All Fall Down

By: Jennifer Weiner

Narrated by: Tracee Chimo

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Weiner, her “best book yet” (The Philadelphia Inquirer) about a woman confronting her dependence on pills.

Allison Weiss got her happy ending—a handsome husband, an adorable daughter, a job she loves, and the big house in the suburbs. But while waiting in the pediatrician’s office, she opens a magazine to a quiz about addiction. She begins to wonder if a Percocet at the end of the day really different from a glass of wine. Is it such a bad thing to pop a Vicodin after a brutal exercise class…or if your husband ignores you? She tells herself that the pills help her make it through her days but what if her increasing drug use, a habit that’s becoming expensive and hard to hide, is turning into her biggest problem of all?

I gobbled this book up. Addicted?

The authors writing was authentic and funny sarcastic and engaging. I caed about the characters right away becasue they were real. The score of this book is based on it's genre. This may not be a literary masterpiece. It is easily digestable and enjoyable look at a very serious subjst. Taking on topics that are taboo, our dirty little secrets, and presenting them in a way that opens up dialog and raises questions and attention to a serious topic is difficult to do without turning people off. This was the perfect mix of fun and whimsy and informative. I am so excited to find a new author (to me) and see the potential to read severla other works. My only disappointment is that the narrator doesn't have more to listen to. She was absolutley perfect, she lent some changes in her voice for the differing characters but didn't get so caught up in that, to have it become cheesy ( a common mistake). She was flawless. And in truth I went in search of her other works first before I look for more under the author. A lot of people can wirte but a bad narrator can mess the whole Audible process up. Thank you both for a very enjoyable listen. Literally, I did not put it down. I listened from start to finish!

Rang True

This is my 2nd listen - the 1st being in 2014. I remembered that the book moved me, so for some unconscious reason, still can’t name it, I listened again. Maybe it’s because I too love oxy. Whatever the reason, I loved the book even more this time, except that bratty spoiled little girl! But thru the writing I understood why Allison parented her the way she did, and the narrator nailed her annoying sassy voice. This book makes me feel & think, and maybe even understand myself (I think I’d also be a major Karen in rehab- at least initially).

Great listen!

I really liked this book because I could relate to the things she endured as a working mother with an extremely sensitive child. I felt validated by her authentic description of the stress you have every single day. I would recommend the book to anyone who's ever had a child and was married to someone who didn't think they needed to help you.

all fall down

could not stand the little girl and i ordinarily like kids, but not her. Super plot. It could happen to any of us.

Quiet and scarystory about an ordinary housewife

Any additional comments?

I am glad that I listened to this book before checking the rating since I usually only listened to books with rating 4.2 or higher. All what I can say about this book is that it sounds very realistic, not dramatic, but that’s actually the scary part. It seems that it can actually happen to ordinary people.

The first half of this book is kind of depressing, especially for the first quarter. For all those little details of the life, I can feel for her. Every family may have their own pain points that something you cannot easily escape from. For Allison, it’s her needing little girl, a husband who doesn’t help (isn’t that common?), a husband who may have an affair, a mother who cannot handle the sick father and then the demanding work. During this mess, she finds out a little pill that can help her, and one pill becomes more, and then all things are falling down… During the listening, I could feel her pain, and that made me kind of depressed. However, it’s so real that it kept me engaged during the whole listening.

Once I read the news about a drunken woman who drove 4 kids including hers and her sister’s to the freeway, at the wrong direction, and had the kids killed together with the old couple who drove their car crashing into hers. After the accident, her husband was so surprised that he never found out that she was heavily drinking… after the story, I learned that many housewives actually are secretly drinking, probably to help them go through the day to day chores and get along with distant husbands, and other issues.

In the book, Jennifer wrote so well about the details of the thoughts of the main character, her struggle, her fear and her falling down. She made me nervous listening to Allison’s rehab and possible relapse. I wonder how Jennifer got all those vivid details, and I wish the best for Allison and her family. In the story, Allison’s husband runs away from the family with marathons. Running long distance actually can help to cope with depressing situations, but just don’t let running eat away too much family time. Be well, everybody.