Book Review: The Actor and the Housewife by Shannon Hale
Posted By CarrieK on July 2, 2009
Title: The Actor and the Housewife
Author: Shannon Hale
Genre: Contemporary fiction
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
First line: Becky was seven months pregnant when she met Felix Callahan.
Shannon Hale’s The Actor and the Housewife
Becky Jack is a Mormon housewife. She has a fairytale marriage to her best friend, Mike, and they are more in love now than they were when they married. They have three children, and Becky is pregnant with number four when she sells a screenplay. On a trip to L.A. to sign the contract, Becky meets her movie-star crush, Felix Callahan – and they immediately hit it off. Not romantically, but in that “I just met the best friend I’ll ever have” kind of way.
As you can imagine, the idea of a Mormon housewife and stay-at-home mom having a Hollywood heart-throb as her best friend raises some eyebrows, both in her church and in her family. In spite of all the obstacles, Felix becomes the kind of friend for Becky that most of us would love to have – gorgeous actor or no.
I don’t want to say more about the plot, because I don’t want to give anything away. In spite of the fact that both Becky and Felix get top billing in the title, this is really Becky’s story – and it’s a story that any wife and mother will be able to relate to. Becky is full of the kind of energy and spunk I wish I had more of, and she loves her children with a ferocious love. There were many tears-in-my-eyes moments as I read about Becky’s feelings for her children.
I enjoyed Ms. Hale’s Austenland – it was a fun read and perfect for Austen addicts. She has taken her writing up a notch with The Actor and the Housewife, though. I would be reading along, completely hooked by the plotting and characterization, and then a sentence would pop up that was so beautifully written that I would have to read it twice. She knows how to perfectly describe those moments that make life so glorious and tragic. And then I would be caught up in the emotions of that moment and she would catch me off guard, and I’d be laughing so hard I snorted.
I really debated between a 4-star and 5-star rating, simply because I was a teeny bit disappointed in the ending. Not because it wasn’t well written or because I didn’t understand why Ms. Hale wrote it the way she did, but because of my own love for happily-ever-after endings. But the ending that she wrote was the only ending that remained true to Becky, and so I still closed the book with a happy sigh.
Highly recommended.
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Austenland was such fun. I’ll definitely look for this author’s follow-up!
I am going to put this book onto my TBR list. It sounds like a very good read.
I keep reading great reviews of this book and really want to read it.
This one sounds interesting–and a bit different. I am glad you enjoyed it, Carrie!
JoAnn – I loved Austenland, too.
Deanna – I hope you like it as much as I did!
Kathy – I haven’t seen a negative review of this one yet – only positive.
LF – It was different than what I expected, but in a good way.
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I agree with you on both points about the ending – disappointing, but true to Becky. (Darn!)
Rhapsody – I know, that’s exactly how I felt!
Sounds better than I initially thought, I’ll be in four bookstores next week, I’ll keep an eye out for it!
Great review, CarrieK! I’m so looking forward to read this book
Have a great weekend!
This one is in my TBR pile. I can’t wait to read it!
This was such a great read!
You are absolutely right– I would have enjoyed a different ending, but it wouldn’t have worked for the Becky. Ah well!
Kim – what a fun week you have planned!
Ladybug – thanks.
Monie – I hope you like it as much as I did!
I’ve been intrigued by the reviews I’ve read, all of which say that the book was not quite what they expected but that they liked it. I love Hale’s YA books (Goose Girl, Enna Burning, River Secrets) and had fun reading Austenland. I look forward to reading this one too! Thanks for the great review.
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I totally agree with your review. I loved this book! The only reason I gave it a 4.5 instead of 5 stars was because of the ending as well. I was a little let down but still it was a hilarious read.
Terri – I need to check out some of her YA books – I’ve never read any.
Debbie – I would have given it 4 1/2 stars if I did 1/2-stars, but I rounded up.
I’m a big fan of Hale’s so I was excited to read about this book. Of course, it is going on my TBR list. Tahnks for your review.
Framed – you’re welcome! I hope you like it.
I have this book in the TBR pile, and will now have to move it up the list.
Serena – it’s a great read and much deeper than I’d expected.
[...] Word (Read Aloud Thursday picture books)6. Beth (Cheaper by the Dozen)7. Carrie K. (Life of Pi)8. Carrie K. (The Actor and the Housewife)9. Laura (Because the Time Is Near)10. Bonnie (An Incomplete Education)11. Tom Goodman (Hood)12. [...]
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