The Next Best Thing

By Jennifer Weiner

The Next Best Thing - Jennifer Weiner
  • Release Date: 2012-07-03
  • Genre: Fiction & Literature
Score: 4
4
From 680 Ratings

Description

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Weiner, an “utterly engaging story” (Time) about a young woman trying to make it as a writer in Hollywood.

At three years old, Ruth Saunders miraculously survives the car crash that takes her parents’ lives on the icy Massachusetts Turnpike. Her eccentric grandmother nurtures her through years of surgeries, feeding her home-cooked meals, dispensing irreverent wisdom, and telling Ruth she’s beautiful, even though her scars will stay with her forever.

After college, Ruth pursues her dream of writing to Hollywood, heading west with her grandmother in tow, hoping to make it big in the world of TV. After years of failure and a badly broken heart, Ruth gets The Call—her show has been green-lit.

But Ruth’s happy ending is only the beginning, as she struggles with how television gets made: terrified (and terrifying) executives and actresses with their eyes on bigger prizes than Ruthie’s show. Add in an unrequited crush on the man who has been her mentor. Add to that her grandmother’s impending nuptials, and Ruth’s big break might just break her.

A rollicking ride on the Hollywood roller coaster, The Next Best Thing is a heartfelt story about a young woman searching for her own happily-ever-after in the land where dreams come true.

Reviews

  • Ok

    4
    By kaykaybean13
    Ok
  • Slow mover

    3
    By LazySummerReads
    Story line plodded along which made this read super slow. Everything about the book was lukewarm with nothing driving an urgency to finish.
  • Exciting Read

    4
    By laineTaylor
    Very entertaining. Weiner creates a world I enjoyed spending time in. Relatable characters and a good plot it kept me entertained.
  • Just okay

    3
    By 91234567law
    I usually love Jennifer wieners books, but this one was just okay. It dragged along and there were no real surprises. Would have been better if she cut short some of the television drama and focused more on Ruth's life with Dave. The best part was the end, when it finally got interesting
  • Great beach read

    5
    By martha marcus
    A group of girlfriends and I all took this to the beach the same week! We enjoyed the book so much we are planning another beach book club with the author. Funny, heartbreaking, inspiring, and a true "too close to home" book.
  • Horrible

    1
    By Bgreens34
    Very boring! Needed to skip over the part when she wrote about the characters on her show. Loved the parts when she takes about her life with grandma and the Daves.
  • Is there a sequel?

    5
    By Gabster0618
    Excellent novel. Intelligently written, exquisite word choice, lovable characters. I didn't want the book to end. I'm hoping for a sequel.
  • The next big thing

    1
    By Hlombar
    Horrible!!! It was painful to read.... I had to force myself to finish it.
  • The next best thing

    1
    By Pamiwigle
    Jumps around tooooo much.....tooooo much info on each character!!!!!!
  • The Next Best Thing....hmmm not so sure about that

    2
    By Kagjdm
    I've read all of Weiner's books and I was disappointed after reading "The Next Best Thing". It was lackluster, predictable and didn't leave me with that I can't put this book down feeling. I'll remain hopeful that her next book exhibits the same characteristics and charm as some of her earlier work.