Book Review: The Girls from Ames

The Girls from Ames: A Story of Women and a Forty-Year Friendship, by Jeffrey Zaslow is a story about 11 girls who have been friends for 40 years.   What is extraordinary about this book is how such a large group of women could continue their friendship over a 40 year time period and across the United States.  Many people are lucky to keep their friends throughout high school much less 40 years!

The concept of this book is interesting, to learn the story of each girl, what makes them click, what makes them clash, but overall this book tended to get a little long and drawn out for me.  While each of these women have been friends for 40 years they have not accomplished any more or less than anyone I may have known, all in all their lives seem pretty ordinary.  There are parts of the book that will make you laugh, some that will make you cry but this was not one of those books where I couldn't wait to read the next page. This book does have some redeeming qualities, hearing about how the girls learned to work through their differences is something we can all benefit from, and just the fact that such a large group has continued their friendship is heartening as well.  If you're looking for a story about friendship then this is the book for you as this is a very inspiring book about friendship!

To learn more about The Girls From Ames, see their photos, watch a video and read an excerpt go here!

*I was given this book to review from Penguin group, and I have written my honest opinion.