I'm Not Julia Roberts

by Laura Ruby

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78	4	344,224	(2.88)	6
Does every second wife look like Julia Roberts? Lu Klein certainly doesn't, and her life is anything but glamorous. When she married a man with children, Lu had no idea that she was also marrying his shrewish ex-wife, Beatrix. And Beatrix had no idea that making a new home with her second husband would mean welcoming her wicked teenage stepdaughter, Liv. And Liv's mother Roxie had no idea that so many new and exciting boyfriends could make her long for the stable life she and her ex had too eagerly left behind. In this tightly interconnected collection of ten short stories, author Laura Ruby chronicles the progress of Lu, Beatrix, Roxie and their various steps and exes as they take the perilous plunge into the maelstrom of the so-called "blended family." Both ruefully funny and wickedly insightful, I Am Not Julia Roberts offers finely-observed, honest and affecting takes on kids, step-kids, divorce, remarriage...and the movie Stepmom.… (more)

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Interconnected stories depicting the blended American family in a brutally honest way. What I particulary liked about the book was that each character got their turn at explaining how they felt about their family situation. Stepmother, bio mom, bio dad, stepdad, dad's new girlfriend, they were all given a chance to express how it felt to be taking care of someone else's kids or to have some stranger taking care of their own kids or dealing with the bitterness of the ex-wife or ex-husband. A serious subject but with enough humor and hope thrown in to keep it from being depressing. (

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CatieN | Feb 27, 2012 |

This book is like a photograph album: a series of views on a group of people who are connected (or disconnected) by marriage. It's a reflection on the role of parents and step-parents in blended families.

It's a subject I find fascinating and Laura Ruby's insights into the lives of her characters are deep and sympathetic. Her writing is engaging, humorous and intelligent. Enjoyed it. (

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AJBraithwaite | May 2, 2011 |

Ruby interweaves a number of families which interconnect due to the divorces and remarriages. She does a good job of presenting characters who hate one another sympathetically. It is evident that she is a stepmother herself, and writes about the many no-win situations that arise from that condition with accuracy. (

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robinamelia | Aug 1, 2009 |

This book is an absolute laugh riot about blended families (stepparents, half-brothers and sisters, ex-wives and husbands, etc.).

However, as I laughed, I felt a bit of pity for the kids. The sarcastic tone in this book might be too much for people to handle. (

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bastet | Sep 29, 2007 |

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Does every second wife look like Julia Roberts? Lu Klein certainly doesn't, and her life is anything but glamorous. When she married a man with children, Lu had no idea that she was also marrying his shrewish ex-wife, Beatrix. And Beatrix had no idea that making a new home with her second husband would mean welcoming her wicked teenage stepdaughter, Liv. And Liv's mother Roxie had no idea that so many new and exciting boyfriends could make her long for the stable life she and her ex had too eagerly left behind. In this tightly interconnected collection of ten short stories, author Laura Ruby chronicles the progress of Lu, Beatrix, Roxie and their various steps and exes as they take the perilous plunge into the maelstrom of the so-called "blended family." Both ruefully funny and wickedly insightful, I Am Not Julia Roberts offers finely-observed, honest and affecting takes on kids, step-kids, divorce, remarriage...and the movie Stepmom.

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