Babyville

Babyville is played out in the present tense, with a staccato style delivery, with beats of humour between the emotional labour. The emotions may be powerful and universal, but the prose style may need a longer fermentation period. --Eithne Farry

Reader Reviews:

Oh Baby Baby! (0/0 people found this helpful)

'Babyville' by Jane Green follows the lives of three women, all very different people, all with very different opinions when it comes to having kids.

First we meet Julia, a smart and sassy TV Producer who is desperate for a baby with her partner Mark. Julia believes a baby will bridge the ever growing gap between them, but when her beloved baby doesn't materialise she takes it out on Mark. She knows she can have babies - she had an abortion 10 years ago so the problem must be Marks - mustn't it? How will Mark react when his wife tells him that he's got the problem and not her? and will her obsession for a baby kill their relationship as well as her career? Is there anyway back for Julia and will she have the baby she so desperatly wants with or without Mark?

Maeve is also a sassy and successful TV Producer, who unlike Julia, absoloutly detests babies. In fact, she breaks out in a rash if a pram apears 10 miles on the horizon. She also doesn't do relationships and is admant that she's happy living the single life. However, when a late night liason in an alley way results in an unexpected and unwanted pregnancy, Maeve's world is thrown into turmoil. She knows she definitly doesn't want the baby - but can anything - or anyone change her mind?

Sam is Julia's best friend and loved being pregnant. She thought herself and her husband Chris would be a lovely happy family along with their son George. But Sam finds the stresses and strains of motherhood a lot harder than anticipated and becomes increasingly frustated with the forced isolation that motherhood brings. As Sam struggles to cope with the demands of motherhood and her marriage simultaniously the cracks begin to show, and when deliciously dishy Dan appears on the scene, Sam is tempted to stray...will her frustrions with her husband reach boiling point or is Dangerous Dan too much of a tempation to resist?

Over the course of the book, although each woman's story is told seperatly, their lives entwine in a very clever way. This book is a thoroughly good read, with a very different perspective on babies from each character. This book is very honest, and Jane doesn't sugarcoat motherhood. Even for someone without kids I found this a delight. A definite must-read whether you're a mother or not.

a superb read! (0/0 people found this helpful)

I have just finished this book as I bought all the jane Green books after reading Mr maybe and this book yet again did not disappoint! Its about 3 separate women and their thoughts and feelings on babies etc but no1 seems to get what they want and these women are all bought together in a way and its a nice ending a must read definitely recommended! Well Done Jane Green!

Couldn't put it down (1/1 people found this helpful)

This is the first Jane Green book I have read and I loved it. I agree with the previous comment about the stories not being finished before you move onto the next person, but all the loose ends do get tied up and all your questions get answered, as you fill in some of the blanks of Julia's story whilst reading about Maeve and then you learn more about Maeve and Julia whilst reading about Sam. Loved each of the separate stories and think they could have worked as books in their own right.
Read this if you're a new mum, thinking of starting a family, pregnant or have no desire to start a family right now! Whatever your situation you will love it.

Hillarious! (2/2 people found this helpful)

This novel by Jane Green is one of her funniest! It will have you laughing from start to finish! A real gem to any woman who is thinking about having a baby, pregnant or had a baby in her life time! A great insight to a womans mind when she is going through the stages of starting a family with that witty Jane Green twist! A must read!!

Better than her previous effort (2/3 people found this helpful)

I read this book shortly after reading bookends, and thankfully it was much better.

The story is about three women, who's lives are interlinked, but the story is split into three sections.

The first section is about Julia, who is living with her boyfriend of 4 years mark. They are unhappy together, and are trying for a baby to patch up the holes in their relationship (not a good idea). Julia is unable to get pregnant though, and ends up getting stressed and being given time off work to sort herself out. She then proceeds to go to new york to see her best friend who lives there, and ends up back to her normal self, so doesn't go back to the UK.

The second part of the story is about Mauve, who takes over julias job whilst she is taking time off, and finds herself pregnant with julias boyfriends baby, before julia has even left the country! she decides to have an abortion but is talked out of it by mark, and they eventually end up together.

The third part of the story is about Sam, who is julias best friend, and is suffering from post-natal depression after the birth of her baby george. This part of the story deals witht he isolation and marriage problems caused by the baby, but eventually sam ends up befriending mauve and everything turns out okay.

This story is enjoyable, but the book was slightly weird in that the first part is written in the third person - (julia said), the second part is written in the first person - (i said (maeve)), and the third part is again written int he third person - (sam said). It is also slightly irritating, in that julias story is not really finished when the book moves onto maeves story, and maeves story is not really finished when it moves onto sam's story. justa s you begin to care about what happens to a character, its all over!

overall though a fairly good read.

Jane Green

Editorial Review: