Lessons In Laughing Out Loud. Rowan Coleman (2000) - Plot & Excerpts
I saw this book in Tesco and thought it looked good but didn't buy it for whatever reason. When I went back a few weeks later it had gone! After finally getting it sent to me on Amazon, I took it as my holiday reading as I was looking forward to reading it.I really enjoyed the huge chunk I read on the plane. Willow appealed to me a lot and her being overweight, perpetually single, seemingly dissatisfied with her life despite having a good job working for a celebrity agency, and comparing her life to that of her twin intrigued me. The real hook for me though was the strange shop in the square and the magic shoes and coat. That added a touch of what I love about Cecelia Ahern. Then came the famous celeb with the love-life crisis in her flat, and the pregnant teenage ex-step-daughter which only added to the mix in a good way. We then have her own complex love life - feelings for her 'best friend', unfinished business with her ex-husband and new possibilities with 'Serious James', who is portrayed as being a bit of a unfortunate, self-depreciating geek.I loved this book until about two thirds of the way through it, then somehow the gloss started to wear off and I only liked it. I felt that perhaps the plot was too busy - there were a lot of great threads or sub-plots, so that I wasn't really sure what them main plot was any more. I guess ultimately, it was the resolution of Willow's unspoken problems with her life, all stemming from events in her past which hadn't been dealt with properly, leading to the 'happy ending' with...whichever man she decides to choose! The plot-hook hinted at on the back cover (the secret from her past that binds her closely to her sister) isn't really addressed until right at the end of the book. It seems to suggest a different kind of story than it ends up being - like the author couldn't decide what type of book they wanted to write. I really find it irritating when people write in reviews that they "saw the twist coming a mile away", but nevertheless, I didn't think it was very hard to guess what had happened to her in the past. It didn't make it any less sad, although I shed no tears for Willow however likeable she is.I'm glad that she didn't end up 'losing weight and becoming happy' which I had expected as it's so often the case with books featuring an overweight and unhappy main character, and apart from one comment about "the wrong side of a size 14" (whatever that's supposed to mean!), I didn't notice any negativity in this portrayal of a big girl. She ended up happy with her size, even though I suppose you could interpret the underlying message as "she's only fat because bad things happened to her so it's not her fault".The Cecelia-Ahern element just ended up being a bit disappointing as well as it didn't come to much and wasn't really explained properly! It was actually largely irrelevent in the end as her newfound 'courage' seemed to come not from a fur coat and a pair of shoes or any old locket, but from the dilemmas faced by her nearest and dearest around her that forced her to step up to the mark and get over her own demons.Oh, and one thing that really irritated me was the unrealistic way the children spoke! Rowan Coleman does not write children well if this book is anything to go by. I've never known children speak like that! On the plus side, Chloe's teenage character was very well done, I felt.Overall, I enjoyed the book and would recommend it to friends as a good read, but perhaps I just built it up in my head too much due to having to hunt it down in the first place! It was a good holiday read, and I hope that I could one day write a book at least as good as this. :) In Lessons in Laughing Out Loud, several conflicts are woven together to create a work of contemporary fiction at it's best. I wanted to read this book constantly as each reveal occurred, right until 20 pages from the end. Then it took me over a week to read the last 20 pages, because I slowed to a crawl as I didn't want to reach the end.Willow is a likeable protagonist, as flawed as any human being but written in a way that makes you think the author knows this woman (or women like her). Fundamentally this book is about human relationships; the good, the bad, and the shockingly, hideously evil.There are three men in this book; the traditional Alpha Male, irresistible Daniel, the one that got away Sam, and the faltering geeky type, James. They are written in such a way that you like all of them and have no idea who will end up with Willow until the conclusion is reached.But this book is so much more than romance. It's about relationships at work, at home, everywhere. I particularly liked the character of Willow's control-freak boss, who, despite seeming like the boss from hell in some respects, is a fascinating character to read. But the relationship that struck a chord with me was that of Willow and Chloe, Sam's daughter. Having a step daughter myself I can relate to the love between them, and this is what had me reading through tears towards the end of the book.I recommend this book to anyone out there who likes a bit of romance but with added meat to the story. You will not be disappointed.
What do You think about Lessons In Laughing Out Loud. Rowan Coleman (2000)?
A Beautiful & moving story. It was so much more than I was expecting from the blurb on the back.
—glindaalexandra
I loved this book it showed me that there is good in everything that happens in my life
—mel
I thought it was well written and I enjoyed the story.
—mysha
Hands down, one of the most amazing books EVER!
—marilpl
