Watermelon

February the fifteenth is a very special day for me. It is the day I gave birth to my first child. It is also the day my husband left me...I can only assume the two events weren't entirely unrelated.

Claire has everything she ever wanted: a husband she adores, a great apartment, a good job. Then, on the day she gives birth to their first baby, James informs her that he's leaving her. Claire is left with a newborn daughter, a broken heart, and a postpartum body that she can hardly bear to look at.

She decides to go home to Dublin. And there, sheltered by the love of a quirky family, she gets better. So much so, in fact, that when James slithers back into her life, he's in for a bit of a surprise.

Who could be more vulnerable than Claire whose husband James tells her on the day she gives birth to their first-born that he is leaving her for another woman in their apartment building? Thus begins Claire's often sad, often comical, but always interesting saga. She grabs her newborn and flies from London to the safe harbor of her parents home in Dublin. There we meet her hilarious mother and father as well as two of her four sisters: the self-involved Helen and the lovably flakey Anna. (Guess Rachel was busy starring in RACHEL'S HOLDIAY and MAGGIE was caught up in her story as told in ANGELS.) The Walsh family is not a model family, but it is one that you'll love being a part of --- the fights, the squabbles, the sisterly ritual of stealing clothes from one another, the tension amidst the camaraderie, the freezer with frozen food and the mother's aversion to home-cooked meals---all make Claire's stay less than peaceful.

Will she ever come to terms with what has happened to her? Can she pull herself up from her quagmire of despair over losing James? Can she be a fit and loving mother to Kate? Will she stop toying with the idea of stealing her sister's boyfriend and just go ahead and do it? Will Claire come to her senses and tell James off for good or will she go back to him?

Claire will steal your heart as her easy, conversational tone speaks to you just as she would to her best friend, in a breezy, self-deprecating style that keeps you eagerly turning the pages.


Funny fast read   January 6, 2000
Catherine (Gisborne, New Zealand)
21 out of 23 found this review helpful

I was looking forward to reading "Watermelon" as I have been in a similar situation to Claire myself. I found it to be a really good light (but not trashy) read. The book is written as if Claire is talking to you, which means you really identify with her and all her insecurities. It was great when Claire realized that she was fine just the way she was and that she didn't need anyone in her life who couldn't accept that. Claire's family were excellent secondary characters, I can't wait to read "Rachel's Holiday" to hear more about them. Adam seemed a bit too good to be true, or maybe I'm just looking in the wrong places! The only reason I gave this 4 stars instead of 5 is that I have also read "Lucy Sullivan Is Getting Married" and it had quite a lot more plot and was heaps longer than "Watermelon". Marian Keyes' books are so enjoyable to read, it's disappointing to have them end as quickly as "Watermelon" did.


A wonderful comedy, a depressingly cookie-cutter story.   June 29, 1999
18 out of 22 found this review helpful

I've heard so much rave reviews about this book, I can't wait to read this. Unfortunately, I ended up disappointed.

The narrator Claire and Ally McBeal have plenty in common. Both are funny people that make me laugh when I'm watching or reading about them. At the end of the day, however, I can't help but to be aware that Claire, like Ally, is a rather spineless, whiny woman, comfortable with her whinings and complaints but the inertia of inaction, never to change for the better until everyone else has to yell it down her throat and then some, is too great at times.

Make no mistake, I love many things about this book. The easy narrative style as if an old friend has just called me up to reminisce and gossip about everything. Claire's eccentric family is a hoot to read about. In fact, Claire was beginning to shine on me with her quirky, painfully honest and wry outlook about life. "This girl got guts," I said when she shaped up midway through the book.

Then someone threw out Claire and replaced her with Ally McBeal. I began to feel painfully aware that I have read this story many many times. Jilted-wife-finds-new-love-and-discover-herself, explored in countless women's fiction and movies. And yes, the slimy husband MUST make a come-back (the back tells you that, so no, I'm not spoilng the story). Guess what Claire does? If you're read enough of these stories, you know the answer. The author never stray from the formula. Worse, Claire lost her spine and ends up a spineless wimp, makes silly, unreasonable decisions, and this book flies across the room to hit the wall with a satisfying THWACK.

At the end of the day, I enjoyed this book. I laughed, yes, but unfortunately, while I first laughed with Claire, I ended up laughing AT Claire. And I ended up feeling rather sad for her, and guilty at myself. It's like laughing at that neurotic, whiny neighbor whose life is so bad, so miserable, and she is so used to feeling down that I can feel better at myself in comparison to her. Yeah, like the way I laughed at Ally McBeal too.

What a disappointment! *sigh* I had a better time reading the other jilted-wife story, the one where, unapologetically, they got back at their exes, "The First Wives Club".


Read anything you find by Marian Keyes; then wait for more   February 1, 2001
15 out of 17 found this review helpful

Loved it! Now I want to see a BBC/A&E telemovie version.

Although "Lucy Sullivan is Getting Married" was great, I was unsure about reading "Watermelon". A novel in which the herione gives birth and gets dumped by her husband on the first page seemed a little intimidating. It sat on my bookshelf for a few weeks despite my faith in Keyes' storytelling skills.

I wondered if it would be: 1)an "against all odds", "surmounting obstacles", "girlpower" book; 2)a male-bashing "can't live with them/can't live without them" book; and/or 3)a novel which reinforces the strategic/disaster recovery recommendations found in self-help books? Well, its all of these things; however, the "good for you" messages are delivered subtly and with humor.

This book is a great escape for the overwelmed. It's uplifting and fun.

PS-Read "Watermelon" before "Rachel's Holiday" to get a better sense of Clair and Rachel's family.


As usual, a winner   March 27, 2002
Theresa Mcdonald (new orleans)
13 out of 15 found this review helpful

Although this is Ms. Keyes' first book, I have read four of her others before reading this one. Now I wish I would have read this one first so my expectations weren't so high.

The central characer of the book is Claire, whose husband whom she deeply loves annouces that he has been having an affair and is leaving her while she is still in the hospital after giving birth to their first child. Claire flees her marital home in London to return to her family home in Ireland where she has a total breakdown, manages to loose her"baby weight" and meet a new love interest just about the time her philandering husband decides to kiss and make up.

Had I not read those other four Keye's novels I would have probably given this one five stars instead of four, but after reading about Claire's sister Rachel in Keyes' Rachel's Holiday and other stronger characters in subsequent books I found Claire to be rather lackluster. She's missing the "oomph" of Lucy Sullivan, the pizazz of Tara in Last Chance Saloon and the spark of Lisa in Sushi for Beginners, all also by Keyes. Claire's family members, however, are dazzling jewels from her clueless father to her nasty sister Helen (who I just LOVE!) and they alone are enough to make this a good read. I can't WAIT to read more about this amusing family in Keyes' upcomming new novel.

My advice is if you are new to Keyes this is a great jumping off place - it only gets better from here.