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I wrapped up my grandmother's tea cup collection and my mother's china, then grabbed a violin I'd hidden way back in my closet that made me cry, a gold necklace with a dolphin that my father gave me two weeks before he died of a heart attack when I was twelve and, at midnight, with that moon as bright as the blazes, I left Chicago.
When Jeanne Stewart stops at The Opera Man's Cafe in Weltana, Oregon, to eat pancakes for the first time in twelve years, she has no idea she's also about to order up a whole new future. It's been barely a week since she succumbed to a spectacularly public nervous breakdown in front of hundreds of the nation's most important advertising and PR people. Jeanne certainly had her reasons—her mother's recent death, the discovery that her boyfriend had been sleeping with a dozen other women, and the assault charges that resulted when Jeanne retaliated in a creative way against him, involving condoms and peanut oil.
Now, en route to her brother's house in Portland, Jeanne impulsively decides to spend some time in picturesque Weltana. Staying at a B&B run by the eccentric, endearing Rosvita, she meets a circle of quirky new friends at her court-ordered Anger Management classes. Like Jeanne, all of them are trying to become better, braver versions of themselves. Yet the most surprising discoveries are still to come—a good man who steadily makes his way into her heart and a dilapidated house that with love and care might be transformed into something wholly her own, just like the new life she is slowly building, piece by piece.
As heartfelt as it is hilarious, The Last Time I Was Me is a warm, wise novel about breaking down, opening up, and finally letting go of everything we thought we should be, in order to claim the life that has been waiting all along.
The author of Julia's Chocolatesdelivers a sometimes fun tale of revenge and rebirth that begins when narrator Jeanne Stewart discovers her longtime live-in boyfriend has been cheating on her. She exacts a creative revenge involving condoms and peanut oil (her boyfriend is allergic), resulting in "Slick Dick" suing her. His betrayal, following the death of her mother and weeks of working excessive hours, results in an embarrassing public nervous breakdown. Jeanne sells everything and lands in a small Oregon town, where, amid an eccentric cast, she enrolls in a court-ordered anger-management class and attempts to rebuild her life. Her initial recovery breakthrough occurs when she falls while running naked (this, strangely, is part of the program) along the river and a nice man helps her. When her brother urges Jeanne to work on a political campaign for Oregon's governor, Jeanne discovers the candidate is her river rescuer. Other irons in the fire include Jeanne's efforts to renovate a derelict house and her ex's looming lawsuit. Though initially charming, the book has a tendency to overload the narrative with sass and excessive wordplay, which slows the plot and keeps the reader at an uncomfortable distance. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.When Jeanne Stewart stops at T C in Weltana, Oregon, to eat pancakes f, she has no idea she's also about to order up a whole new future. It's been barely a week since she succumbed to a spectacularly public nervous breakdown in front of hundreds of t most important advertising and PR people. Jeanne certainly had her reasons-her mother's recent death, the discovery that her boyfriend had been sleeping with a dozen other women, a the assault charges that resulted when Jeanne retaliated in a creative way ai
Now, en route to her brother's house in Portland, Jeanne impulsively decides to spend some time in picturesque Weltana. Staying at a B&B run by the eccentric, endearing Rosvita, she meets a circle of q new friends at her court-ordered Anger Management classes. Like Jeanne, all of them are trying to become better, braver versions of themselves. Y the most surprising discoveries are still to come-a good man who steadily makes his way into her heart and a dilapidated house that with l might be transformed into something wholly her own, just like the new life she is slowly building, piece by piece.
As heartfelt as it is hilarious, The Last Time I Was Me is a warm, wise novel about breaking down, opening up, and finally letting go of everything we thought we should be, in order to claim the l that has been waiting all along.
Anonymous
Posted April 30, 2008
Mourning the death of her mother, Jeanne Stewart is outraged to find out her boyfriend ¿Slick Dick¿ has been cheating on her. Irate Jeanne obtains revenge on her live in lover when she mixes peanut oil that he is allergic to with his condoms. His reaction is to sue her. With her personal life in tatters, her professional life melts also when she suffers a nervous breakdown.---------------- Jeanne closes her mom¿s Chicago home and taking a violin and a gold dolphin necklace her dad gave her just before he died, she leaves and heads to her brother¿s home in Portland, Oregon stopping to have pancakes at the Opera Man¿s café in Weltana. She begins her recuperation by signing onto an anger management class as required by the court. Running naked as the class requires, she stumbles but a kind man helps her. At her brother¿s urging, Jeanne works on the PR campaign of a gubernatorial candidate the man who rescued her when she fell running. The Slickster she left behind in the Midwest is considering a lawsuit.--------------- THE LAST TIME I WAS ME is a charming character study of a grieving woman using a betrayal to find herself. The story line overall is fun to follow, but at times Jeanne turns chick lit chic responses that feel out of place for her. Still fans will cheer Jeanne on as she seeks to find her misplaced groove.-------------- Harriet Klausner
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted September 22, 2008
Go ahead and order her 'Julia's Chocolate' (first book) because by the time you finish the first 100 pages you'll want it waiting for you to pick up next. So well developed, characters that you'll wish you could be just like, characters you¿ll really relate to, you'll laugh and cry, you'll stop to think, you¿ll learn about yourself, you'll see the movie going through your head as you read, descriptions are amazing ¿not too long ¿ not too short, why you can smell things as you read for goodness sakes. This is a book that a thinking man would enjoy so my husband gets it next. I won't loan this one out. Literally one of the very best, in my top 10 for sure, written books I've read in a long while. And the way she repeats is such an intelligent way to anchor the readers...makes me wonder if she attended NLP classes. The title evokes an interesting sound from people when you say it...how many of us know ¿The Last Time I Was Me¿?
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted July 21, 2008
I love,love,loved this book. Funny, witty, and quick!! If you like Kristin Hannah and Lisa Wingate, you'll want to read this one!!!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted January 7, 2012
I loved this book. There were several times I was laughing out loud and had to stop and read a section out loud to my husband. It is a feel good book that I have read several times and when I lend it out I make sure I get it back cause it is always a good read.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted December 1, 2011
Was this a Lindsay Lohan biography? Could have been good....I did finish the book...but it was waaay to much unbelievable things happening. Women may get anrgy....we may get crazy...some may be tacky....but come on!!!! Really?!
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Posted September 13, 2011
i read this book in three days! i couldn't put it down! amazing story!!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.uscgang
Posted July 27, 2011
Wonderfully exciting story about a woman who hits rock bottom and fights like hell to overcome it. The main character openly shares with the reader the inside of a woman's thoughts (kinda scary at times) . This story was an easy, enjoyable read.
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Posted July 9, 2011
She makes you feel ok about being human and gives you the strength to power through.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.kookykiwi93
Posted July 5, 2011
This was my first book from cathy and loved the way she writes Hope to see another great in july hehe Plus shes my aunts best friend! <3
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.bethelg
Posted April 18, 2011
I was harrassed into reading this by a friend who said I read too many supernatural i.e. vampire, stories. After the first few chapters, I told the friend that although I was reading the book it was missing the vampires but there were plenty of demons. This is a story of a woman who is haunted by inner-demons while she appears to the casual observer to be a successful professional in a solid relationship. The facade crumbles when she is finally confronted by her boyfriends multiple indiscretions. She reacts in a way most woman scorned would love to react, the full depths of which you don't learn until the end of the book. She quits her 6 figure job in a blaze of very public diatribe about the advertising profession, she sells her condo and possessions and starts driving west, ending up in Oregon. She drinks too much, she cusses too much but she does take her legal jam back home seriously. Because she is being sued by her former lover for the "emotional pain and suffering" that he endured at her hand. She enrolls in anger managment classes with a new-age counselor. She and her course mates are hilarious and pathetic all at the same time. Her acerbic wit throughout is almost a character itself. The story is fascinating. The characters are well developed, quirky ad lovable. I highly recommend this book to everyone from every walk of life.
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Posted December 28, 2010
Wonderful. Fun, funny, touching, outrageous--I loved it.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Jennifer_April_Smith
Posted November 5, 2010
This was the first Cathy Lamb book I purchased and absolutely adored it; she can't write quick enough for me.
I've adored all her books so far.
D ~
Anonymous
Posted May 24, 2010
I Also Recommend:
A really fun read for Book Club.. great light read.. was fun looking forward to the next crazy thing she was going to get herself into.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Carspar289
Posted February 9, 2010
enlightening, funny, made me laugh and cry. highly recommended for all book clubs.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.This book is about a young woman who needs healing and has no idea how to receive it. After she quits her job and travels to a different location her life takes a significant turn. She is outspoken yet caring and the people she meets are just what she needs in putting her life and heart in the right place. I enjoyed reading this book.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted November 11, 2009
Ever been spurned by a love. Well, this book is every woman's fantasy of revenge and consequences for our actions. This is a book I couldn't put down. However, throughout the entire book you must remember at all times that it is a work of fiction and fiction does not have to be based upon any fact. It's just a fun read.
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Posted May 30, 2009
I grabbed this book because I liked the title and the cover. Sounded like a good read. Read it and loved it. I am now in the process of reading the first book that she wrote (Julia's Chocolates) and I am loving that one too. Her characters are so likable and that is a very important quality for me.
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Posted February 22, 2009
Several of my friends highly recommended this book. I purchased the book but put off reading it because I thought it would be boring. When I finally started reading I read it from cover to cover. I read it again when I got a notice to write a review. It was every bit as sad and funny the 2nd time. Granted there were some traumatic parts but this book is very entertaining. The main character, Jeanne, finds herself mixed up into all kinds of problems. My favorite was when she was fulfilling her anger management class requirements by running along the river. To say any more would be to spoil the scene. I will definitely keep this book and read it again.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.WTC
Posted February 10, 2009
Cathy Lamb has told another good story. The characters are true to life and the story unfolds with ease.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted November 2, 2008
No text was provided for this review.
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Overview
I wrapped up my grandmother's tea cup collection and my mother's china, then grabbed a violin I'd hidden way back in my closet that made me cry, a gold necklace with a dolphin that my father gave me two weeks before he died of a heart attack when I was twelve and, at midnight, with that moon as bright as the blazes, I left Chicago.
When Jeanne Stewart stops at The Opera Man's Cafe in Weltana, Oregon, to eat pancakes for the first time in twelve years, she has no idea she's also about to order up a whole new future. It's been barely a week since she succumbed to a spectacularly public nervous breakdown in front of hundreds of the nation's most important ...