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The Girls from Ames: A Story of Women and a Forty-Year Friendship |  | Author: Jeffrey Zaslow
Publisher: Gotham
Category: Book
List Price: $16.00
Buy Used: $4.05
as of 7/29/2010 20:53 CDT details
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Seller: book-a-lot
Rating:  7 reviews
Sales Rank: 1820
Media: Paperback
Edition: Reprint
Pages: 352
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.8
ISBN: 1592405320
Dewey Decimal Number: 920
EAN: 9781592405329
ASIN: 1592405320
Publication Date: April 6, 2010
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| • | ISBN13: 9781592405329 | | • | Condition: New | | • | Notes: BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed |
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Product Description
The instant New York Times bestseller, now in paperback: a moving tribute to female friendships, with the inspiring story of eleven girls and the ten women they became, from the coauthor of the million-copy bestseller The Last Lecture
As children, they formed a special bond, growing up in the small town of Ames, Iowa. As young women, they moved to eighth different states, yet they managed to maintain an extraordinary friendship that would carry them through college and careers, marriage and motherhood, dating and divorce, the death of a child, and the mysterious death of the eleventh member of their group. Capturing their remarkable story, The Girls from Ames is a testament to the enduring, deep bonds of women as they experience life's challenges, and the power of friendship to overcome even the most daunting odds.
The girls, now in their forties, have a lifetime of memories in common, some evocative of their generation and some that will resonate with any woman who has ever had a friend. The Girls from Ames demonstrates how close female relationships can shape every aspect of women's lives-their sense of themselves, their choice of men, their need for validation, their relationships with their mothers, their dreams for their daughters-and reveals how such friendships thrive, rewarding those who have committed to them. With both universal events and deeply personal moments, it's a book that every woman will relate to and be inspired by.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 7
 Truly an inspiring story of friendship June 22, 2010
Gerrie B. Shaeffer (Goldsboro, NC)
I never thought when I read this book that I would get so interested in the lives of these 11 girls. But as I read I found myself immersed into every detail of the stories they shared. I laughed with them, I cried with them over the 2 deaths, and I really felt like I connected with several of the girls. As I read I could relate to differnt girls at different times. I am a lot like Karla because we both need our sleep and we both need our coffee or we are grumpy. I also can relate to Marilyn when she said she takes a "be-a-nice-mommy-instead-of-a-bitch-pill".
I never really thought about how much friendships really mean. I thought having one good friend was all that a person needed, but when my friend was killed in a car wreck I had noone there for comfort. After reading this book I have a new perspective on friendships and the impact they have on everyday living.
I give this book 5 stars and recommend it to everyone...whether you have a lot of friends or not.
excellent service! May 19, 2010
Margie (Deer Park, NY United States)
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
Excellent Service...book was actually received within 24 hours! (I expected "snail-mail" book delivery, and was very pleasantly surprised by the expedient service! ) Thank You!
Left Me Laughing, Crying and a Little Bit Jealous June 1, 2010
Daenel
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The Girls from Ames: A Story of Women & a Forty~Year Friendship is an intimate look at the friendships of eleven women over a forty~year period. Interspersed with studies that highlight the importance of the development and maintenance of close relationships in the health and well~being of women, The Girls from Ames is part sociology study, part biography and part cultural reference book. The women came of age just at the tail end of the Baby Boom, so they are the immediate benefactors of the women's rights movement and other social changes that marked the 60s, 70s and 80s. It was fun to read about the different hairstyles and clothes the women wore and the music they listened to as their stories unfolded, these cultural references provided a musical and visual backdrop against which their stories could be shared by women from different walks of life.
During a weekend reunion, the women shared the details of their relationships (some good, some bad) with author, Jeffrey Zaslow. They also invited him to look at scrapbooks, read emails, interview friends, quasi~enemies and family to find out what has kept the girls so closely knit when other relationships have unraveled. At points, it seemed that the ladies' relationships were ebbing but the women proved that they did not need constant contact to remain close, especially when email came about and they were able to simply hit "Reply All."
The women have supported each other through elementary school, high school and beyond. They've offered shoulders to cry on when they've been given devastating news and they've given tough love when it was warranted. But more than anything else, they've been there for each other. Even when they didn't agree with the choices that the other was making, they let their feeling be known and then they offered support... That the women were able to love each other unconditionally, even when the other's choices conflicted with their religious or moral beliefs was one of the things that stood out most to me ~ unconditional, unfailing, all~encompassing love.
In many ways, you can tell the author is a journalist; each vignette is punctuated by studies that point out the importance of life~long friendships to women and their health. At first, I found the analysis to be intrusive and more than a bit annoying, however, by the end of the book, I was impressed with how much these women supported the data presented. The overriding conclusion of all of the data presented in the book and supported by the women's lives indicates that women who have strong friendships live happier and healthier lives ~ and when diagnosed with an illness, their chances of survival are increased significantly.
Part of the charm of this story is that each woman offers something to the reader with which they can identify, but more than that is the emotional tug~of~war of the story. At points, I found myself laughing and other times I found myself crying. In the end, I found myself a whole lot jealous. These women have the type of friendship that goes beyond the casual acquaintances that many of us share. They are soul sisters in every sense of the word. I believe the greatest lesson to be learned from this book is to treasure the people around you and never take anyone for granted.
Disclosure: I received this book free from Penguin Group in exchange for a review. I am not required to write a positive review, just an honest one.
Courtesy of Mother Daughter [...] April 30, 2010
Cynthia Hudson (Portland, OR)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The Girls from Ames follows the 40-year friendship of 11 women from Ames, Iowa. Though they are now living in places all over the country, these women have continued to nurture the friendship they built in their school days. They have been available to support each other during the high points of their lives as well as when they faced personal crises.
While I was not always interested in the details of these women's lives--after all how many of us can say that what we liked in high school would be fascinating for others to read about--I was struck by the value their friendship has brought them in so many ways.
The topics of friendship, family, personal response to tragedy and having a place to call home are prominent throughout The Girls from Ames. Stories are told about the girls and women as individuals, and to illustrate the role they each play as a member of the group.
When I started reading the story, I worked hard to keep track of each woman and her circumstances, but I soon came to feel that each person's importance is more as a representation of the kind of person she is than as an individual in this specific group. Often, things they said or did reminded me of people I know in my own life.
In the end I felt The Girls from Ames by Jeffrey Zaslow provides a way for us to reflect on and talk about the value of long-time friendship in our lives. I believe it should prompt discussions within a mother-daughter book clubs with girls aged 16 and up about their own relationships.
Fantastic Book May 6, 2010
Christy J. Santo
I heard an interview with the author online with OnPoint Radio out of MA and two of the friends were also interviewed. I later got the book and it is fantastic and makes me wish I had been able to hold onto my women friends from my younger days. It is a book I will definitely be recommending or even passing on my own copy so others can read this fantastic book as well.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 7
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