Seventh Heaven

Wow! Wow! Wow! I would give this book 10 stars if I could. The writing is divine, the plot amazing and the characters so real I think I know them personally. And maybe I do. This is the story of the same kind of neighborhood I lived in from age two to nine from 1956 to 1963.It's 1959. The houses on Hemlock Drive are identical. The men take great pride in their lawns. The kids play outside until the moms call them in for dinner. All the moms stay home and bake cookies for their kids. It's a safe and magical time. Or is it? Author Alice Hoffman creates this neighborhood and populates it with ordinary people living what we sometimes look back on as the perfect time.And then the nearly unthinkable happens. A divorced mother (in 1959!!!) moves into the neighborhood. Suddenly we get a better peek inside those identical homes on Hemlock Drive and realize there are a myriad of different problems behind closed doors. And mysteries. And yearnings. And jealousies. Broken marriages. Broken psyches. Teenage sex (in 1959!!!). Wife beating. A teenage car theft ring. A runaway mother. Marijuana-smoking teens (in 1959!!!) And a clairvoyant kid. It's a very light touch of the supernatural that brings the book to life and the plot to fruition.Best of all, you don't have to be of a certain age (translation: baby boomer) to fall in love with this book. It's irresistible!This is why we read--because of books like this.

I had heard great things about this book and this author. It started strong then just, sort of fizzled. I kept waiting for something fantastic to happen, but was left disappointed.The people on Hemlock were used to their little lives on their little street. They all portrayed themselves as content and happy, but behind closed doors it seemed that no one was fulfilled. And those who were fulfilled was blinded to the misery their parents and children felt. But, each family lived the lives expected of them. The husbands went to work each day, the children to school, and the wives stayed home to care for their families. Each house looked the same from the outside.However, a newcomer entered their quiet little world and was not like the rest of them. She was divorced with children, she wore different clothing, wore more make up and jewelry, except for the one piece which seemed to define a woman: a wedding band.As the months went by she began to touch more and more lives. She, succeeding as a single mother made other women question their roles as a wife. Her vulnerability made her an object of desire for men on Hemlock. Her unusual habits made her an individual for children yo shy from and spread rumors of being a witch, and thusly, ostracize her oldest son.As her desire to be accepted free, the desire of her neoghbors' lives to change in conjunction.Theo families on Hemlock experienced changes, joys, and tragedies. Life went on, people adapted.......and then it was over. No huge revelation. No big scene of true acceptance or otherwise. It just stopped.The story, all in all, was decent. I had a connection for some characters. I had sympathy for some, but mostly I was indifferent toward them. Perhaps that was the point: just a snapshot of a year in the life of a street that could be anywhere. Just to be introduced and move on.Because the book didn't drag on and on, I gave it a 3 star rating; it was a fast read. Had there been more drama, a twist of some sort - something! - which would have been entertaining, I would have given it 4. So, if you're in the mood for a shallow, quick story without much substance, this is your weekend read. If you're looking for something to take your breath away and keep you turning pages, you'd be better served to look elsewhere.

In the beginning of the book, I did not expect to enjoy the story as much as I did. It turned into a beautiful snapshot of a year in the life of a group of families in 1959/1960. I loved learning about all of the characters and the pacing of the story overall ended up being perfect. The intertwining of their lives and the effects they all have on one another was so intriguing and the ending left me feeling fulfilled which is all one can ask for these days. My one critique was the random "mystical" elements within the book such as Billy's intuition and the candle melting voodoo doll scene. I felt as they were anachronistic and didn't serve the beauty of the otherwise great story.I I wish we could almost keep learning more about what the future holds for all of the characters but am happy with the snapshot the author provided.

I love me an Alice Hoffman book. I don't what happened here. Okay, maybe I can make the allowance that reading this with text-to-speech makes the confusion of characters even more perplexing. There was a whole neighborhood of people with problems.Maybe when you can read the book as a paper product, you can see whose point of view that you are looking through. Books with a lot of characters are hard when the author doesn't give you a straight forward warning like the chapter name (character's name) or first word (character's name) of the new chapter. Especially with TTS.Having read a couple of reviews, I found some who felt the story started with promise but went downhill. I was bewildered during the first part of the book. I just rode along feeling I would soon catch up. Sure enough by the end, I did seem to care about a couple of the characters and felt I was knowing who was who.This book takes place in the late 50s early 60s. I didn't need the author to spell that out as I recognized it right away. I remembered people saying and gossiping about the things included in the story. It is my least favorite part of my life. So it was painful to live it again. Still, I wonder how folks who are not of that era see all of this. Older women may see this far differently than Gen X-ers. I need to go read some other reviews to see if age affects the read.Alice Hoffman writes so well that even when I am lost I stick with the book until the end. I certainly think others might enjoy this book thoroughly.

Currently re-reading Ms Hoffman's work on Kindle. 'Seventh Heaven' was always one of my favourites of hers and I enjoyed it just as much this time through as the other two times I've read the novel. An 'outsider' divorcee arrives in a very conservative suburbia of America, at a time when freedoms for women were only just being thought about and divorce was seen as shameful. Nora Silk shakes up the community, even while being mostly ignored by it. Inevitably, and not just because of Nora but because of the way society is evolving, there are dramatic changes ahead for these little lives. Nora, almost regarded as an outcast witch among the stuffy housewives, becomes a saviour for more than one of them. Threaded with magic and folklore, this book is Alice Hoffman at her best.

This is the second Alice Hoffman novel I have read and i enjoyed it very much-she has a really magical way of writing that is very poetic and descriptive, she builds the characters well and the pace is just right! this story is a study of what goes on in suburbia behind the perfect facades! Nora is a strong and modern thinking woman amongst what really amount to stepford wives! don't expect massive twisting turning plots here but do expect a bare canvas upon which Alice Hoffman skilfully paints a picture draws you in and you become a part of the painting! once finished you hang it on the wall to admire and possibly go back for more and re-live it all again-as it is a book I could re-read!

I didn't want this book to end and wanted to read more about Nora and her family. I don't agree with those reviews that speak of a 'dreamy' and 'surreal' storyline. It isn't. It's about families in the 50s who can't really adjust to the presence of someone whose philosophy of life does not match theirs. Her son has some kind of 'gift', yes but then so do other children, now and again. It's a wonderful book, I read it in an afternoon and then totally regretted my gluttony as I wanted more. Sadly this was not to be as Alice Hoffman's books are all so different. I had to move on. I moved on to 'Blue Diary' - a totally different kettle of fish.

It wasn't the first Alice Hoffman book I'd read. Sometimes her books can take off and become a little - well, weird for want of a better word. This book, though, was lovely. As with other Hoffman books, the characters are really well constructed and believable. I loved Nora and the fact that it was set in the 50s really took me back to my childhood. I read it in one session, couldn't put it down! Then regretted it, as I didn't want it to end. A lovely read, with a positive feel good factor. Totally enjoyed it.

This is the first Alice Hoffman book I read after learning that Jodi Picoult classes her as her favourite author. The writing style is languid yet so precise. I fell in love with the way the prose draws you through the book picking up on the most mundane of details but making you actually care about it. Her descriptions were so vivid I felt I were actually had been to the housing tracts and knew each of the people involved. Give it a try!