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In Her Shoes

Name: In Her Shoes
Author: Jennifer Weiner
ISBN: 9780743418201

by Jennifer Weiner

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Overview

Meet Rose Feller. She's thirty years old and a high-powered attorney with a secret passion for romance novels. She dreams of a man who will slide off her glasses, gaze into her eyes, and tell her that she's beautiful. She also dreams of getting her fantastically screwed-up little sister to get her life. together.

Meet Rose's sister, Maggie. Twenty-eight years old, drop-dead gorgeous and only occasionally employed. Although her dreams of big-screen stardom haven't progressed, Maggie dreams of fame and fortune -- and of getting her dowdy big sister to stick to a skin-care regime.

These two women with nothing in common but childhood tragedy, shared DNA, and the same size feet, are about to learn that their family is more different than they ever imagine, and that they're more alike, than they'd ever believe. In Her Shoes observes Rose and Maggie, the brain and the beauty, as they make journeys of discovery. Along the way, the'll encounter a wild cast of characters and they'll borrow shoes and clothes and boyfriends, and make peace with their most intimate enemies -- each other.

Funny and poignant, In Her Shoes will speak to anyone who has endured the bonds of big -- or little -- sisterhood, or longed for a life different from the one the world has dictated, and dreamed of trying something else on for size.

Maggie Feller is twenty-eight years old, has never held a job longer than three months, and dreams of stardom, the fulfillment of which has somehow sputtered despite the appearance of her left hip in a Will Smith video. Rose Feller is thirty years old, a fast-rising attorney at a big Philadelphia firm and in love with the absolute wrong man. Rose and Maggie's grandmother, Ella Hirsch, is ensconced in retirement-ville Florida, cramming her days with volunteer work that serves as penance for the death of her daughter. Ella hasn't' seen Rose or Maggie since the funeral, decades ago. In Her Shoes follows those three expertly realized and finely nuanced characters on an alternately hilarious and heartrending journey in search of contentment, connection-and each other.

Synopsis

Meet Rose Feller, a thirty-year-old high-powered attorney with a secret passion for romance novels. She has an exercise regime she's going to start next week, and she dreams of a man who will slide off her glasses, gaze into her eyes, and tell her she's beautiful. She also dreams of getting her fantastically screwed-up, semi-employed little sister to straighten up and fly right.

Meet Rose's sister, Maggie. Twenty-eight years old and drop-dead gorgeous. Although her big-screen stardom hasn't progressed past her left hip's appearance in a Will Smith video, Maggie dreams of fame and fortune — and of getting her big sister on a skin-care regimen.

These two women, who claim to have nothing in common but a childhood tragedy, DNA, and the same size feet, are about to learn that they're more alike than they'd ever imagined. Along the way, they'll encounter a diverse cast of characters — from a stepmother who's into recreational Botox to a disdainful pug with no name. They'll borrow shoes and clothes and boyfriends, and eventually make peace with their most intimate enemies — each other.

People

Wonderful fit.

About the Author, Jennifer Weiner

Jennifer Weiner wowed critics and readers with Good in Bed -- a savvy debut that took "chick lit" to new heights. Fans fell in love with the heroine, Cannie -- a zaftig entertainment journalist who could give any of the Sex and the City girls a run for their stilettos. When In Her Shoes was adapted into a Hollywood hit, and Goodnight, Nobody hit the bestseller list, Weiner officially transcended One Hit Wonder status.

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Editorials

People

Wonderful fit.

Publishers Weekly

Weiner, whose debut novel Good in Bed was an instant bestseller, is back with another exuberantly confident offering. Twenty-eight-year-old Maggie Fuller relies on her looks and size zero body to flirt her way through life while working dozens of dead-end jobs and dreaming of stardom. At the other end of the spectrum is her older, larger sister, Rose, who relies on her intelligence and is an accomplished attorney at a large Philadelphia firm. The only things that these two seem to have in common is their shared history, a loathing for their "stepmonster," Sydelle, size six feet and a passion for luxurious shoes. When Maggie is evicted from her apartment and loses yet another job, Rose takes her in and tries to endure her closet raids and endless insults. But her patience abruptly ends when Maggie crosses a line so sacred that Rose kicks Maggie out and all but terminates their relationship ("Her sister was like a f**king Weebel, [Rose] thought. She'd wobble, she'd screw up, she'd steal your shoes... but she'd absolutely never fall down"). The sisters go on with their lives and Maggie discovers that she has a brain and a will to learn, while Rose learns to loosen up a bit and finds that there is more to life than work. The two sisters also get to know their maternal grandmother, Ella Hirsch, who they haven't seen since their mother's funeral more than 20 years ago. With Ella's love and support, Maggie reaches out to Rose and the two begin to repair their relationship. In the end, these three remarkable women learn that they are stronger than they thought they were, that family ties are worth preserving, and that there are perks to sharing the same shoe size. Weiner, a marvelously natural storyteller, blends humor and heartbreak to create an irresistible novel. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Weiner follows the successful Good in Bed with a wonderful contemporary fairy tale. (Yes, there is a wicked stepmother.) Meet plump, dependable Rose Feller and her gorgeous, out-of-control sister, Maggie. As children, they lost their mother and contact with grandmother Ella. Now, 20 years later, we follow their struggles to forgive the past, reclaim each other's love, and become their best selves. Within a year and a half, all three women, who seemed only to share a shoe size, possess more than they ever dreamed possible. Reworking the age-old theme that self-knowledge and acceptance are needed before love and happiness can be achieved, Weiner embroiders serious matters with threads of humor to produce a novel full of memorable characters and situations. (Every family should have a Mrs. Lefkowitz.) Here's a novel that satisfies on many levels. For most popular fiction collections.-Rebecca Sturm Kelm, Northern Kentucky Univ. Lib., Highland Heights Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.