Big Little Lies

Genre: Fiction

This is the story of Jane, a single mother to son, Ziggy, who is new to a beach town off the coast of Australia. Jane quickly befriends Madeline, mom to three children, including her youngest, Chloe, Ziggy’s new friend. Madeline introduces Jane to her bestie, Celeste, mom to twin boys and the woman who has it all: looks, wealth and the perfect husband. The story follows these three women, and several more members of their school community. During one of the school’s fundraisers, something happens and police and EMT’s are involved. This is a story of friendship, betrayal and love, but most importantly, this story reaffirms that things are never what they seem. And, really, you will never guess what happens at the end!

I love when books open the proverbial windows out to the world and explore the more difficult aspects of humanity; domestic abuse, bullying, cheating and divorce. But because of my nature, I really love the stories that show that despite various struggles, we have the capacity, with strength, determination and perseverance, to overcome anything. This book, in my mind, presented these aspects (and some others as well) of humanity, but didn’t really show the capacity for survival and success, so, for me, it fell short. While the ending was good, really good, it feels like the successful end was circumstantial and not due to anyone’s specific choice.

Don’t get me wrong, this book is an enjoyable read and you’ll want to find out what happens to these really well-developed characters. But this feels like reading a tabloid magazine like People (I'm not knocking People…it’s one of my favorite guilty pleasures). It’s a little voyeuristic and kind of tawdry, but you still enjoy it.

I’ve also watched the first season of the HBO series produced by Reese Witherspoon. Do yourself a favor and watch that too (you can rent it from the library as I did). It’s one of the best book adaptations I’ve seen (some of the details are different, but still good). Nicole Kidman who plays Celeste, is particularly brilliant. It's now on its second season.