Gets one to thinking, are we invisible even when we're present? ( )

An interesting premise that is incompletely realized. A woman with grown children, in her middle years, becomes invisible...and her husband and children don't notice. They never look at her close enough to notice. Very few other people do, either, but the author drops that ball, not using that possibility to develop the idea that most people don't look at middle aged women. She does allow her characters to have some fun with it, but it seems there are a lot of possibilities that weren't explored. Also, it was a disappointment to discover the reason the women turned invisible - yes, women. She joins a group of invisible women. With the premise she set up, it seemed likely she went invisible simply because no one ever saw her, but no, it was Big Pharma. The women were all on a particular drug combination, and ended up fighting the pharmaceutical company. What could have been a great novel becomes an okay novel, well written, no particular editing errors, but not fully realized. It becomes yet another entry in the "bad chemicals" genre, when it could have been a marvelous psychological piece. ( )

“I first noticed I was missing on a Thursday.”
― Jeanne Ray, Calling Invisible Women

I loved "Calling Invisible Women". I first heard about this book when I read a review on it and it just looked so good. So I got my hands on a copy.

Imagine just waking up one morning and realizing nobody can see you? How scary that must be? And that is exactly what happens to Clover.

I will not reveal how or why until I get into spoilers which I will in a moment. But I just want to comment on how fresh and really FUN this book was. I could not get enough of it. It really lived up to the hype.

OK..Now..SPOILERS:

I have to do spoilers because I want to talk about how some people falsely labeled this "fluff". Nothing could be further from the truth. This book may APPEAR to be light and breezy and some parts are, (as well as really witty). But this isn't sweetness and light. It covers so much ground, from our roles as Women to unemployment to becoming a scathing indictment on the Pharmaceutical industry. I think both sexes can enjoy this. It is not and will never be chick lit.

I would give it 5 of 5 stars. ( )

I love all of Jeanne Ray's books. I never want her books to end.. ( )

This was a poolside read with much substance! Clover, wife and mother, upon reaching a certain age, discovers one day that she is literally invisible to everyone. But her family doesn‘t notice, as they‘ve taken her for granted for years. Clover discovers that there are other invisible women as well, and learn what caused their invisibleness. Some of them, including Clover, find self-empowerment. It‘s funny with thoughtful moments. It was interesting to find out that the author is the mother of Ann Patchett. ( )