Amazon.com
Carrie Bell is the worst person in the world. Or so she would have you think. In the gripping, carefully paced debut novel of personal epiphany, The Dive from Clausen's Pier, by O. Henry Award winner Ann Packer, Carrie's very survival is dependent upon her leaving her fiancé, even after he dives into shallow water at a Memorial Day picnic and becomes paralyzed. Things hadn't been going so well for the Madison, Wisconsin, high school and college sweethearts. Carrie knew, deep down, that she wasn't going to become Mrs. Michael Mayer. But expectations and pressure from all sides--his family, her mother, her best friend Jamie, Mike's best friend Rooster--force Carrie to shut herself up in her room and sew outfits of her own design as if in a trance. Then one night she slips out of the only universe she's ever known. Many hours later she finds herself on the doorstep of a high school classmate living in Manhattan. Carrie's adventures in the city--quirky roommates and a new romance with an older, emotionally impenetrable man--confuse her in her quest both to forgive herself and to embark on a career in fashion design. Packer writes in a convincing voice and packs a lot into this novel; she infuses Carrie with enough humanity and smarts to choose her own version of "happily ever after." --Emily Russin
Book Description
How much do we owe the people we love? Is it a sign of strength or weakness to walk away from someone in need? These questions lie at the heart of Ann Packer’s intimate and emotionally thrilling new novel, which has won its author comparisons with Jane Hamilton and Sue Miller.
At the age of twenty-three Carrie Bell has spent her entire life in Wisconsin, with the same best friend and the same dependable, easygoing, high school sweetheart. Now to her dismay she has begun to find this life suffocating and is considering leaving it–and Mike–behind. But when Mike is paralyzed in a diving accident, leaving seems unforgivable and yet more necessary than ever.
The Dive from Clausen’s Pier animates this dilemma–and Carrie’s startling response to it–with the narrative assurance, exacting realism, and moral complexity we expect from the very best fiction.
Download Description
Here is a riveting novel about loyalty and self-knowledge, and the conflict between who we want to be to others and who we must be for ourselves.
Carrie Bell has lived in Wisconsin all her life. She's had the same best friend, the same good relationship with her mother, the same boyfriend, Mike, now her fiancé, for as long as anyone can remember. It's with real surprise she finds that, at age twenty-three, her life has begun to feel suffocating. She longs for a change, an upheaval, for a chance to begin again.
That chance is granted to her, terribly, when Mike is injured in an accident. Now Carrie has to question everything she thought she knew about herself and the meaning of home. She must ask: How much do we owe the people we love? Is it a sign of strength or of weakness to walk away from someone in need?
The Dive from Clausen's Pier reminds us how precarious our lives are and how quickly they can be divided into before and after, whether by random accident or by the force of our own desires. It begins with a disaster that could happen, out of the blue, in anybody's life, and it forces us to ask how we would bear up in the face of tragedy and what we know, or think we know, about our deepest allegiances. Elegantly written and ferociously paced, emotionally nuanced and morally complex, The Dive from Clausen's Pier marks the emergence of a prodigiously gifted new novelist.
A Good Morning America Book Club selection.
Customer Reviews:
The Dive from Clausen's Pier.......2007-10-09
I found this book to be soooo boring! I'm more than halfway through so I feel I must finish, but I wish I had read the reviews before purchasing the hardcover version. I just cannot get into the main character, Carrie, or have any sympathy for her situation. I finished some chapters, wondering "now what was the point of that"? The author's descriptive details are often too detailed for me, and the endless ruminations of the main character are wearisome. I think the author had a great theme to work with, but she lost my interest shortly after the "dive".
Hated main character.......2007-10-04
Several people I know loved this book and rated it their "favorite book ever". I could never get past my dislike for Carrie. I never liked her even before Mike's injury. She never got a job! I hated that about her. I just did not like this book and I think I would have liked it more had Carrie been more likable to me.
A good hook, but little follow through.......2007-09-26
I picked this one up at a yard sale for 50 cents and I'm glad I didn't pay more. Thoroughly depressing, I wanted to quit many times. The problem? The premise and first chapter contained a good enough hook to make me wonder how in the heck Carrie, the main character, was going to handle the situation the author threw at her.
Carrie and Mike had been dating since high school. Now, 5 or so years later, she's realized that her life in small town Wisconsin is suffocating her and is ready to make a break. One problem, on a holiday with friends, Mike takes a dive off a pier into shallow water- and ends up paralyzed.
Should our desires and needs be sacrificed out of obligation to what others think we should do? Is pity a good enough reason when the love isn't there anymore? These are the questions none of us ever hope to have to ponder- but ones Carrie does from the onset of the story.
Through most of the book, part of me was as disgusted with Carrie as her friends were when she took off into the night choosing her wants over her old love's needs. Another part of me wanted her to do it.
But that wasn't what bugged me about the book- in fact the exploration of "What Would You Do in a Similar Situation" is what kept me reading.
My annoyance was in the fact that Packer rambled on and on allowing Carrie to wallow in self-pity so much so you wanted to shake her. She drew Carrie's life in NYC out so long I wanted to throw the book against the wall, because I knew damn well Carrie had to go back and confront the mess she left behind. And even THAT would have been okay with me- if it weren't for the fact Carrie wasn't making any self discoveries while separated from the situation.
True, the author gave Carrie new relationships in NYC, but she didn't really develop them enough to make the book more interesting. Oh Carrie started dating again while there- and the man she chose had so many secrets you wanted to scream- but the author never really gave me the answers as to why to satisfy me either. (I felt like the proverbial donkey being led along by a carrot that will never be attained.)
Carrie's entire time in NYC was just needless filler as far as I'm concerned- filler that could have added so much more to the story if we had gotten inside Carrie's head instead of watching her walk around seemingly ignoring what was really going on.
Carrie eventually does go back to Wisconsin and we do read the ending which could not have ended any other way, however, after being led down so many meandering paths for so long, I didn't really care. I threw the book against the wall anyway.
Promising, but ultimately not very interesting........2007-09-22
In the end, I didn't really like The Dive from Clausen's Pier.
And that's a shame, because in the first half of the book I liked it a great deal more than I had expected. It's a rare author that can allow her character to be spoiled, to be indecisive in a less than likable way. I really appreciated that Packer allowed Carrie to be so conflicted and human.
The set-up of the book is simple. Carrie is 23, and in a relationship already on the rocks. We open the book with her already tired of her relationship, but somehow unable to leave. When her fiancé is paralyzed in a diving accident, the stakes for leaving get a whole lot higher. What Carrie decides and the actions that she takes while trying to realize her decision are the points at the heart of the book.
As I said, I was quite engaged in the book, and involved in Carrie's decision making until somewhere around three-quarters of the way in to the story. It hadn't been perfect until that point. (Carrie's New York experience was particularly unrealistic and had started to grate.) However, the character development had been strong enough that I had tended to forgive the imperfections. Until, basically, I didn't forgive them anymore.
The Dive From Clausen's Pier works well when it is driven by the character. But at a certain moment in the book, it is as though Packer herself does not like the direction Carrie is going. Her decisions about Wisconsin and about her life are set up so that there is nothing really at stake. Elements about both Kilroy (her new lover) and Mike (her former fiancé) make her final choices just all too easy and obvious. Whether it is lack of sexual desire, or a convenient geographic loyalty, Packer twists the characters to give Carrie an easy way out. The conclusion of the book lacks nearly all of the tension and interest of the earlier parts.
Too bad.
Packer is clearly a talented writer, and I wouldn't be adverse to reading something else that she had to say at a later time. But I hope that she is willing to take bigger risks in her plotting in a later book.
Frustrating book.......2007-08-02
I found this book to be very frustrating. It's hard to pinpoint exactly what I dislike about the book. I identified with the protaganist immediately, having attended UW-Madison in my mid-twenties and experienced similar feelings of loneliness and worry about what to do with myself for the rest of my life. The writing of this book is good in most places, except for several odd juxtapositions that jar you out of the moment. It's the plot that I found hard to take. The protaganist's actions don't always ring true. I can understand her decision to leave Madison, although the way she does so is completely alien to me. But why take up with Kilroy? Why accept all of his oddities? And then, why abandon him too? I'm still puzzling that one over. And also why, in spite of all of the book's problems, I couldn't stop reading it until I found out what happened with Kilroy.
Amazon.com
Set in Monterey, California, this first novel in the Dream trilogy features Margo Sullivan, the feisty and beautiful daughter of a wealthy family's housekeeper. She's been offered the same privileges as the Templeton children, but Margo resents handouts. She feels she has much to prove to herself, her surrogate family, and her mother. Margo dreams big--she wants wealth, fame, and success--but she doesn't want anyone else's help. Her plan is to go as far away from home as possible, so she starts with Hollywood and then moves on to Europe, where she finds fame as a supermodel. But when her world comes crashing down around her, Margo discovers that reaching out for help--especially to your family--can be just as challenging and rewarding as solving your problems on your own.
Book Description
Margo Sullivan had everything she could ask for. The daughter of the Templetons' stern housekeeper, she was treated like a member of the family. But money could not buy the thing she craved most-her mother's acceptance...
Download Description
First in a dramatic trilogy about three young sisters, the grandeur of Templeton House, and far away dreams
Customer Reviews:
Perfect for close sisters.......2007-07-04
This book is about how sisters stick together and it is a very uplifting story. I recommend you check it out and see for yourself.
Romantic.......2006-02-10
This book is magnificent. I found myself so encrossed in the story. I am just amazed at how Nora Roberts can make you feel. The romantic scenes with Margo and Josh were so powerful. The passion, desire and love between the two of them was so strong. You could only wish you had that type of love in a lifetime. Bravo Nora you are magnificent.
must read.......2005-12-30
I have to say I love this book, I could not put it down!!
Good start.......................2005-10-22
This is my third trilogy by Nora and so far so good. I like Margo, the main character and her relationship with Josh. She is fiesty and fun. The friendship between the women is also nice to read about. It will be interesting to find out if the dowry really does exist. I look forward to learning more about the other two women, especially Laura!
A wonderful book.......2005-07-17
Daring to Dream is the first story in the Dream Trilogy. It focuses on Margo Sullivan, the daughter of the Templeton's housekeeper. Margo's best friends are her two "sisters" whose stories are told in the other books. Margo is beautiful and has always had plans to see the world and be famous.
Margo gets her wish, becoming a famous model in Europe, but a scandal involving her agent takes it all away. With nothing left, she returns home to Templeton House. Josh Templeton, the heir of the fortune, has had a crush on Margo since they were kids. He jokingly gives her the idea of opening a store, which of course, she takes seriously. With the help of her sisters, she finds a building near Fisherman's Wharf and opens Pretenses, a store that customers can purchase high-end second hand items. Margo sells a lot of her own things that are no longer needed to get things going.
Josh and Margo go the usual route in a romance relationship, but I enjoyed reading it tremendously. Josh is not the spoiled heir, he's a lawyer for the Templeton Hotel chain, and actually goes to work. He sees a new side of Margo when she starts her store, which draws him to her even more.
Intertwined in this story is the one of Seraphina, a young girl who killed herself when the love of her life died. She left behind a treasure buried somewhere in the cliffs by Templeton House, and the girls hope to someday find it.
This is also a great story of the love and friendship between Margo, Kate and Laura. They have completely different personalities, but together, they make a great team. They are there for each other no matter what, no questions asked. We should all be that lucky in our lives.
This was a great start to the series. I recommend it to anyone. If you've read Nora Roberts before, you know you won't be disappointed. If you've never read one of her books, this is a great one to start with.
Average customer rating:
- Cassette Tapes did not work
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Best of Nora Roberts: Daring to Dream, Holding the Dream, Finding the Dream Homeport
Nora Roberts
Manufacturer: Countertop Video
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Binding: Audio Cassette
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Similar Items:
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Nora Roberts Born Trilogy: Born in Fire, Born in Ice, Born in Shame (Born In Trilogy)
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Nora Roberts Irish Trilogy: Jewels of the Sun, Tears of the Moon, Heart of the Sea (Irish Jewels Trilogy)
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Nora Roberts Quinn Brothers Trilogy: Sea Swept, Rising Tides, Inner Harbor (Chesapeake Bay)
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Nora Roberts Three Sisters Island Collection: Dance Upon the Air, Heaven and Earth, and Face the Fire (Three Sisters Island Trilogy)
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Sanctuary
ASIN: 1886089957 |
Book Description
3 Abridged Books on 8 Cassettes: • Daring to Dream • Holding the Dream • Finding the Dream • Homeport
Nora Roberts is a much loved and notable New York Times bestselling author of more than 135 novels, with 14 novels hitting the New York Times bestsellers list in 1999, alone. One of her novels is sold every three minutes in the United States, and she is, by far, the fastest growing author of women's fiction in the world. Roberts is the very first author inducted into the Romance Writers of America Hall of Fame, and the first to receive their Centennial Award after she published her 100th novel, Montana Sky. Roberts has also been featured in People Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, Entertainment Weekly, Cosmopolitan, and The New York Times. She has also made several television appearances from Entertainment Tonight and Good Morning America to CNN. This magnificent audio collection contains 4 novels by Nora Roberts. The first three belong to her highly acclaimed Dream trilogy: Daring to Dream, Holding the Dream, and Finding the Dream. As an additional bonus, we have added another favorite Nora Roberts novel, the much celebrated and cleverly written, Homeport. Discover the romance, mystery, and talent that truly makes Nora Roberts a national and worldwide sensation!
Daring to Dream Margo Sullivan had everything a young woman could ask for. But while growing up along the rocky cliffs of Monterey, she couldn't help but dream of bigger things. The daughter of the Templeton's stern Irish housekeeper, Margo had been treated like a member of the family. Deep down, she knew that money could not buy the one thing she craved most-her mother's acceptance. Maybe things would be different if she could be sweet like Laura-or had Kate's shrew head for business. But all Margo knew how to do was be Margo, and that meant doing things her own way-no matter what the consequences...
Holding the Dream Her childhood had been a lie. Her father had been a thief. Her mind struggled to absorb these facts, to analyze, to accept. Kate Powell had been orphaned at an early age, when she, essentially, watched her parents die. Her family had been taken away, but she had been given another. The distant kinship didn't matter to Thomas and Susan Templeton. They had taken her in, raised her as their own, given her a home and love. And now, twenty years later, she has learned the truth from a colleague of her father, a man who did not realize that the Templetons had gone to great lengths to protect the child from knowledge that would hurt and shame her.
Finding the Dream Laura Templeton found out the hard way that nothing in life is guaranteed. The daughter of a wealthy hotelier, she had always known comfort, privilege, and security. But by the age of thirty, her storybook marriage had been destroyed by her husband's infidelity. Laura's divorce left her both emotionally and financially devastated-but determined to rebuild her life without the help of the Templeton fortune...
Homeport The assailant attacked Dr. Miranda Jones outside her home as she returned from a busy lecture tour. Shaken by the assault, Miranda welcomed the distraction offered by a summons to Italy to verify the authenticity of a Renaissance bronze known as "The Dark Lady." However, her professional judgement is nearly destroyed when the bronze is declared a hoax. Desperate to restore her credibility and prove "The Dark Lady" is really a previously unknown work of Michelangelo, Miranda turns to Ryan Boldari, a seductive-and supposedly reformed-art thief. Forced to rely on herself and a partner with his own hidden agenda, Miranda finds that the only way home is filled with treachery, deception, and a danger that threatens everything she loves.
Customer Reviews:
Cassette Tapes did not work.......2007-01-13
Several of the cassette tapes did not work, so, I did not get to even listen to the whole story.
Book Description
Daring to Dream takes the reader through a year in the author's life - a year of rebirth following the end of a 32-year marriage - into those private moments of anguish and reflection where we discover that we have the strength, wisdom and power to grow from life's most challenging experiences. "It is about a year in time, a year when I lived on the top of a mountain in near total silence and found myself. It was a year of sadness and loss but, more importantly, it was a year of incredible magic." Karen Ely's journey toward an authentic life and a stronger sense of herself is both heartbreaking and exhilarating. Her honesty reaches out invitingly, encouraging all women to turn their attention inward and listen to the beatings of their own hearts.
Customer Reviews:
Walking in My Shoes.......2006-12-07
Daring to Dream is a book that so wonderuflly depicts what it is like to leave a long term marriage, the changing of the family structure and the concern about how it is going to effect your children. I also left a long term marriage of 27 years and moved into a life I could have never imagined. The way Karen describes the worries, doubts and confusion parallels so much of my own experience that it felt at times as though she had walked in my shoes. It is not easy to leave a marriage and your family as you have known it for decades. Your emotions are on a roller coaster ride and so much of the time it felt as though I was at the very top just waiting for the car to go rushing down leaving me filled with anxiety and guilt. This book reveals the true agony of making such a decision that is life changing for you and the people you love. I hope this brings comfort to other women who have traveled this road, as it did for me, and to help families understand that this type ofdecision is not taken lightly by most women, even if it looks easy from the outside. Thank you Karen for having the courage to open up your life so others can find comfort and validation for their experience in leaving a marriage.
Finding Joy in Times of Turmoil .......2006-12-02
Reading this book, I was most struck by the author's ability to find beauty and joy in every day things, and to create a safe,soothing place for herself even as she undergoes the pain and turmoil of ending a 30+ year marriage. Her happiness in small comforts brought happiness to me!
Daring to Dream: A Challenge to Dream Our Dreams.......2006-12-01
Karen tells her story with an honesty that is at once devastating and endearing. She captures the reader's emotions with her emotions and draws us into her life and takes us with her on her journey as she pursues her dreams. She writes with descriptive charm, and I found myself walking with her through the pages of her book. Also, throughout the book, there are blank pages to share our own thoughts and dream our own dreams. But in the end, it is her story and her courage that truly challenges us to dream our own dreams.
courageous journey.......2006-12-01
This book tells about one woman's courageous journey of stepping outside of familiar roles into the unknown of finding one's true self. This woman happens to be my mother. This is her story, told with great honesty, about a time in which I lived through but did not truly understand. As her daughter, this book gave me the rare opportunity of looking into her inner thoughts and feelings to help have greater understanding and insight. However, I believe that this book has the incredible potential to help other adult daughters gain greater perspective and understanding of similar transformations that their mothers may have made or be in process of making. Additionally, I feel the book can help validate the experience of any woman who has, or is considering, making a courageous change in her life.
existential.......2006-12-01
Life sent Karen to places she never thought possible and she unfolds her journey with unflinching honestly. Some men reviewing this memoir said this isn't a 'man's book', but as I read Karen's book I realized that every one of us encounter these 'crux moments' that forever define our lives into a 'before' and an 'after'. I was left wanting to know more about the next stages of Karen's life.
Customer Reviews:
Derek Jeter Daring to Dream.......2005-05-18
Derek Jeter Daring to Dream Enslow Publishers, Inc. 2004,104pp., $19.95
Stew Thornley ISBN 0-7660-2035-5
Derek Jeter Daring to Dream is a biography about Derek Jeter, the star shortstop for the New York Yankees, how helped lead the Yankees to four World Series championships in only his first six years in the majors. This quickly led Jeter to be one of the best players in baseball.
Derek Jeter was born in New Jersey and grew up in Michigan. Spending summers with his grandparents back in New Jersey, he became a Yankees fan.
I think the author achieved what he wanted to point out. That was, to tell his life store. It was an excellent book. It was so great I wanted to read it one more time. I recommend this book to people how play any sports.
Product Description
ALL THREE BOOKS ARE IN VERY GOOD TO GOOD CONDITION! MINIMAL CREASING OF THE SPINES! THE TITLES/ISBNS ARE:
DARING TO DREAM 0515119202
FINDING THE DREAM 0515120871
HOLDING THE DREAM 0515120006
Book Description
People magazine declared that "[Nora Roberts] is at the top of her game," and there's no greater evidence of that than these three novels. From the horse farms of Virginia to the rugged beauty of Montana to an island off the coast of Georgia, these novels showcase Nora Roberts's talents for intense drama, vivid characters, and fast-paced suspense.
Customer Reviews:
Love all of Nora's romance books.......2007-02-25
You can never go wrong with a Nora Roberts romance novel and this is just one more great one in the list.
beware small type.......2007-01-15
i haven't finished reading even the first of these three books, but I am struggling to read the small, serifed type. I don't usually have any problems reading normal type, but something about the font and size of the type, combined with the large book is making this read a bit of a struggle for me.
So far, really like the characters and very typical Nora Roberts writing.
Very Good Reads.......2007-01-14
If you are an avid reader as I aa and a Nora Roberts fan too, you can't beat these three great books combined in one volume.
I am certain that you will enjoy these three earlier works by Nora Roberts.
Great vendor.......2006-11-14
This book was in great condition. The delivery was fast. Thank you for your prompt attention.
True Betrayals/Montana Sky/Sanctuary.......2006-08-31
Truly a great grouping of three story lines. Each one kept me on the edge of my seat and reluctant to put down until I completed it. Descriptions of location and events put you right there. I can't wait to read more of this author.
Product Description
3 mass market paperbacks.
Average customer rating:
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Daring to Dream
Carol Farley Kessler
Manufacturer: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Contemporary
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ASIN: 0863580130 |
Books:
- The Feast of the Goat: A Novel
- The Golden Bowl (Penguin Classics)
- The Heidi Chronicles: Uncommon Women and Others & Isn't It Romantic
- The Kentucky Anthology: Two Hundred Years of Writing in the Bluegrass State
- The Labyrinth of Solitude: The Other Mexico, Return to the Labyrinth of Solitude, Mexico and the United States, the Philanthropic Ogre
- The Last Days of Socrates (Penguin Classics)
- The Last Unicorn
- The Log from the Sea of Cortez (Penguin Classics)
- The Man Who Was Thursday: A Nightmare (Modern Library Classics)
- The Martian Chronicles (The Grand Master Editions)
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