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We Are All Made of Glue
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Review
An exuberantly comic writer whose work is characterised by both great humanity and unusual charm (Evening Standard )
A witty, touching story about an unlikely friendship (Express )
Gorgeously funny (Independent )
Had me crying with laughter (Daily Telegraph )
Vibrant dialogue, a family in meltdown, a clash of cultures and wonderful cast of expertly observed characters. Pure laugh-out-loud social comedy (Daily Mail )
Hilarious. A big-hearted confection of the comic and the poignant (Literary Review )
A big, bustling novel, told with enthusiasm by a narrator who is warm, winningly disaster-prone and, crucially, believable (Spectator )
Georgie is a lively, intensely sympathetic narrator ... brimming with warmth and busyness (Guardian )
Marina Lewycka is an instantly likeable writer, funny, intelligent and refreshingly generous in her assessments of people and their motivations. She writes about modern life so well. An extremely enjoyable read (New Statesman )
Uplifting. Lewycka's style is so appealing, so friendly (Sunday Times )
A truly engaging and funny book (Woman )
Lewycka is a good, serious writer with a strong, original voice (Sunday Telegraph )
A witty, touching story about an unlikely friendship (Express )
Gorgeously funny (Independent )
Had me crying with laughter (Daily Telegraph )
Vibrant dialogue, a family in meltdown, a clash of cultures and wonderful cast of expertly observed characters. Pure laugh-out-loud social comedy (Daily Mail )
Hilarious. A big-hearted confection of the comic and the poignant (Literary Review )
A big, bustling novel, told with enthusiasm by a narrator who is warm, winningly disaster-prone and, crucially, believable (Spectator )
Georgie is a lively, intensely sympathetic narrator ... brimming with warmth and busyness (Guardian )
Marina Lewycka is an instantly likeable writer, funny, intelligent and refreshingly generous in her assessments of people and their motivations. She writes about modern life so well. An extremely enjoyable read (New Statesman )
Uplifting. Lewycka's style is so appealing, so friendly (Sunday Times )
A truly engaging and funny book (Woman )
Lewycka is a good, serious writer with a strong, original voice (Sunday Telegraph )
A very funny and touching story of a friendship and a mystery unravelled
(Woman & Home )
Product Description
From bonding to bondage, from B&Q to Belarus, along with seven smelly cats, three useless handymen, two slimy estate agents, social workers, a bonker lady. The story of a very unlikely friendship.
Georgie Sinclair's husband has walked out; her sixteen-year-old son is busy surfing born-again websites; and all those overdue articles for Adhesives in the Modern World are getting her down.
So when Georgie spots Mrs Shapiro, an eccentric old Jewish émigré neighbour with an eye for a bargain and a fondness for matchmaking, rummaging through her skip in the middle of the night, it's just the distraction she needs. And although they mistrust each other at first - Georgie doesn't like the look of that past-its-sell-by-date fish, while Mrs Shapiro thinks Georgie needs to smarten herself up and grab a new husband - a firm friendship is formed over the reduced-price shelf at the supermarket.
Then Mrs Shapiro is admitted to hospital and to Georgie's surprise, she is named as her next of kin. But sorting out Mrs Shapiro's semi-derelict mansion in Highbury, home to seven stinky cats with agendas of their own, is no easy job when the handyman called in to change the locks turns out to be not what he seems and his two assistants, 'the Uselesses', are doing more breaking than fixing.
And what about the two slimy estate agents (one with a charming taste for bondage) who start competing to trick Mrs Shapiro into selling her rickety old house, or the social worker determined to commit her to a nursing home?
As Georgie steps in to help her new friend, she finds herself unravelling a mystery which takes her from Highbury to wartime Europe to the Middle East, and learning a bit about DIY along the way.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
43 of 44 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I loved this warm, funny story about two lonely women who form an unlikely but very touching friendship.
When she's not editing online articles about adhesives, Georgie is penning her hilariously bad romantic novel 'The Splattered Heart' and dreaming of lantern-jawed heroes. There are some very funny moments but, as with Marina Lewycka's previous book, Two Caravans, there's a serious side as well.
After being named as her next of kin when Mrs Shapiro goes into hospital, Georgie unravels her neighbour's history through a series of hidden letters and photographs, spanning the rise of Hitler and the Arab-Israeli conflict, with some pretty shocking discoveries along the way.
Mrs Shapiro is a wonderfully colourful creation and Marina Lewycka's brilliant ear for dialogue is very much in evidence. Unfortunately there's no 'Dog' this time, but there are plenty of cats to keep animal lovers happy (I loved 'Wonder Boy').
After being a bit underwhelmed by Tractors (I blame the hype) but loving Caravans, I wasn't sure what to expect this time, but on the evidence of her latest book Marina Lewycka gets better and better. The 'message' is perhaps a little cheesy - something to do with the 'glue' that holds us all together - but totally forgivable as the endearing characters and gentle humour made this a really entertaining and uplifting read.
When she's not editing online articles about adhesives, Georgie is penning her hilariously bad romantic novel 'The Splattered Heart' and dreaming of lantern-jawed heroes. There are some very funny moments but, as with Marina Lewycka's previous book, Two Caravans, there's a serious side as well.
After being named as her next of kin when Mrs Shapiro goes into hospital, Georgie unravels her neighbour's history through a series of hidden letters and photographs, spanning the rise of Hitler and the Arab-Israeli conflict, with some pretty shocking discoveries along the way.
Mrs Shapiro is a wonderfully colourful creation and Marina Lewycka's brilliant ear for dialogue is very much in evidence. Unfortunately there's no 'Dog' this time, but there are plenty of cats to keep animal lovers happy (I loved 'Wonder Boy').
After being a bit underwhelmed by Tractors (I blame the hype) but loving Caravans, I wasn't sure what to expect this time, but on the evidence of her latest book Marina Lewycka gets better and better. The 'message' is perhaps a little cheesy - something to do with the 'glue' that holds us all together - but totally forgivable as the endearing characters and gentle humour made this a really entertaining and uplifting read.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Marina Lewycka's book are like plain brown paper parcels that contain something wonderful titles about 'tractors' caravans' and 'glue' may not get your pulse racing but this is beautifully crafted, effortlessly funny stuff. I am not really fussed if I laughed a little bit less with this one than her previous books...laughs in fiction are few and far between so, I applaud anyone who genuinely put a big smile on my mush. I love the fact that while the touch is delicate - the issues can be heavyweight...painful conflicts, marital break-down, scandelous care of the elderly and a son obsessed with Armagedon.
I love the subtle homour....it's hard to give an example without blowing the plot but a suitably ditzy would-be novelist befriends an insane 'lady' of indeterminate age and origin and has to poke around her gruesomely smelly house - incontinent old ladies/many cats etc...the bathroom is suitably disgusting but, a fairy Godmother social worker dismisses the appalling state with a kindly "There's no accounting for cultural diversity"...a quote I'll memorise and use again I am sure.
great book...
I love the subtle homour....it's hard to give an example without blowing the plot but a suitably ditzy would-be novelist befriends an insane 'lady' of indeterminate age and origin and has to poke around her gruesomely smelly house - incontinent old ladies/many cats etc...the bathroom is suitably disgusting but, a fairy Godmother social worker dismisses the appalling state with a kindly "There's no accounting for cultural diversity"...a quote I'll memorise and use again I am sure.
great book...
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Personally I think that this author just keeps getting better with each novel published. Or maybe it is just that I have just got used to her distinctive style of combining the hilarious with the tragic.
As in her previous novels I thoroughly enjoyed the excellent portrayal of her cast of characters. What a wonderful cast of characters they are from the two main protagonists Georgie Sinclair and the elderly Naomi Shapiro right down to the smallest bit parts. Even the seven cats in the story have characters of their own.
Marina Lewycka even manages to find something amusing in glue, by using the fact that her main protagonist writes trade articles on adhesives as a clever ruse for appropriate section and chapter names. Some bits were a little scientific and went over my head, but that didn't matter. If I had been so inclined I could have done some research on adhesives but no I am not that interested. I understood enough and it was clever using glue as an allegory for human relationships and bonds, excuse the pun! At least that is how I interpreted it.
Georgie Sinclair is a journalist and would be authoress working from home, dealing with almost adult children and a marriage that is slipping away from her. She gets to know by chance an eccentric old Jewish lady, Naomi Shapiro who lives in Canaan House a rambling but crumbling residence in the same locality. As if Georgie does not have enough to cope with, Naomi after a minor fall puts her in hospital names Georgie as her next of kin. So she finds herself with a lot more than a son obsessed with the end of the world and her daughter who keeps her distance to worry about. As she is drawn into the old woman's life, we meet a cast of eccentric characters from devious estate agents and social workers to handymen who just happen to be Arabs. Hilarious yes, but we also learn of the complexities of the Middle East Crisis. If you are at all sensitive you might find some of the descriptions of what happened to the Jews, yes glue again and the state of Naomi's residence might well make you feel slightly nauseous. Sadly the first is a fact of life and the second a sad possibility for a lonely old lady living alone. As Georgie tries desperately to put Naomi's life on a more even keel her own is falling apart. You will have realised by now that the coherence, yes glue again, of this story is not an easy one but I felt that Marina Lewycka's manages to tie up all the loose ends and give us a more than satisfactory ending although some may consider it a little trite.
I certainly recommend the work of this author and if you have enjoyed her previous novels will be surprised if you do not enjoy this one.
As in her previous novels I thoroughly enjoyed the excellent portrayal of her cast of characters. What a wonderful cast of characters they are from the two main protagonists Georgie Sinclair and the elderly Naomi Shapiro right down to the smallest bit parts. Even the seven cats in the story have characters of their own.
Marina Lewycka even manages to find something amusing in glue, by using the fact that her main protagonist writes trade articles on adhesives as a clever ruse for appropriate section and chapter names. Some bits were a little scientific and went over my head, but that didn't matter. If I had been so inclined I could have done some research on adhesives but no I am not that interested. I understood enough and it was clever using glue as an allegory for human relationships and bonds, excuse the pun! At least that is how I interpreted it.
Georgie Sinclair is a journalist and would be authoress working from home, dealing with almost adult children and a marriage that is slipping away from her. She gets to know by chance an eccentric old Jewish lady, Naomi Shapiro who lives in Canaan House a rambling but crumbling residence in the same locality. As if Georgie does not have enough to cope with, Naomi after a minor fall puts her in hospital names Georgie as her next of kin. So she finds herself with a lot more than a son obsessed with the end of the world and her daughter who keeps her distance to worry about. As she is drawn into the old woman's life, we meet a cast of eccentric characters from devious estate agents and social workers to handymen who just happen to be Arabs. Hilarious yes, but we also learn of the complexities of the Middle East Crisis. If you are at all sensitive you might find some of the descriptions of what happened to the Jews, yes glue again and the state of Naomi's residence might well make you feel slightly nauseous. Sadly the first is a fact of life and the second a sad possibility for a lonely old lady living alone. As Georgie tries desperately to put Naomi's life on a more even keel her own is falling apart. You will have realised by now that the coherence, yes glue again, of this story is not an easy one but I felt that Marina Lewycka's manages to tie up all the loose ends and give us a more than satisfactory ending although some may consider it a little trite.
I certainly recommend the work of this author and if you have enjoyed her previous novels will be surprised if you do not enjoy this one.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
We Are All Made of Glue
Marina Lewycka is a brilliant writer. I am currently reading one of her newer novels "Various Pets Alive and Dead", which as usual is extremely enjoyable. Read more
Published 22 days ago by Ms Sally Kirkman
Another Must-Read from Marina Lewycka
another gem from this brilliant author with all the pathos, humour, adventure and disappointment of everyday life portrayed in her unique and sensitive style. Read more
Published 1 month ago by audilady
Her best book
This was a wonderful book and one of the best of her books. I laughed our loud and also felt sad. She touches on big and sensitive issues with a light touch and a great depth of... Read more
Published 2 months ago by RN
Glue
I didn't enjoy this book at all. In fact 7 of us read it as part of a book club and only 1 out of the 7 liked it and 3 didn't even finish it because it was that bad.
Published 7 months ago by Holly
Dreary
I loved a short history of tractors in ukrainian and I loved two caravans but I have failed with this book. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Maria
heart warming
I'm a big fan of Marina's stories but this one is definately the best. Very enertaining even though main characters are going through some tough times. Read more
Published 15 months ago by iva.b
Better than Caravans
I delayed getting this book, after being rather disappointed with Caravans. However, Glue is a much better read than Caravans or Tractors, even if there is one chapter that gets... Read more
Published 15 months ago by Colin
Maybe a marmite author?
Reviewers seem pretty split down the middle on this book and I definitely come down on the 'love it' side. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Murphysgirl
Not sure...
This is the first book by Marina Lewycka that I have read. From reading other reviews I was expecting this to be a very funny book - it wasn't. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Janine Routley
excellent entertaining read
This book is a wonderful tale of an unlikely friendship conquering loneliness, the characters are endearing and interesting and its an easy to read entertaining story. Read more
Published 18 months ago by naomiella
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