Mrs. Everything by Jennifer Weiner is an incredible book that will make you cry but also hopeful at the same time. If you think this is just a basic summer read or perhaps that it’s overhyped, you’ll miss out on one of the best stories of the year.

There are some authors who feel like old friends—even if you’ve never met them. Jennifer Weiner is that kind of author for me. Her books marked my transition from young adult to adult books. Her first book I read was In Her Shoes, which has remained my favorite of hers—until Mrs. Everything. Both stories feature complicated relationship between sisters. But where Mrs. Everything gets the edge is the epic style storytelling as well as focusing on two sisters’ lives from the 1950s to the present as they struggle to find their places—and be true to themselves—in a rapidly evolving world.

One of the main aspects that stick out is how well researched this novel is—you can tell that Jennifer Weiner put so much work into ensuring that the eras felt true to life. Everything from the clothes, the way people talk and act to the music, all make you feel as if you’re transported back in time. There’s an authenticity to every aspect of those eras.

Something that also resonated is just how hard it was for women—especially in the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s. It’s still mindblogging that women were not able to apply for a credit card until 1975. Big WTF there. While there’s still a long way to go for women’s human rights, gender equality (hello, equal pay now) and more—this is a reminder that it used to be much worse but that also the fight never stops until true equality is achieved.

While Mrs. Everything is lengthy (481 pages), spend some time with this story full of many layers.

I am a big fan of Jennifer Weiner, and this book is by far my favorite. Mrs. Everything follows two sisters, Jo and Bethie, from 1950s Detroit to present day. We get to see them grow up and navigate their way through a world that is going through great change as they search foe their identities. I love novels that take place over an extended period of time, and this one does not disappoint. This would be a great title for book groups, with lots to discuss including, feminism, sexual assault, sibling relationships, and homosexuality. I didn't want this book to end!

I started reading this book several times and stopped because it was like reading my family history. While my own family was very different from Jo’s and Bethie’s, the experiences of each decade were very similar. As I pushed through the book, though, I began to feel a sense of unreality, as if the author were deliberately including every single horrible thing that could have possibly happened to these sisters.

I found the ending to be an unsettling blend of deep emotion and contrived silliness, which is an accurate description of end-of-life experiences for many people. It was so with my own mother’s death, where we all alternated between laughing and crying as we watched her slip away.

While the lifetime depicted matched my own in terms of decades and much of the description of social issues occurring through those years was familiar and interesting, I was unable to really connect with the sisters and actually disliked them. I am certain this book will find traction with suburban book clubs, but it was not for me.

Mrs. Everything is a multi generational/ multi perspective novel between two sisters in Detroit in the 50s and today. This book covers many hot topics from history that are still around today. Well written and fast paced, Mrs. Everything is a book that came out at just the right time. Personally, "hot topic" stories are not my favorite, so this one wasn't a top read for me, but I can see how it could be a favorite book for many! Being that I grew up in Detroit was what made me want to continue reading.

Mrs. Everything by Jennifer Weiner is a thought-provoking family saga spanning decades and alternating narratives of two sisters., Jo and Bethie. Through the years, these two sisters experience many of the same traumas and challenges, but they have vastly different impacts on their lives. Jo and Bethie attempt to find fulfillment and self-acceptance as they navigate through the everyday struggles of growing up as a woman, from the 1950s to 2000s. While I found the book to be a little long at times, telling the story of these women's lives couldn't have been done any differently. This novel explores the journey of what it means to be a female and while the times have changed, many of the issues are still present.

Thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book was everything. It could be dedicated to everyone woman and girl and feminist and man and boy out there.

In her own telling of Little Women, two sisters, Jo and Bethie are shown in the novel throughout their whole lives. They move from childhood issues, their tough teenage years and the woes of adulthood. What I loved most about the long and thorough timeline we witness in this novel is that we see the two main characters change and develop but also society around them.

Everybody knows a Jo or Bethie or is a Jo or Bethie. Without a doubt. What a great book.

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Jennifer Weiner’s latest novel is a grand undertaking and I appreciate her ambition, even if it’s not perfect. The story examines feminism, politics, and the expectations of women across generations through the lens of one family. I loved the human elements of the story, and thought Jo and Bethie’s characters were well developed. As with any story that spans multiple decades, I thought some parts were superfluous and some parts underdeveloped. Overall, 3.5 stars, rounded up.

I loved this book. I started to read it and stopped because I wasn't in the right mind-set to continue, but then I picked it up to read and finished in just 3 days. Wonderful book, makes me happy to be a woman.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for the complimentary copy of Mrs. Everything. First, I thought the book was superbly well written by Jennifer Weiner. Although I struggled with the pace and length of the story overall, the writing was remarkable. I didn’t love this book as much as I expected to after reading so many rave reviews about it — mostly due to the fact that the story seemed to drag on and on. There are also several tragedies that happen to the various characters and trigger warnings are necessary for things such as: child sexual assault, pedophilia, incest, rape, abortion, drug use, extramarital affairs, homophobia, and the list goes on. Proceed with caution if any of those subjects are especially sensitive to you.

Mrs Everything was a very intriguing title. The book jacket blurb not quite matching what you'd expect from the title. And the book itself is definitely not the typical story written by Jennifer Weiner. BUT...it is an excellent story of generations of changing trends and habits told through the lives of two sisters. Their lives span the most upheavals in American history. From their childhood in the 50's through present day, the sisters' lives are never quite what they expected. It would be a pretty boring book if "everything" included only what is expected. Jennifer Weiner is an experienced writer who builds her characters and their worlds into an realistic story that will keep you turning the pages to see what happens next while you should have been sleeping.

Mrs.Everything is the story of two sisters from the 1950's to the present. It is told in alternating viewpoints of each sister's journey in life and tells how experiences have shaped their lives. I have never read a Jennifer Weiner book that I didn't love!

I started out loving this tale of two sisters in the 1950s, dealing with tragedy and betrayal in their family, then growing up to become adult women together. The dynamic between the two reminded me a lot of my relationship with my own sisters. My issue with this book is that it becomes so wordy. Coming in at 416 pages, it's about 150 pages longer than it needed to be and all that extra wordiness makes it difficult to enjoy the story. This would be a great book, but it needs to be condensed. *Advance copy provided by the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

This was a great saga story. At times I felt like I didn’t understand the point of the book as there never really felt like a climax. However it was wonderfully written.

Jo and Bethie are about as different as two sisters can be. This book begins in the present, and then goes back to their childhood all the way back to today and into the future. This book covers so many topics from equal rights to drug use, marriage and children, love and disappointment. It was very in depth and well written.

I received a complimentary copy of this ebook from Atria Books through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Mrs. Everything was an engaging read about mothers, daughters and finding how you fit into the realm of womanhood as a whole. This is the author’s first book that didn’t fall straight into the chick-lit genre. The story offered much more depth, added more potent issues that women often confront and dove deeper into their relationships.

The two sisters, Jo and Bethie, and yes, the names are purposely reminiscent of Little Women, have a see-saw relationship. They fiercely love one another but each hold grudges, regrets, anger and just a bit of spite to the game, especially when together. They manage to stay supportive of each other although there is always that elephant in the room that just wants to roar. Their mother, another great character, was caught in the time period that felt if she ignored their “issues” they’d go away. She just wanted to box them into her image of perfect daughters.

Throughout the book there are so many themes and an equal number of triggers. The book deals with family, sudden death, sexual abuse, sisterhood, mother-daughter relationships, homosexuality, eating disorders, the roles of women in a man’s world, rebellion, interracial relationships, interfaith relationships, drug-abuse, infertility and communal living in the seventies. I’m telling you; the book holds a lot of emotion!

I am happy to note that it reads quickly because I felt it dragged on a bit too long, landing at over four-hundred pages. I never shy for lengthy books, but this one could definitely have been thinned out. If you’re interested, the author’s note does comment on why she chose to name the sisters Jo and Beth.

I loved this book! It is an sweeping tale of two sisters and all of the ups and downs (and yes, there are a lot of downs) in their lives. Good in Bed is one of my favorite books ever, but I haven't loved a Jennifer Weiner book as much since that one. Until now. The writing is beautiful, and I couldn't put it down.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advanced copy of this book..

I've been a lover of Jennifer Weiner since the beginning - but not gonna lie, some of her more recent books have just been so-so for me. This one was better than so-so but there were things I didn't like or enjoy about the book like I have her past works that I loved. The story follows a family - primarily two sisters (telling from their points of view and alternating) through the different decades. I couldn't relate much to any of the characters, which is always tough for me to like the book then. I found some parts predictable. I would have loved some parts to be expanded on - for example, there are some pretty major things that happen that she only spends a few paragraphs on when I felt like they should have been a whole chapter and then there were other parts that could have been trimmed and instead of being a whole chapter be just a few paragraphs. One other thing that bugged me is within the decades you could tell time had moved but she only gave the year at the beginning of the part and not within the chapters within that part so you don't know if 6 weeks has gone by or five years which I felt very frustrating! Overall though it was a good read and I enjoyed getting to see the sisters change and grow throughout the decades.

Mrs. Everything was book that I was seeing EVERYWHERE. I had heard of Jennifer Weiner from her various novels that have been turned into movies but I had never read any of her work. When I saw that her newest release followed sisters throughout their lives and examined what it meant to be a female over different decades in history, I knew this was a book I needed to read.

This novel follows sister Jo and Bethie Kaufman through their younger years growing up in Michigan, their time in college and emergence into adulthood and finally on into their adult lives and even as they become elderly women with deep, rich stories and families built along the way. Their story forces you to think about gender roles, sexual abuse, drug abuse, sexuality, motherhood, sibling rivalry and comparison and even more. Mrs. Everything perfectly balanced the line between a light, easy to read novel and a complicated examination of women in society. It was the perfect blend and made it difficult for me to put down.

The book did feel a bit heavy handed in the proposed idea that society is always telling women what to be and setting all the expectations but I do wish the characters had tried more to show how you can flip those standards on their head and still feel fulfilled and happy. I think the author tried to do that with the Bethie storyline towards the end but even then, her story up to that point was difficult to override. When first reading, I thought to myself "there's no way people have THIS MANY things happen to them in their lifetime" but the more I thought about it, I realized that I was coming from a very limited and privileged point of view and probably more women than I realize have had similar experiences.

Overall, I finished this book feeling more aware of other women's experiences and thinking more about what kind of expectations society has set for me and which ones I'm setting for myself. I would absolutely recommend this book to friends and readers that love character driven novels that will cause you to challenge your point of view and the way you see the women around you.

This book started out slowly for me but quickly gained momentum. Mrs. Everything is a story about two sister's lives from the 1950s to the present. This book evolves and sends us on a journey on what it means to be a female and a Mom in an ever changing world. A great read for all Moms who feel like they need to be Everything and know that it is alright just to be you!
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

While this was not my Favorite Jennifer Weiner book, this book was a good book. It was a quick read with a good story line. I think this would be an awesome beach read.