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| The Friday Night Knitting Club | 
 enlarge | Author: Kate Jacobs
Publisher: Berkley Trade
Category: Book
List Price: $14.00
Buy Used: $1.54
You Save: $12.46 (89%)
New (71) Used (174) Collectible (1) from $1.54
Avg. Customer Rating:  198 reviews
Sales Rank: 410
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 384
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 8.2 x 5 x 1.1
ISBN: 0425219097
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9780425219096
ASIN: 0425219097
Publication Date: January 2, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Visible shelf wear -- may have some notes/markings on pages
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| Customer Reviews:
 More a novel about a novel about a knitting club March 17, 2007
16 out of 19 found this review helpful
Meh. This book didn't really grab me to begin with, but I soldiered on, then ended up skimming the second half. I realize other people loved it, and that's fine, but I felt it left a lot to be desired. I don't enjoy reading detailed descriptions of a screenplay, and that's how this novel came across to me.
I never got into the characters. I read a lot *about* them, and I read *about* their conversations, but nothing they did or said made them live in my mind. They all had identifiable characteristics that were stuck on them like labels, and they were presented in too cerebral a way.
I found the main character unappealing in many ways. Oh, she was feisty and strong and all that jazz, but she was really all about herself and how she was wronged by everybody and that gave her special rights. For example, did it not occur to the character (by way of the author) that her daughter's father would have some basic legal rights, especially if he acknowledged paternity? The law stands regardless of what arrangements the parents do or do not make. That plot point, as well as many of the others, was too contrived to get past.
The book is sloppy with details. I laughed out loud when I read about Georgia growing up on a Pennsylvania farm, then about her attendance at "Harrisburg High." There is a LOT of farmland in the area of Harrisburg (I live 40 miles away, in Lancaster County) but I doubt any of it is in the city of Harrisburg's school district. How did an editor miss that? Most 4th graders know that Harrisburg is the capitol of Pennsylvania and likely to be a bit more urban.
I didn't buy for a minute Georgia's designing and knitting one, let alone two stunning evening gowns. The work involved is mindboggling, yet she accomplished this while running a store, raising a daughter--did anyone sit down and think about how many stitches were in those dresses? And if she was that good a designer, why was she struggling and living from day to day? These questions are only a few that popped up in my mind as I slogged through the novel.
Overall, I felt as if the author was trying to manipulate the reader: feel this way about Georgia, that way about Darwin, this way about Anita or Lucie. I didn't. Furthermore, Jacobs gets a little heavy-handed in the life lessons department. The bits relating knitting to life are nice enough, but others, such as Stephanie "Yarn Harlot" Pearl-McPhee do it oh so much better.
 Disappointed April 30, 2007
16 out of 17 found this review helpful
This could have been a great vacation read . . . I started it on the plane on my way there, had something to read in the evenings before going to sleep, and came close to finishing it on the flight home. However, when I saw the direction the author was taking, I saved the last chapter for home (and played games on my PDA for the remainder of the flight!)
This is not great literature, but it was a fun read. Unlike some other reviewers, I found the characters enjoyable and identifiable, perhaps because as a knitter and a quilter, I know individuals with similar characteristics and can appreciate the author combining quirks to keep the number of characters manageable (and trackable).
The author certainly packed lots of living into the pages of this book --- the trip to Scotland, while it gave the author (and main character) the chance to share the wisdom of another old woman, it seemed too contrived. But the turning point for me was my huge disappointed in the ending --- part of which could not come as a surprise to anyone picking up on the clues.
SPOILER ALERT! However, the finality of the ending has stayed with me, not because of the writing or even any emotions triggered by the ending, but because it seemed so senseless, so unnecessary.
It would seem that especially as a first novel, with a solid well-rounded (slightly flawed, but well written) character and a delightful setting (and fergoodnesssakes, a durn web page!) --- the ending just continues to seem so wrong. These are people I would have liked to visit with again, to have the chance to know from perhaps another point of view, and even better developed the next time. There was a depth that it would have been nice to have, even if only as a background characters that pass through and touch the lives of another main character in a future book.
I know that life is not simple and it doesn't always come nicely wrapped with all the loose ends tied up. I've certainly suffered my share of losses (haven't we all). I just do not see why the author found it necessary to go in the direction she went with the end of this book.
I would have rated this book five stars as a beach read, four stars for just a quick read . . . but because I'm so disappointed in the ending, I not only cannot rise above two stars, I cannot recommend this book to friends (even knitters and quilters) --- and THAT is probably the MOST disappointing of all.
No work of literature, this March 9, 2007
14 out of 26 found this review helpful
Nice try for a first novel, and I think the film may be better than the book. But all in all, very bland. Maybe her sophomore effort will be more palatable.
 2.5 stars really April 7, 2007
13 out of 14 found this review helpful
First, the book is obviously written for Julia Roberts' acting skills and movie career. It's a perfect followup to Steel Magnolias now that she's older and adds in the hot crafty trend for the younger audience. That fact was a little too blatant for me throughout the book. And that ending was very obvious about two-thirds into the story and seemed to be the entire meaning of the book. I'm sure it will earn her at least an Oscar nod next year.
Second, the characters are difficult to like. I didn't enjoy reading much about any of them except Gran and occasionally Anita because they're all so typical. It's the standard group: the socialite who hates herself & her life, the single moms who struggle with everything, the older, wise, benevolent women who are the wonderful godmothers to everyone, and the angry younger women who have lost their way but find it again. I didn't warm up to any of them like I normally do when reading a book of this type.
Third, the knitting scenes are so unrealistic that they're amusing. I agree that no one could learn to knit from anything in this book because the knitting is very much a backstory plot device. The Knitting Circle by Ann Hood & the Debbie Macomber Blossom Street series have much more to offer true knitters. And I wish someone would see me reading or knitting and offer me a loan to open my own shop!
2.5 stars because it's not the worst but it wasn't the best nor was it worth the hype. It's not a book that will be worth reading again so I'll give away my copy to make room for more knitting books. Not a bad book to read through a weekend but I've read better lately. I'll be interested to see what Ms. Jacobs writes for her second attempt.
Huge Disappointment May 18, 2007
12 out of 16 found this review helpful
This is one of those novel where everything just works out a little to perfectly. I picked this up because I am a knitter as well as a reader. However, I was never taken in by the plot. The characters never seemed real in spite of the author's obvious effort at trying to develop them all. I continued to read even after my initial feelings of dislike because based on other positive reviews, I kept thinking it would getter better. It didn't. The only positive thing I can say is that it is an easy read. But be warned: even though it is easy, it is not quick. This novel could have and should have been edited down to half it's size.
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