What do readers think of The Summer Without Men by Siri Hustvedt? Write your own review.

A great book. This writer has an understanding of the female mind and how we react to not so pleasant situations - most of the time. I think that she did a great job of depicting the feelings of different age groups. I will read this book again.

"The Summer Without Men" is not only a compelling novel about the lives of women and girls (maiden, mother and crone are all represented in the book), but also a meditation on the art of story-telling and the beauty of language. It's a thought-provoking read and will no doubt appeal to a diverse audience, from book club members to poetry lovers. I thought the plot would be rather formulaic at first (middle aged woman has nervous breakdown after husband leaves her for another woman), but it is so much more than this. It's beautifully written and a great read.

This slight book is told rather in the fashion of diary entries, and this sense is reinforced because the reader is often addressed as "Dear Reader." (There are also a lot of Jane Austen allusions.) These "entries" veer between straightforward narrative, bits of poetry, letters, verbatim conversations, and long introspective musings. It's actually an interesting and fun way to read a story if you have the patience for it. The narrator is caustic and witty and sublimely sarcastic. But, I never felt particularly drawn to her or to the other characters' lives and issues. None of the women, or girls, is fleshed out enough to offer any real insights. And the title seems a bit misleading; rather than a summer without men, men seem to be a major preoccupation of all the women in the book, one way or another. A book club might enjoy reading and discussing this book, if they wanted to explore the differences between men and women, and whether those differences mean anything.

The Summer Without Men, by Siri Hustvedt, was not what I expected. The title made me think it would be "chick-lit" or beach reading. It was decidedly not that (not that I complaining). Nor, however, was it a story that was a compelling read. About Mia, whose husband has left her (perhaps temporarily), I never felt fully engaged in Mia's life. Her musings and writings, while interesting, did not necessarily make me feel close to her. Additionally, a number of other characters and stories are introduced in the book that often felt distracting to me. Some, like the next door neighbor, I wanted to learn more about. Others, like an elderly women who made subversive art, seemed rather random and unnecessary additions to the story. Overall, it was not a book that made me want to stay up late reading.

The Summer Without Men may sound like a summer beach read but it clearly isn't. Mia, the narrator, has much going on in her life with her marital problems, her aging mother, her young students. She is in a complicated place and the author talks Mia and her readers through these events quite systematically. There are flaws with most of the characters and they are dealt with sympathetically. The author's storytelling takes us to some equally flawed but satisfying conclusions in the lives of her characters. This wasn't a book that I ordinarily would have read but I am glad that I did.

I was captured by the first sentence, then the first paragraph of this book. To my disappointment the rest of the book did not meet my expectations. Although this book is beautifully written with its clear and cogent sentences, I was disappointed. There are too many plots in this book; had the author used her talent for prose on the primary plot, this would have been an excellent book.

In the past I have really enjoyed my First Impressions selections, but I feel that this novel is not my style. I felt that the narrative was very jumpy. Maybe that was what the author intended, however, I felt that it was distracting. I also did not feel an attachment to the characters.

I wish that this novel had actually been a "smart, sassy reflection on the varieties of female experience", as Kirkus Reviews asserts. Hustvedt aims at some meaty topics (marriage and fidelity, teenage girlhood, minor and major insanity, aging, childhood imagination...) but never hits a real emotional mark. Her wit and elevated observations feel forced and effortful, her characters remain flat actors reciting lines, and I couldn't make myself care about any of them. Smart, but not nearly smart enough, The Summer Without Men will disappoint readers wanting more of the sharp intellect and swift craftsmanship Hustved revealed in What I Loved.