Margie McDougal works for Big Brother Insurance Company and the San Fernando Valley. She is married and has two high school age delinquent daughters. Margie’s life is out of control. She has been put on probation at Big Brother Insurance Company because of lack of production, they have twenty-seven dollars in their checking account, not enough for the electric bill which is due, and her husband Mike, overwhelmed with his own job, has a better relationship with his six pack of Coors than her. The last straw that topples her is a letter that arrives requesting her presence at a truancy hearing for her oldest daughter. Margie just can’t handle it anymore, and she devises a plan to run away.
On Friday afternoon Margie visits the bank and cashes in a CD her father had left her. She had been saving it for her daughters’ college education, but that seems implausible at this point; running away is a better use of the money. Armed with traveler’s checks and cash she goes home more determined to fly. The next morning after the girls feigned a trip to the library to get out of their restrictions, and Mike goes to get a haircut Margie packed a suitcase, left a note and called a cab. Margie starts her new life in San Francisco. Quickly she realizes the need to find a job and a place to live. She finds a new job she excels at, and a supportive roommate situation. These new people in her life give her the support she craves.
The focus of this book is Margie’s journey to her true self, and a realization of what was missing in her and Mike’s marriage. Her relationship with herself is the most important in this story. An event at the end of the book took me by surprise and shakes Margie’s new found independence. If I would be asked to classify this book, I would put it in Chick-Lit, not romance. A good clean read, that will make you ponder what you would do in Margie’s situation.
Reviewed by McEckK for Romance Man
3 out 5 stars
Good review, McEckK. I read this book a few weeks ago, and I agree, it’s not a romance, more of a chick-lit story. I enjoyed the author’s voice and writing style, and thought she did a good job of portraying Margie’s deep point of view.
Although at first I thought the premise may turn me off, a mom and wife, cashing out and running away, the author weaved the story in a way that one can understand why she did what she did.
I’m not a huge fan of first person novels, only because I like to get the point of view of other characters, and I would have liked to read about Mike’s point of view and also some of the secondary characters. All in all, though, it was a quick fun read with an unexpected twist and I also didn’t see the ending coming.
Thank you! I agree I am not a fan of first person and Mike’s perspective would have been wonderful to explore.
The premise scares me, as well Selena. As a mom I can’t imagine my bratty teenagers doing enough to make me leave them. Thank you for putting in your thoughts that the author did a good job with this topic. Maybe I will give it a read with an open mind.
Great review! Now I am intrigued which is kind of the point, right?
Yes that is the point! I don’t think I could just fly away, no matter how deliquent my children were….
I joke about it sometimes, but I can’t imagine ever actually doing it.
LB – if you read it – let’s talk after as I don’t want to ruin anything for you…but there were times I did want to scream at her
This review caught my attention from the first word. Great review McEckK
Although like Selena, the premise kind of discouraged me, the review made it clear that there was purpose and learning within the story. I love that.
Thanks
Thank you Lady G – I will say I kept on reading because I agreed to the review – I am glad I did
Excellent review McEckK and thank you for offering it to us greedy readers!
Thanks I am happy to oblige
Great reviewMcEckK it sounds like a book I need to add to my list thanks.
sure thing Kelly – I hope you enjoy it
Great review McEckk!!!…..I have this in my TBR……sounds very interesting. I agree with you, don’t usually like first person narratives……. Thanks…..
Thank you Pat!
Hi!
Thanks for all of the comments from RM readers about See Mommy Run. You gals are right. My novel is more Chick Lit than Romance, although Margie McDougal does get it on with yummy, egotistical Quinn Galbraith.
One question–haven’t any of you ever felt like running away? And if you haven’t, do you know any woman who has taken off? My definition of runaway mothers includes those who’ve gotten a divorce and given custody to the father. Thanks, Laura Kennedy
Running away no – Have I at times announced I need a break yes.
This book is thought provoking and I would love to discuss some points but I don’t want to ruin it with spoilers.
I’ve never thought of running away, I’m too much of a worry wart, and I’d end up worrying that I’m not there to take care of everybody and everything. I have issues. LOL
Like McEckK, I have wanted just a break and I don’t want to delve too much into the book, as it would spoil a lot for people who haven’t read it, because it is thought provoking and I think for the time period you wrote the book in, you wrote out of the box with unpredictable characters and plot twists.
You know I debated if the time period mattered to the review…I am not going to say the book was timeless – as it definately had some things that dated it -however I don’t think it was a true time specific piece
As well, I didn’t want to talk about the time period too much, for fear of giving out a spoiler.
There were some elements that did reflect that time period, the actions were not stereotypical of a woman for that time, which is why I said it was out of the box.
The concept could have put me off, but I think being inside the heroine’s head through the whole book, I couldn’t relate, but I could see where a woman may have been driven to do what she did.
I really wish we could have read what was inside Mike’s head and even the teen daughters, to see what drove their actions.
BINGO Selena – I would have also liked to have some sort of flashback to see how Mike and Margie related to a few years before…and how the girls go to that point. The surprise at the end thru me and I wonder if she would have had the same conclusion without it. Am I being vague enough?
Hey, McEckK, I hope I’m responding in the right place, it gets confusing where to hit reply here.
Yes, you are being vague enough, without giving away spoilers.
I know exactly what you mean.
I also wondered the same thing.
I’m a huge fan of unexpected endings, I don’t want to know exactly how it will end, I also think there should always be something unresolved so that the reader can form all kinds of possibilities in their own mind.
Hard to really express what I mean, as we both said, we don’t want to spoil any of the twists.
I started this and stayed up until 2am reading. Finished it in 2 days. Margie does what most of us mother’s secretly dream of sometime, but are too afraid to admit to. It takes courage to walk away from a bad situation knowing that you’ll forever be labeled as the bad Mother. Her journey of self discovery is interesting, and not without pitfalls. A thought provoking read.
I have to ask what mom hasn’t thought of running away? The idea of actually doing so just seems extremely selfish, I am not sure I could read this mostly because just from the review I am talking to the character about how she is responsible for her daughters and her crappy marriage and if she hates it then fix it. SIGH I can suspend reality to accept vampires but not dead beat moms LOL!
Carin – I will say I did have that issue right away also – but I kept on reading because I promised RM a review – and you know it ended differently than I expected and did not have a clique answer to the problem – you might want to check it out.
Runaway mothers are an upsetting subject to say the least. Often whispered but rarely written about, they exist. According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Nov. 2009 statistics, there were 2.38 million fathers raising children alone.
Finally someone has the guts (or bad judgement? You decide!) to put into words something that women have avoided talking about for generations: bugging out. No, it’s not just for husbands anymore! This politically incorrect but oh-so-expedient remedy is available to anyone willing to take the risks and the grief that come with it. Laura Kennedy Bell slams this tale home with authority. But I’m left to wonder- did this really happen? The twist to the ending shook the hell out of me!
No Gino, I never ran away, just felt like it for fleeting moments when raising four teenagers.
I don’t condone mothers running away any more than author James Patterson condones plugging someone with a Saturday Night Special and throwing the body into the trunk of a Packard.
Just listen to yourselves, ladies (and gentlemen). I’m referring to those of you who are critical of Margie McDougall, saying you’d never be so selfish. Of course, you wouldn’t. Most women (and men for that matter) would stay home and make the best of a bad situation. But would staying at home a plot make? No. What makes this narrative work is Margie does what other wives would never do. By that measure she puts herself in the good company of Madame Bovary, Scarlett O’Hara, and Francesca in Bridges of Madison County. So what is the lesson for writers? Don’t allow your character to do the ordinary. Otherwise, who cares. Good job, Laura Kennedy Bell. Keep turning them out.
Discussion is good, even though most of us would not take the road Margie takes we can talk about it. And maybe by talking about it if we encounter someone who has walked in Margie’s shoes we might not rush to a conclusion. David thanks for stopping by.
I agree, any book that draws out a discussion is always a good thing.
@David, I don’t think people are being critical of Margie’s decision, they are expressing how they would handle a bad situation. Since the book was written in Margie’s POV, we don’t really know what was going through her husband’s mind nor her children’s minds.
I also agree, as I said above, that Laura Kennedy wrote outside the box for that time period especially, and weaved a plot that was not predicable. That’s a good thing.
The theme is one that is hard to tackle and for those characters it worked well.
I never think the author is talking about her/his personal situation when writing, they are creating a fictional world for the reader to get lost in and, if the reader walks away thinking of different issues, whether they agree with the character or not, is always a good thing.
Having the reader feel any emotion is always a great thing and the author is to be commended for doing that, whether the reader agrees with the protagonist’s actions or not.
Wow, what a great conversation! This book definitely has my curiosity peaked. Planning to add it to my TBR list. Thanks for the great review and comments!
Thank you Steph – I hope you enjoy it!
The strength of this book for me is the character development, especially of Margie. She’s utterly authentic, and while we might judge her, we seem to align ourselves somehow with her plight. For the record, this is not such a rare incident, the runaway mother. I knew of one very public and plot-twisted version several years ago. It continues to amaze me that, though men have been doing this leave-taking of home and children for years (even centuries) the woman leaving provokes much hand-wringing. Old myths die hard, I guess.
By the way, kudos to Shannon Beck for the cover art. And kudos to Laura for giving us such a believable character.
Thanks, Rebecca. I enjoyed writing about Margie McDougal. Am also glad you appreciated the original art for the cover of See Mommy Run designed by talented Florida artist Shannon O’Leary-Beck.
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