Why Moms Are Weird (Paperback)

by Pamela Ribon (Author)
Key Phrases: skinny slacks, cat shit, Jesus Christ, Nicole Richie, Girl Scout

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Twenty-seven-year-old Benny Bernstein struggles with her weight, her insecurities and a sinkhole of family love and dysfunction in Ribon's compassionate follow-up to her debut, Why Girls Are Weird. Three years after her father's death, Benny has shed 50 pounds, built a life for herself in Los Angeles and just begun what might be her first successful relationship with hipster Mickey. But a distraught phone call from her mother, who lost her job and broke her leg in a car accident, brings Benny home to Virginia, since her younger sister, Jami, still living at home, can't be relied on. Back east, Benny discovers her mother's house has become an animal shelter, and she has three secret boyfriends and a red-hot sex life at age 53. As if that weren't overwhelming enough, Jami is dating an abusive ex-con. Benny hires a hot handyman to help clean up the house and finds herself enjoying his teases and flirtations while missing Mickey. Between her mother's eccentricities, her sister's stubbornness and her own self-doubt and confusing love life, Benny isn't sure she'll ever be able to return to L.A. Chick lit fans will identify with this kind, imperfect heroine.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
As in her debut novel, Why Girls Are Weird (2003), Ribon's central character is a bouncy and articulate twentysomething struggling to find her niche in the world. Belinda Bernstein, aka Benny, has an art history degree and works in a travel agency in Los Angeles, where she followed her actor boyfriend, who is now out of the picture. When her mother breaks her leg and loses her job, Benny returns to Virginia to help out, abandoning her current boyfriend in the process. There she finds her widowed mother juggling three suitors and Jami, Benny's younger sister, "dating another gangbanger." Benny adds to this manic mix by carrying on a flirtatious relationship with her mother's yardman, who has a master's degree yet sounds like a hillbilly. Another mystery is why Jami keeps going back to her abusive boyfriend. Although several characters remain sketchy, there are lots of humorous moments as Benny attempts to untangle these entwined relationships. Deborah Donovan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Downtown Press (August 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416503854
• ISBN-13: 978-1416503859
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #673,268 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pamie has done it again!, July 27, 2006

By	P. J. Rose "boy connisseur" (Warwick, RI USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

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!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must read!, August 17, 2006

By	Little D (California) - See all my reviews

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!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Loved it Loved it Loved it Loved it, August 15, 2006

By	Sharon Magner (New Jersey) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

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.