Dolores Price is an amazing character. Unbelievable that she was created by a man, when she is so flawless, consistent and complete in being who she is. I want to start out by saying that I read *I know this much is true* by Wally Lamb and would rate it in my top 5 favorite books of all time, so this review shouldn't deter anyone from reading his work. She's Come Undone is an honest exploration of how trauma can shape our lives, but also how we can eventually come to terms with our pasts and move on with strength.

The good things I WILL say about this book is that his writing is always amazingly descriptive, his characters have depth and texture (if not believability) and his stories are epic.

Wally Lamb

Her voice has many levels and I kept thinking that toni collette was reading - but at times she sounds much older and others she seems younger??? a great story teller voice!!! But there is one quality an audiobook may possess that you cannot get in print -- an actual voice reciting the inner monologue of your protagonist. If that voice is first person and at least sometimes comic (as is the case here on both counts), a narrator that captures that voice can make the listening experience far more effective than the voice inside your head when you read in print.

Update: I found an old review I wrote about this book for an online book club I used to be in. I clearly hated it. Here it is, more or less in its entirety. I also have to admit to having personal knowledge of the author - which in no way colors my opinion of this book. Mr. Lamb was a writing teacher at my high school in CT and actually helped me quite a bit in writing my college application essays. I got in to every school I applied for - even my reach school - and I am positive that the essay I wrote was the biggest tipping point. My essay was really good and it was wholly because of Mr. Lamb and his suggestions, pointers and all around encouragement. As a person, Mr. Lamb is wonderful and I will always remember him with high praise. Now, the storyline spreads between 1954 and 1994, and some expressions may upset readers born later than that. Some of the passages may be considered racist, sexist, homophobic. The body shaming can also be very upsetting. Dante Davis: Kippy's long-distance boyfriend, Dolores' college infatuation, and eventual first husband. She’s Come Undone is the story of a troubled teenage girl growing into a woman, her struggles and the ways in which she decides to cope with them. She puts on a tough exterior but inside is as soft as the marshmallows she finds comfort in.She's Come Undone is the 1992 debut novel by Wally Lamb. She's Come Undone has been translated into eighteen languages. A People Magazine Top-Ten Book of The Year. A New York Times Notable Book of The Year. A Los Angeles Times Book Award Finalist — Best First Novel of The Year." Mr. Lamb gives his vociferous heroine truly heroic proportions, in both the physical and the psychical sense … John Updike once observed the J.D. Salinger loves some of his characters 'more than God loves them,' which might be said about Wally Lamb … Those characters are equally endearing to the reader, as Dolores Price is, even in her most self-deprecatory moments: this reader kept rooting for her to overcome all adversity and find peace and happiness." Dave Marsh; John Swenson (12 October 1983). The new Rolling stone record guide. Random House/Rolling Stone Press. p. 208. ISBN 978-0-394-72107-1. I decided to read it because it kept featuring on lists of peoples favourite books, so I thought it would be a good story, alas, I was wrong!

So if you are only somewhat depressed but not quite suicidal yet, this is the book for you. Everyone else should stay away in droves. It has to be said that I have never forgotten this book, despite having read it several years ago now, but, this is not because I enjoyed it, in fact I absolutely hated it. His eyes opened wider. For a second he seemed to see me. “No you don’t,” he said. “You mustn’t. He keeps wanting to give you his love, a gift out and out, and you dismiss it. Shrug it off because you’re afraid.” I was also not expecting the character/s in the book to go through pretty much every form of abuse imaginable; emotional, physical, sexual, even animal abuse features and it was a miserable read, you think it won't get worse and then it does!Movie was a great idea. As for characters; I would have no idea how to second guess the professionals, since I rarely watch a movie and do not know who the current actors are. This is a work of fiction and full of dramas. To some readers a person weighting 254 pounds may not seem too heavy, but for a 13 years old girl (or any teenager) facing school, there is no doubt.

Since its publication, readers have commented over and over at Lamb's masterful portrayal of women. He renders Dolores as a downtrodden victim who somehow miraculously maintains her sense of humor and ultimately develops the self-esteem she has been missing all along. Dolores's voice resonates with readers long after they have finished Lamb's novel. I live in SF. I have scores of gay friends. I guess with my life experience, I just don't see the monogamous mid-life gay couple as the ones getting HIV.

Claire from Miller's, MdThe first time I heard this song was in an antique store with my dad in Westminster, MD. From that day on this has been my fav song by The Guess Who. She experiences the worst that life can throw at her, dealing with obesity, insanity, close friends dying from AIDS, adultry, but fills her with such life and generosity of spirit that at no point does it come across as heavy handed or mawkish. Lamb never plays for the easy tears or attempts to pull on your heart strings so as a reader you never feel manipulated.