If I could give this book zero stars I most definitely would. I don't know WHAT I was thinking delving into another book on Oprah's book list. I have found very few books on her list that don't make me want to poke myself in the eye with a dull pencil. I listened to this as an audio book and couldn't make it past the 2nd CD (out of 6). The narrator was good, but the story....AAAAGGGGHHHHH!!!

A woman's husband leaves her, she mopes around, cries all the time, begs, pleads and whines to try to get him back. When it reached a point that he came for dinner to discuss "what happened to them" when she ends up on her knees in front of him, grasping him around the waist, sobbing in his lap and starting to kiss his groin and play with his zipper...that I called it quits. There is nothing I hate more the blubbering weak women who have a "whoa is me" attitude. I know Oprah is admired on a lot of fronts, selecting books is NOT one of them. I can't think of any reason someone would suffer through this book....

A good story. Berg is a good writer, I enjoy most of what I've read of hers. This one, I felt, was better than "Sights Unseen". Good storyline, believable characters.

This was a nice easy read, a good story that moved along quickly and enjoyably. Would have been a good beach read if I could ever get to the beach. I enjoyed it.

I LOVED this book. I can't believe it took me so long to read something by this author. It was so funny, so sad, so authentic. What voice! This is the story of Sam, a woman in her early forties, mother of an eleven year old son, who has been left devastated when her husband announces he is leaving. Berg captures so well the way women can go slightly mad in the wake of a tragedy such as this, but ultimately get through it stronger. My next book will be another Elizabeth Berg, and maybe even the book after that.

This story is tender, endearing, funny, and raw. I love Elizabeth Berg and the way she writes. Her characters are always flawed and relatable, and Open House’s main character, Samantha, is no exception. I really enjoyed this read!

Samantha is a pathetic, depressing character for 32 of 36 chapters. What a disappointing book!

This was an Oprah's Book Club book so I had high expectations going in. It was okay...a book about a woman going through a divorce. I thought the author captured the emotions of the main character very realistically. We women are strong and brave one minute then crying on the floor in a self defeated heap the next. That part I really connected with. But the story line was predictable and cliche...and I am so tired of books and movies celebrating couples who divorce and then "find" themselves and new life and new love! Gag! I believe that CAN happen while you're still married and bored with your spouse. It just takes a lot more work. Getting divorced I think is the easy choice. It's deciding to stay married and make it work that is hard hard had.

Also, it makes me feel deeply sad for how it affects the children and how neither parent seems to care how their actions change their childrens' lives. That was true in this book so it was a little hard to read because of that.

This book seemed like an honest look at a woman struggling through a divorce and was a fast read. I But this is the second of Berg’s books that I have read and haven’t really been all that impressed. Some of the writing and content was wonderful and very well written while other parts seemed rushed and undeveloped. There are two significant occurrences at the end of the book that although were life altering changes for Samantha, only garnered a few pages and didn’t really seem resolved. I won’t say what the things were because someone might want to read the book but feel free to contact me for further discussion. Definitely not a book worthy to be used in my AP class but possibly a good vacation read. One of the things I didn’t like about this book was the subject matter- it is depressing to read about divorce and it is a topic that frustrates me anyway. I would suggest this book if you want to complete all of the books on the Oprah list but I don’t think I would really encourage anyone to read it. Besides, I don’t think Oprah knows anything about books and I try to shy away from anything with her name on it which is bad because I think she does publicize some good books. However, I don’t want to seem like I am so unoriginal in my book choices that I need Oprah to tell me what is good literature or not. Okay, one more rant—I don’t know why Oprah is so popular because she has no connection with her audience which consists mostly of wives and mothers, two things that she is not. Okay, I am done—I guess the bottom line is that you probably don’t want to read this book.

I enjoyed this book very much. I love books about families and the relationship with each other. This is my first book by this author. I listened to the audiobook. Fast read too.

This is a novel about a woman who is forced to recreate her life after her husband leaves her. Until his desertion she's been a contented housewife and mother to her eleven year old son. Now she has to learn to stand on her own two feet, get a job and take in lodgers to survive.

In a style that is reminiscent of Anne Tyler, Elizabeth Berg forensically examines the distress of a woman whose 'sin' is that she was content with home-making in a world that no longer values such a lifestyle.

There are some very moving scenes in here, like the time when she tries to win her husband back through sex, and fails. Written with unflinching realism, the description is almost too painful to read.

In places, however, I felt that the characterisation was a little close to caricature and the author does tend to stray into sentimentality at times. Nevertheless, overall I found this to be a funny, powerful and life-affirming book.

Sam’s life falls apart suddenly when her husband walks out. We get to mourn and laugh along with her as she navigates her new reality.
Great characters, great dialogue, tender moments and some inspiring self-discovery. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
The narration was just right, and probably made me like the book even more.

Really good depiction of a woman trying to adjust after her husband leaves her. Berg is a very good writer, a keen observer of humans, and she has a wicked sense of humor. Who doesn't love the idea of a woman taking in boarders and turning them into family? Plus a happy ending.