Sisterhood Everlasting by Ann Brashares

Friday, July 29, 2011

Genre: General Fiction - series
Rating: 2 stars

Review: I was an actual young adult when I first picked up The Sisterhood and the Traveling Pants. I've always been a fan of the characters - Lena, Carmen, Bridget, and Tibby. They all stand out to me, and the author, Ann Brashares, always seems to capture my attention every single time. So when I heard she just came out with the next (and final) book in this lovable series, I was ecstatic. After all, I wanted to know where the sisterhood went after all this years.

Well, I have to be honest; I feel many things - mostly conflicting thoughts. Do I like it, do I not, do I at least appreciate it, do I just wish it was never written... I am not so sure what I truly think of it entirely.

The pros - these characters are back. I love them, and was glad to hear more about them and their lives. I thought the plot development was great, and the author showcases her skill and talent once again. She really knows how to make the situations and events in her stories come alive. I like the pace, and I like the overall narration of the story.

The cons - this is not a 'Sisterhood' book to me. It didn't feel like one, and it didn't read like one. I also did not like how the characters turned out - for some reason I felt as if their once-realistic and believable personalities and characteristics are really gone. And I know people grow up and change as years go by, but I didn't truly believe that these specific changes would actually happen. There were also times when the book itself felt self-indulgent in a way, and a bit contrived.

Would I recommend it? Probably. I think others would probably like this more than I did - to each his own, right?
For me, the overall conclusion put me down a bit. So I guess, overall, I am disappointed by this book. As a long-time fan, I didn't really like the significant changes that were made. Perhaps that is the message behind it. But for me, personally, I actually sort of wish I didn't read it at all. Not because it was a bad book - not at all - but because I wish this was not how the lives of some of my favorite characters had to end.

9 comments:

  1. Thats too bad this one dissapointed. I enjoyed The Sisterhood and the Traveling Pants as well.

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  2. I've been hearing some negatives about this one. Such a bummer too. Thanks for your honesty.

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  3. I had read the first two books in the series in high school, and I had loved them. Too bad this one is disappointing. The best thing about the characters was that they were easy to relate to, and very believable. I am sorry that is missing here. Great honest review!

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  4. If you think about it, the last book before this one was not very "Sisterhood" like either. The girls were hardly together, and if you think about it, the whole series was a bit idealistic. As much as I loved it, I was surprised there was no jealousy between the girls ever. Isn't it just real life when 2 girls are closer to one another than to the other 2? I didn't believe that much.

    That being said, I read this book in 6 hours on a Friday night and I really enjoyed it. Sure, it was dark and didn't go how I thought it would have but I thought a good job was done. It was certainly an ADULT version of this series. I wish though - the one part I don't want to spoil - sort of happened later. If you know what I mean.

    I'm not sure if you've read Three Willows by Ann, but you should give it a try. It started a bit slow for me but I thought she did a great job of plotting around realistic friendships around 8th grade. There are also some cameos by the Sisterhood gals.

    Hope you have a great weekend!

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  5. +JMJ+

    Oh, man! I know exactly what you mean about not liking the adults whom young characters grow up to be. =( If I ever do complete the YA books of Sisterhood series, I'll be curious about this one--but I don't know if I'll like it any more than you do. =/

    This reminds me of a fan's satirical prediction about what happens to the members of the Baby-sitters Club when they grow up. It wasn't serious, of course, but each future scenario had a solid basis in the original books--and lots of other fans left comments saying they could totally see most of that stuff happening. Well, this fan didn't. =(

    But you're probably right that the overarching message is that growing up is sad and often anti-climactic. But few people mourn the "death" of bright, memorable characters more than those same individuals' adult selves.

    (Interesting note: Ann Brashares was one of the ghostwriters who stepped in to help Ann M. Martin with the BSC series!)

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  6. The series is not my thing but I know exactly what you mean. It's happened to me. You pick up the next book in the series and maybe it's come out after a while, and its all changed; different. That's so sad and disappointing. I know this series is loved by many, so it's such a shame.

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  7. That's a shame! I've had this one in my TBR pile but I've been wary of reading it because I love the series so much and I don't want to be disappointed. I'll still read it though but it sucks that the series seems to end on a low note.

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  8. naida - Maybe we should just re-read the entire series if we miss them! :)

    Juju - If you are thinking of reading it, I'll be interested on hearing what you end up thinking about it.

    Misha - The best thing was those two qualities you mentioned for sure! I felt like they were my real friends when I read them as a teen, so it's sad that they ended up like this.

    Funfetti - Like I mentioned, I could definitely see how other fans and readers of this series would like it, but for me, for personal reasons, I did not like how it ended. Oh and I've always planned to read 3 Willows but for some reason never got around to it.

    E - Ah I don't know if I would want to know what would happen to those characters either. I'd like to think I can make up my own future for them and be okay with it haha. Oh and I definitely did not know about that interesting tidbit about the author, thanks!

    aly - I am one of those people that truly loved this series as a teen! Sad to see them go this way.

    Belle - I think other people would like this.. I think it was just me that really got thrown off with all the twists and turns. I'd still recommend it just so you can see for yourself what you think of it.

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  9. Aw, I'm kind of nervous about picking it up now if it was disappointing and the book didn't have that Sisterhood feel :(

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