Rebecca Wells - The Ya-ya Boxed Set: Divine Secrets of the Ya-ya Sisterhood & Little Altars Everywhere

Pros: speaking characters are somewhat well developed, some funny parts,
Cons: some sections may be disturbing, some characters need more development

I'll admit it. I am one of those who read Rebecca Wells' novel Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood before reading Little Altars Everywhere. A lot of people have. I'm also willing to bet that those people also first heard about the book...

Pros: Great characterization, lots of laughs
Cons: Some of the subject matter is quite disturbing

The cover of Rebecca Wells' Little Altars Everywhere is extremely misleading. It depicts a pretty young girl in a summer dress jumping rope against a pink-sky background. I had noticed the book several times in Barnes & Noble and assumed it was a...

Pros: Some characters are well-developed, with attitude and personality...
Cons: But others are barely introduced. Overall, can be confusing.

Unlike most of the people reviewing this book, I never read "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood", Rebecca Wells' most popular book. Also unlike most of the people who have reviewed "Little Altars Everywhere", I didn't enjoy this...

Pros: A wonderful standalone book.
Cons: Doesn't work as the first in a Ya-Ya series.

This is a review of two different books, that deserve two different ratings. That may sound strange, especially when considering the fact that both these book share the same title, author, characters and plot. One book is Little Altars ...

Pros: easy reading, very interesting stories
Cons: none I can name

"Little Altars Everywhere" is the companion book to Wells' masterpiece, "The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood." Actually the first book, "Little Altars" was recently reissued in hardcover. I was thrilled to receive...

Pros: easy, quick reads
Cons: inconsistency between the books, portrayal of male characters

I don't actually own the Ya-Ya Boxed Set. I've never even seen it. That said, I have read both of the books in the set, and since a lot of the things I want to talk about have to do with how one book relates to the other, I think this is probably the...

Pros: Develops stories behind Ya Ya Sisterhood.
Cons: Something disturbing in every entry.

I am convinced that southerners do crazy and awful things because it is so hot all the time. Hot and humid. Drives one to drink, or despair and sickness. I also think there is not enough to do in the South to occupy ones mind.

Little Altars...

Pros: Catchy hot pink cover.
Cons: Story takes a strange twist when you are a third of the way into it.

I, like many others, picked up this book because of its catchy cover. It looked fun. I don't know if I missed something while reading with sleepy eyes before bed, but out of nowhere, this book took a strange turn.

The book starts out as told...

Pros: Good easy reading
Cons: May not hold intellectual or intense readers

I almost didn't buy the book. I had just come off a heavy, but very compelling book that I didn't want to shake (Angela's Ashes), and all I wanted was an easy read. Little Altars is a relatively skinny book, so I thought that at the very least, if I...

Pros: Text is rich with the five senses
Cons: A bit blah in some parts

Oh the woes of an unhappy childhood. But unlike other books that can be lumped into this vast and depressing category, Little Altars left me feeling a bit happy, surprise surprise. Why? Because Wells is an exceptionally talented writer when it comes to...

Pros: if you loved The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya then read it
Cons: if you didn't like Ya-Ya you won't like this

It is no accident that on the cover of the paperback
version of Rebecca Well's first novel (yes, Little
Altars Everywhere was written before The Divine
Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood) there is a quote from
Pat Conroy. It is as if...

Pros: Depressing content
Cons: An easy read, very interesting

Little Altars Everywhere, Rebecca Wells' prequel to her bestselling Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, sheds a little more light on the popular book's characters. As more light is shed, more and more ugliness appears. Little Altars Everywhere,...

Pros: Prequel to DIVINE SECRETS; laugh-out-loud funny and heartwarming; reminiscent of childhood times
Cons: Dark; sad; depressing for families of alcoholics and abusive traits.

This prequel to DIVINE SECRETS sets a tone to ready the reader for the sequel. LITTLE ALTARS takes place in the south of the 1950's and 1960's and offers historical explanations for the actions of abusive parents. Vivi, the main character, is an...

Pros: Witty, sometimes funny and from the heart
Cons: sometimes a little frightening, but in such a truthful way

When I read books often I get lost and I just want to put them down, I do love to read but I can never relate to the books I am reading. When I read Little Altars Everywhere from the moment I picked it up I felt like I was reading little bits of my life,...

Pros: Sidda's character is great!
Cons: Didn't give the reader satisfaction of a good book.

Some chapters were not needed and indeed very uninteresting. Some of the characters were great and and some were not so great. The book mainly consisted of random memories of the characters, like they were excerpts of that characters diary, leading to...