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    Heartburn
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    Heartburn
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    Heartburn
    Audiobook5 hours

    Heartburn

    Written by Nora Ephron

    Narrated by Meryl Streep

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    Is it possible to write a sidesplitting novel about the breakup of the perfect marriage? If the writer is Nora Ephron, the answer is a resounding yes. For in this inspired confection of adultery, revenge, group therapy, and pot roast, the creator of Sleepless in Seattle reminds us that comedy depends on anguish as surely as a proper gravy depends on flour and butter.

    Seven months into her pregnancy, Rachel Samstat discovers that her husband, Mark, is in love with another woman. The fact that the other woman has "a neck as long as an arm and a nose as long as a thumb and you should see her legs" is no consolation. Food sometimes is, though, since Rachel writes cookbooks for a living. And in between trying to win Mark back and loudly wishing him dead, Ephron's irrepressible heroine offers some of her favorite recipes. Heartburn is a sinfully delicious novel, as soul-satisfying as mashed potatoes and as airy as a perfect soufflé.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateJul 9, 2013
    ISBN9780385367295
    Unavailable
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    Reviews for Heartburn

    3.5/5

    599 ratings51 reviews

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      When Rachel Samstat, who is seven months pregnant, discovers that her second husband is having an affair her life falls apart. How does she go forward from here? Does she forgive the schmuck and stay with him? Or does she move on?I'm very fond of several Nora Ephron's films so reading this novel was an inevitability. It definitely has its charming moments and many of the jokes continue to hold up well thirty-five years later but even with Ephron's funny observations smattered throughout, it is hard to escape the sadness of the overall narrative. While I definitely enjoyed my time with the book, it won't be one I revisit like I do her films.
    • 5/5
      Read this book after watching a documentary about Nora Ephron. I learned how much Heartburn portrayed the devastating news of her husband's affair when she was 8 months pregnant with their second child. Nora was married to Carl Bernstein, of Woodward and Bernstein fame and he apparently was quite the ladies man. But, these two high powered and intelligent people fell deeply in love and it lasted until it didn't. Which totally blindsided Nora. The book was laugh out loud funny. A quick read and well written. The book was much better than the movie.
    • 3/5
      This novel, evidently a thinly disguised retelling of events in her life, must have served as a catharsis for Nora Ephron. Poignant at times, plainly sad at others, with dashes of mean spiritedness, and yet sprinkled with humor, some of it sarcastic and occasionally a bit caustic, this novel was akin to peeking through a window into someone’s life. I learned more than I really wanted to know, and I am glad I really can’t separate fact from fiction. I wish it were all fiction, but sadly, I know that is just not true. Ephron had a style of writing that was entertaining, and this tale is no exception. Still, it is a bit of a disappointment when compared to her others works. It is not hilariously funny. It is a bit whiny at times. It seems to bog down some before Rachel finally accepts the fact that her unfaithful husband doesn’t deserve her and the marriage is over. At least the end, she seems to have adjusted to that fact and found a modicum of peace.
    • 4/5
      Tags: Fiction, Audiobook, Nora Ephron, Marriage, InfidelityPlot Overview: Nora Ephron based Heartburn off of her own personal experience with a husband she discovered had cheated on her with a friend. She recounts the story at the beginning all the way to the “end” where she has finally worked through it enough to come to terms with it, accept it, and begin to figure out how to move on.Characters: The whole story is really focused in on the character representing Nora, whose name is Rachel Samstat, and following her process of discovering a cheating husband, grieving the marriage (while also being quite angry at her husband for good reason), and coming to terms with the reality. As a character, she doesn’t necessarily really change, but the process that she goes through mentally in recognizing and moving forward is what really stands out and develops most.Stand-Outs: The audiobook I listened to was narrated by Meryl Streep, which made it all the better. There were a lot of classic Nora Ephron lines throughout this one that just made me so appreciate her intelligence and also made me sad that we no longer have her brain around. The other fun thing about the book was that Nora had a food theme filtered throughout, so she has pauses where she discusses something she’d made and then includes the recipe. I’ve been told by a friend that the recipes are actually very good!If you like: dry wit and humor, Nora Ephron, food, resilient women, quick reads
    • 5/5
      Hysterical, with a thousand pinpricks of familiar truths. The five-star bar by which all other humorous chick lit is judged, which means I may never give anything else in that genre five stars. Ever.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book.
    • 4/5
      Hilarious, with a certain dose of bittersweet tang. Ephron has a gift for turning a delightfully witty phrase. One might consider this "chick" lit, but the writing is good enough to make it a delightful read for anyone.
    • 5/5
      Nora Ephron's voice is mesmerizing. Emerging from a session with "Heartburn," I felt wittier and slightly more acerbic about marriage. I now hear my husband's continuous requests for the time (I bought him a watch, for goodness sake!) as akin to Ephron's hilarious sketch "Where's the butter?" The author introduces readers to her rich ethnic culture and wifely status through the use of recipes dotted throughout "Heartburn" like cutting cold butter into pie dough. Truly a brilliant and entertaining take on the forlorn subject of a deteriorating marriage.
    • 4/5
      Hilarious book. Highly recommend.
    • 5/5
      Let me just tell you that listening to Meryl Streep read/perform this book is a real treat. When I read it seven years ago, I really liked it. But it's no surprise, considering Ephron's success with Sleepless In Seattle and You've Got Mail, that Heartburn really comes alive in a performance. The dialogue, the understated wit, the confessional recipe-author angle, it's all hilarious. My words are really failing me right now, but this a highly enjoyable book. Yes, it's about a failing marriage, and it's heavily influenced by Ephron's own life, but something Ephron does well is to highlight the humor in real life. A dash of exaggeration, a generous helping of New York wit, and the mundane and even the painful become good stories with laugh-out-loud one-liners. Highly recommended. Also please check out A Wallflower at the Orgy, and Ephron's other non-fiction essay collections.
    • 3/5
      Three stars because it was OK. Not good but not awful. Found the characters to be kind of shallow. Gives the reader a dismal look at how marriages (in the 80's) were treated so casually. Today the same sort of casual attitude is given to relationships but maybe we are simply used to it by now.
    • 4/5
      Audiobook version by Meryl Streep. Can't imagine it any other way.
    • 5/5
      A brilliant book by a genius writer, finding humour and comedy in such serious topics as infidelity and divorce , and a masterful reading by the one and only Meryl streep
    • 5/5
      Honestly, I probably wouldn't have liked this as much if Meryl Streep wasn't the narrator, but she is and it was wonderful!
    • 5/5
      I loved the book but most of all it was a delight to hear it from Meryl Streep. I felt soo lucky! If there was an award for best audiobook reading it would go to her!
    • 5/5
      Clever and warm portrait of media elite couples in Washington/NYC of the '80s. Ephron, obviously, has a memorable comic voice. And speaking of voices, Meryl Streep narrates. Enough said.
    • 2/5
      I found it a bit dry after a point. Meryl Streep’s narration really made it great to listen to though.
    • 4/5
      What do you do when you are seven months pregnant and you discover your second husband is having an affair? To make matters worse, you already have a handful in the form of a two year old named Sam. It's complicated to say the least. Heartburn is fiction but it could be all true. Ephron based this fictional falling apart of a marriage on her own experiences with love gone awry. Told from the perspective of Rachel, a cookbook author who has discovered her husband is having an affair with someone in their social circle. Like all good gossips, everyone knows Thelma is having a fling with someone's husband. They all take turns guessing until Rachel discovers it's her Mark Thelma has been seeing. Heartburn is at once heartbreaking and hilarious. Rachel's revenge is sweet and swift.
    • 5/5
      If you can, listen to the audiobook of this as it is narrated by Meryl Streep! It’s a wonderful production!
    • 4/5
      Nora Ephron's alter ego, food writer Rachel Samstat, is seven months pregnant when she finds out that her husband Mark (a stand-in for Carl Bernstein) is having an affair with a woman in their social set. At heart, it is a sad story of rejection, bitterness, and betrayal, yet Ephron lightens the proceedings with clever writing and the occasional recipe. The novel is a bit dated, and it gets a little wearing to read so many one-liners in rat-tat-tat fashion, but this brief novel is still worth reading.
    • 4/5
      I love Nora Ephron's books and movies, and this was no exception for me.

      This fictional memoir tells the tale of a marriage falling apart in slow motion, with the wry humor Ephron is famous for. And wonderful, flawless narration by Meryl Streep made it even better.
    • 4/5
      Honestly had I read this book instead of listening to the audiobook version (narrated by the queen, Meryl Streep) I probably would have only given it three stars. BUT, Meryl Streep is an amazing narrator and her voice really helped elevate the so-so story. Rachel Samstat is seven months pregnant with her second child when she discovers that her no good husband is in the middle of an affair. She doesn't know if she wants to kill him or try to win him back, but she has to do something. Normally Rachel writes about food and family (she is a talented cookbook writer), but she's going to try her hand at writing about this sordid affair and working her way through it. Funny, ridiculous, and over the top, this novel of infidelity, friendship, and food, is over the top and fun. A bit tiring in parts, but again, Meryl Streep.
    • 4/5
      I read this as an audio book--sparkling language, each sentence a joy. The plot doesn't matter much.
    • 4/5
      This is one of those not-for-everyone books. I think it just clicks for you, or it doesn't. For me, it did. I like the main character, and love her storytelling. She's pregnant. Her husband is in love with another woman who runs in their social circle. She talks about everything and even throws in a few recipes. Everything is told with a spark and often a bit of snark. It kept me interested.
    • 4/5
      bitter sweet account of a marriage breakup.
    • 2/5
      Expected better things of this. I didn’t expect it to be a whiney self-pitying rant. But that is what it is.
    • 5/5
      Perennial favorite. Nora Ephron was one of the best comedy writers of her generation. This book is wonderful and still holds up after time. Don't bother seeing the movie, it was awful. But the book is a definite winner.
    • 3/5
      Great except for the homophobic dyke jokes. The rest of the book was funny and relatable.
    • 5/5
      It doesn’t get better than Nora Ephron’s humor coupled with Meryl Streep as a narrator.
    • 5/5
      This book made me realize no matter how bad things get, as long as you have a sense of humor you will make it. You will be ok.