon

January 6, 2007

Amazon rating 4/5

I loved this book! Belinda "Benny" Bernstein lives in Los Angeles, far from her mother and sister who live across the country. She gets calls from her mother and they always have the craziest of conversations. Here's an example: Her mother would call and tell Benny "I have chlamydia". I was laughing out loud from the very first page, and with lines like that, it's hard not to. Benny's nickname is "boobs", and little details like that just made the story funnier.

Belinda finds out after the fact that her sister and mother were in a car accident, and now her mother can't drive until her broken leg heals. Her mother has also lost her job. So, Belinda decides to move back home to help her mother and sister out (her sister also happens to be living at home with mother).

Living at home is not easy, and when Belinda sees the house, she cannot believe her eyes. It's a wreck. Not only is the house falling apart but it's filled with so much junk there is no room to move. It's not any cleaner outside, either, as the yard is filled with animals. Belinda is resolved to fix her family's living situation by hiring someone to help out around the house, doing whatever is necessary to get the place livable. This is how Belinda meets Zack, a very good looking young man that Belinda thinks has the hots for her, and vice versa. But she's also left behind a nearly - brand new boyfriend (they have no commitments to each other, but she still feels tied to him), Mickey, who she met in a very unconventional way - at the grocery store during a conversation about the music being broadcast on the grocery store speakers).

So, she's got a man at home in Los Angeles that she is thinking about, but she also can't stop thinking about Zack. In the meantime, her mother who seems to behave like a very liberated (sexually) woman is juggling several boyfriends at once, and only one is aware of the other men involved with her. And Benny's sister Jami is always attracting trouble. Benny feels it's her duty to take care of the two of them, to fix things, and her helpful attempts do not bring on feelings of gratitude from Jami or their mother.

While cleaning up the house, Benny encounters some letters that were boxed away, and they hint at a past that she does not approve of, involving her mother and one of the current boyfriends, Gregory. It sets off a series of events that eventually leads to the climatic ending to the story.

WHY MOMS ARE WEIRD was a very funny, lighthearted look at a very dysfunctional family. But there are serious themes that go along with the Chick-lit-like tone, making this novel much more complex than your average chick book. I haven't read the previous book WHY GIRLS ARE WEIRD but I will definitely read it now. Pamela Ribon writes with a funny and witty style which I found refreshing. I may even put this book on my list of top books read in 2006.

Pam Ribon writes sexual tension better than I've ever seen it written. The Benny-and-Zack relationship was extremely absorbing and lent a great diversion from the chaos in which Benny finds herself living. Do give this skillfully crafted novel a read; if you liked "Why Girls Are Weird" you're going to love this one.

Having read Ribon's first novel -- as well as years of "Television Without Pity" recaps -- I was expecting something in a similar vein. Although "Moms" has the same conversational flow and humorous moments, it delves into more serious (and often unresolved) conflicts with protagonist Belinda "Benny" Bernstein. Like many twenty-somethings, Benny faces tremendous self-esteem issues, largely due to her upbringing. Because of them, she has trouble finding a place for herself in the world...both with family and potential boyfriends, as well as society as a whole.

After returning home to Virginia to help her incapacitated mother, Benny begins trying to solve her problems -- as well as those of her mother and ne'er-do-well younger sister Jami. But as she quickly learns, they don't necessarily *want* her help. As frustrating as it may be, Benny attempts to face up to the fact that some situations must either resolve themselves eventually, or simply continue unraveled as long as her family members permit.

While I didn't enjoy this book as much as "Girls," Ribon's writing style overall makes any book an enjoyable read. I'll be waiting for news of a third book.

Why Moms Are Weird will appeal to anyone who's experienced the infuriating push/pull love/hate relationship between mother and daughter, and Pamela Ribon captures it brilliantly with her narrator Benny, aka "Boobs." She manages to relate the family's history, quirks, and complicated relationships in a way that lets the story naturally unfold. Benny's narration shows us how out of place she's felt within her family, first because of her weight, and later because of living so far away from Virginia, in Los Angeles, and just feeling removed.

In just a few crisp sentences, Ribon captures the heart of maternal criticism, and why it can sting so much:

"The words hit me in waves as I dissect layers of passive-aggressie, backhanded complimenting. I can chip away and chip away, but I'll never stop finding additional ways to be humiliated back into the fetal position." or

"Our fights quickly escalate into yelling. I don't know how she can get me so angry so quickly. When I feel slighted by my mother, when she accuses me of being wrong when I know I'm right, there isn't a decibel loud enough to make me feel relief."

By allowing Benny's mother room to have her say, Ribon allows readers to see how they differ in their memories and intentions. Even when her mother's boyfriend makes an obviously racist remark, Ribon shows how, to his mind, that is not what he intended, and the reader has plenty to mull over as each feisty, headstrong, quirky character battles it out for the supremacy of their point of view.

While we start off hearing all about why Benny hates her mother and might someday kill her, the real story here is one of love, between parents and children, sisters, and friends. It's about Benny finding herself and figuring out who she is both independently of her family, and as a part of them. No character here is a saint; all have major flaws and have made major mistakes, but when push comes to shove (sometimes literally), they're there for each other.

Ribon also shows that nobody else can decide your fate for you. Jami, Benny's sister, repeatedly falls for the most loser guys, the ones who practically have a warning of "will treat you like crap" on them, but Jami likes the drama and goes back for more over and over, and it's both heartbreaking but incredibly honest to watch her family try to cope with her self-destructive behavior.

There is also the matter of Benny's love interests, which Ribon handles with an emotional intensity and insight that's rare. She shows two men who fall hard for Benny, as well as Benny's mixed feelings, and keeps us guessing until the end about what her final decision will be.

Why Moms Are Weird is intensely funny, but underneath the humor, Benny's struggles are relatable, entertaining, and emotionally honest. I look forward to reading more of Ribon's work (next up is Why Girls Are Weird, yes, I started backwards).

If your enjoyed Pamela Ribon's first book "Why Girls are Weird" then read this book. Even if you have not, read this book. It is vey funny, thoughtful and just an all around great read. Benny is a great character and is wonderfully drawn, I enjoyed following her ups and downs. I was through this book in a day and a half and I cannot wait to start it again.

This book is terrific. It is very different from Why Girls Are Weird (which I also enjoyed), but not in a bad way at all.