While My Sister Sleeps

by Barbara Delinsky and Kenneth Holcomb Dunsee

Book Overview

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - From the author of Twilight Whispers and "a first-rate storyteller" (The Boston Globe) comes a masterful family portrait, filled with thought-provoking insights into how... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0307473228
• Release Date: October 2009
• Publisher: Anchor
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 0.44 lbs.
• Dimensions: 6.8" x 1.0" x 4.3"

Customer Reviews

Families -- Secret Rivalries, Betrayals, and Strengths...

In typical Delinsky style, While My Sister Sleeps is a provocative drama about family secrets, rivalries, resentments and regrets. In the opening, we meet Molly, the youngest sister in the Snow family, a horticulturist in the family business. Reliable, sometimes blunt and outspoken, she is definitely not the "star." While Robin, the oldest in the trio of siblings - Chris, the only son, is in the middle and quietly does his thing - is a prize-winning runner, on her way to greatness. Then on one fateful day during a race - a run that Molly didn't have the time to attend - Robin has a massive heart attack. A Good Samaritan gives her CPR, but it may have been too late. She is comatose, while the family waits for the grim outcome. Throughout the waiting process, we gradually come to know each family member, with the secret fears, hopes, and regrets - through their internal dialogues, conversations, and in Robin's case, a CD containing her personal journal - and discover the bonds and strength that unify them all in the end. Like an unexpected gift that opens slowly, revealing hidden treasures,the family members finally realize that they do have the strength to make the necessary decisions. I read this one nonstop, pausing only for necessities, and when I was done, I wished for more. I felt I had come to know this family and the flawed characters that felt so real. Laurel-Rain Snow Author of: Web of Tyranny, etc.

Engrossing...You Won't Be Able to Turn Away

Molly Snow has always lived in the shadow of her older sister, Robin, who is a determined runner bound for Olympic greatness. Whereas Robin has always shone in the spotlight and is the apple of their mother's eye, Molly likes to remain behind the scenes, fulfilling her passion for botany, where she works in her family's business, the Snow Hill Greenhouse. Sometimes to her chagrin, Molly is also expected to support Robin's running, timing her practices and driving her to meets. On a day Molly was supposed to be with Robin, tragedy strikes when Robin is found unconscious on the roadside by another runner. After being admitted to the ICU, it is determined that Robin had a massive heart attack that deprived her for oxygen for too long and left her brain dead. In the days that follow, each family is grappling with Robin's accident in different ways: Charlie, her father, tries to be the silent supporter, Chris, her brother, wants Robin off the life support, Kathyrn, her mother, believes that Robin will come out of this, and Molly just wants to do what Robin would have wanted, even though she doesn't know what this is. While dealing with the guilt she feels for not being there for her sister, Molly is determined to do right by Robin and figure out what she wanted. Little does she know the family secrets she will unveil while looking for an answer. Tackling a hot issue such as the ethics of life support is delicately executed by Delinsky's talented voice. Readers will find themselves wrapped up in the Snow's dilemma, and they will be thinking about the decisions made long after the last page is turned. While My Sister Sleeps is another thought-provoking story from bestselling author Delinsky.

First time reader

This is the first time I've read a book by this author and I finished it over a weekend because I wanted to find out what happened - it grabbed me in the first few pages. A moral dilemma with very good character developement. Some characters I liked, some I hated, some I wasn't sure about, and some who changed from beginning to end. Twists and turns along the way kept my interest and explained some of the characters' actions. I highly recommend this book.

Amazing as always

I am a big fan of Delinsky's, but I must say she has really out done herself with While my sister sleeps. I assure you, it will stay with you for a long time and you'll be thinking about the book and the situation for quite a bit after you turn the last page. Thank you Barbara Delinsky for these great stories. I am looking forward to your next book already. Esther