The Prairie Bridesmaid

by Daria Salamon

Book Overview

Anna Lasko is a frustrated schoolteacher in her thirties. While her almost-but-not-quite ex-boyfriend Adam is on a work assignment in Europe, Anna finds herself tricked into a ditch-the-loser... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 155470054X
• ISBN13: 9781554700547
• Release Date: January 2008
• Publisher: Key Porter Books
• Length: 264 Pages
• Weight: 0.97 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.9" x 8.6"

Customer Reviews

Wry Humor, Not Chick Lit

Anna Lasko doesn't really know how things got to be this bad. Stuck in a job as a teacher that she is no longer inspired by, or even likes, she lives in a renovated house with her emotionally abusive boyfriend of the past ten years, whom she can't bring herself to break up with due to all their history together. One of her best friends is getting married and has turned into a nightmare bride, and Anna and two other friends are stuck as bridesmaids in "the perfect wedding." Her pregnant younger sister is living in Iran with her husband and his other wife, her grandma Baba is determined to stay out on her farm until she is completely blind, and her slightly eccentric parents just want their children to be happy. Now Adam, the boyfriend, is overseas working for a month, and Anna has six months to get her life straightened out. And with the help of her friends, family, and a therapist, she just might be able to manage it. I was not expecting to like this book at all. It seemed like generic chick lit, a feel-sorry-for-me main character stuck in a bad situation who would eventually rise above circumstances to be happy and successful. In reality, /The Prairie Bridesmaid/ was funny, smart, and heart-wrenching all at once. The subject of emotional abuse is dealt with in depth, and anyone who has ever been in such a situation will surely recognize themselves in Anna's guilty feelings and neurotic coping mechanisms. I found myself rooting for her as she made progress with her therapist, and sincerely hoping she'd have the strength to stick to her new-found convictions when actually faced with Adam again. I actually thought the novel was too short; I would've liked to hear more about how things worked out with Baba, how Natalia's birth went, and whether or not Anna convinced her to come back home, how Renate's daughter was recovering, how Julia was being accepted into her newly-found birth family. I would've liked to hear more about the aftermath of Sara's wedding, and if she continued to even speak to Anna at all. I also was somewhat disappointed with the ending; ideally for me, Anna would have become stronger and more confident without Adam, and the wedding scene would have happened differently. But I also understand and accept that this wouldn't have been true to Anna's character, and that things ultimately couldn't work out any other way than they actually did. /The Prairie Bridesmaid/ was fun, full of wry humor that I appreciated, and inspirational. Reviewed by Holly Scudero

I loved this book

I just finished reading The Prairie Bridesmaid and I have to say that I sort of disagree with the assessment that this is chick lit. It is definitely fiction geared towards women - but it does not really have all the chick lit elements. Having said that, I have to say that I LOVED this book. Everything from the cover - to our main character Anna who is, to say the least, going through a life crisis (which is mostly in her head - but then again, aren't they all?). Anna is stuck in an endless loop - with a job she no longer cares about and a boyfriend she no longer wants - but for some reason can't seem to disengage herself from either. She is stuck in a dark void and while her conscious brain is yelling out to her to find a better way - her body and her heart seem incapable of following. This storyline is riveting. I felt very strongly for Anna, who frankly, is not the warm and funny lovable character who will set the happy, happy tone of certain novels. She is dark, broody, at times annoying and always completely messed up. No matter - this made her all the more human to me - I have been where she is and I felt for her. Knowing something and actually doing something about it are two completely different things. The author does a wonderful job of showing us that Anna's personality and traits were not created entirely by her own screwed up views - as we read on, we discover a little bit more about Anna's background - her family, her sister and her grandmother - and it becomes a little clearer to me how Anna could have turned out the way that she has. Although one might believe that the focal point of this book is Anna and her problems with love - its really not - the focal point of this great read is a woman trying to find her way back after taking quite a few wrong detours - its really about finding her own center and being able to just 'be' with her own thoughts. I thought this book was very well written - rich in hidden messages (and some not so hidden ones!) - there is a message here for all of us. Its tough being a woman today! and I felt supported and understood as I was reading this book. I also really liked Anna's sessions with her doctor - these were always interesting and I thought a great opportunity to see Anna's inner thoughts (I also loved the description of the Dr's clothing). What did not really work for me was the relationship between Anna and her Grandmother. I just did not like the grandmother character very much. Otherwise, this book is a gem. Yeah for this wonderful female Canadian writer.