I'm Not Julia Roberts

September 4, 2006
Ruby, whose third YA novel Good Girls
is due this fall, starts off with a fresh, sardonic wit in this linked collection of divorce stories, but the unnerving stepchildren, sordid affairs and malevolent exes soon begin to blur. Suburban, self-absorbed Lu ("Lupe Klein, neither Hispanic nor Jewish") never expected to play mother to Ward Harrison's three complicated sons or have to deal with his ex-wife, Beatrix. While Beatrix is in a state of blind marital bliss with her new husband, Alan, she is not ready for Alan's mean-spirited, teenage daughter, Liv. Liv's mother, Roxie, not yet remarried but dating her friend Moira's unscrupulous ex-, Tate, is desperately trying to figure out how to balance her relationship with Tate while maintaining her bond with Liv. There are five couples in all, including Moira and second husband Ben, and Tate's sister Glynn (divorced from Derek) and her second husband, George—plus assorted children. A chapter moving backward in time and composed of e-mails, instant messages and snail mail detailing their entanglements is more disorienting than anything else.

January 1, 2007
The title refers to actress Julia Roberts's role, all wide-eyed and naïve, in the 1998 film "Stepmom". Are real-life stepmothers truly this way? In ten interlocking stories, children's book author Ruby, a stepmom herself, attempts to find out. Lu married Ward, who has three boys, two of them teenagers. Not only does she have to deal with these three difficulties, but Ward's ex, Beatrix, can be a ruthless troublemaker. Then we see into Beatrix's life, which includes a new husband and trying stepdaughter, Liv. Then onto Liv's mother, Roxie, whose dating life is always dramatic. And the connections between each story flow on, letting the reader experience second marriage and stepparenting from many different perspectives. These connections work very well, with the reader able to follow easily. The characters often appear in one another's stories, making for a fun read. And while the demanding times of all the stepmoms may make you vow never to get divorced (or to marry someone with children), some glimmer of peace and understanding shines through. Considering that the first wave of Bridget Jones-like characters is approaching the age of divorce and remarriage, this charming book will find an audience. Recommended for public libraries.Beth Gibbs, Davidson, NC

Copyright 2007 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 2006
With the same kind of emotional understatement that made Shari Goldhagen's " Family and Other Accidents" (2006) so riveting, Ruby tells the interconnected stories of a group of families trying to cope with life in the wake of divorce. Riffing on the idyllic view of blended families presented in the movie" Stepmom," starring Julia Roberts, Ruby offers a more rueful, realistic, way-funnier version as bitter ex-wives, angry teenagers, and beleaguered second wives attempt to wade through daily negotiations involving clashing schedules and wounded feelings. Among them is droll career woman Lu, who didn't have a clue when she fell in love with handsome Ward Klein and his three cute toddlers. Years later she must contend with hulking teens who speak in monosyllables and address her as Loopy. Meanwhile, Ward's ex-wife, Beatrix, remarried to a cheerful man whose high energy level matches her own, must also learn to scale back her expectations in the face of his adolescent daughter's contempt. YA novelist Ruby captures both warring emotions and fleeting moments of connection in this smart take on fractured families.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)