[.ca] Sheila Levine Is Dead And Living In New York City (ISBN 1585674710)

With a grain of salt:
I was strongly urged to read this book by one of my friends, who is not necessarily a women's lib feminist, but nevertheless, all for a single woman's revelution. I finally got myself to the local bookstore and picked up a copy. I finished it yesterday. In so many ways, I can relate to this protagonist. Sheila's family waits, rather impatiently, for her to marry, her friend seems to get all the guys, and she could lose a few pounds. Soon enough, when she hits 30, she is sick of living as the laughing stock of her family - her younger sister is even married and with child. Sheila decides to kill herself. Even though many of the things that are discussed in this book are very true and real, some of the narration was awkward (eg going for an entire chapter telling a story and then addressing the readers, specifically her parents. It seemed choppy and forced in places). I also was dissapointed in the ending, but I'll let you read that and decide for yourself. Overall, 'Sheila Levine is Dead and Living in New York' is very funny, and makes the reader consider points that probably haven't been discussed before, even though a lot of the events and mannerisms are rather dated.

Such a find!:
I am so glad this book was re-released for my reading pleasure. A little different from my usual reads, but worth every minute. Sheila is a 30 something unmarried, unattractive, overweight Jewish woman living in NYC and hating every minute of it. A controlling mother, no real friends and alone in the city that never sleeps. Sheila's answer to her misery is to commit suicide. The entire book is her suicide note to all the people in her life that have caused her pain. Sheils gets all her affairs in order including her will, the Rabbi to read her eulogy, her cemetary plots, etc and wants to make sure that everyone knows that she died because she was not a married woman. This is a serious issue but has some LOL moments that will keep you reading until you finish the last page.

One of the Original Chick-Lits:
This book is fantastic. So much wit and humor. The plight of Manhattan women seems to be a timeless theme and no one does it better than Parent.

It's about time!:
My copy of Shiela Levine lives in a plastic ziploc bag since it's been slowly falling apart for years (each consecutive reading causes another page to come loose). I'm so thrilled to be able to read this again without being afraid of losing an irreplacable page to this previously discontinued book. I can't recommend it highly enough. If you liked Bridget Jones, you'll love Shiela.

Funny as a crutch!:
First, let me say that this is a well written book. I guess that's why it so disturbed me. But if you are looking for humor, move on. This is nothing like those Bridget Jones clones. It's really very sad and now I know what all my single friends have been going through all these years (I myself have NEVER been single. 'Always a bride, never a bridesmaid', that's my motto!!) The book is presented as a suicide note and even though Sheila does not "off herself" by the end, it still has no happy resolution, or any light at the end of a long, dark tunnel. The other female characters are by and large, self-centered and unsympathetic, and the male characters----'fugettaboutdem'! But it's a good book!