REVIEW for Off the Menu

TITLE: Off the Menu
AUTHOR: Christine Son
DATE: 2008
RATING: 4 stars


I received this book through the kindness of the author, Christine Son. Thank you Christine!

Hercules Huang, Whitney Lee and Audrey Henley are best friends since school and they have always relied on each other as only best friends can. They have always been there for each other. Although they have all gone their separate ways - they still meet up regularly and eagerly catch up. While everything appears to be great from the outside, the girls are growing desperately unhappy and feel incapable of sharing this part of their lives with each other, each feels like a failure for not being "happy, happy, happy".

During a "girls weekend" - Hercules, Whitney and Audrey take a chance and decide to really open up about what they are feeling and what they are living, not so surprisingly, the girls discover that they are all running away from something and vow to support each other while they each work towards achieving their true life callings.

Son's novel explores many aspects of human nature - particularly those dealing with relationships with parents, friends and even with ourselves. It is always particularly daunting to challenge a path that appears to have been preset for us and to have the courage to find our own way. Carving one's own way in life is a scary proposition.

This book is all about empowering ourselves - particularly as women - to break out of those "set" patterns and to truly discover what will make us happy. However, this novel is also about the love and support that can be found in true friendship - which these three girls are lucky enough to share. It is heartwarming to read a novel in which there is no horrible jealousy and cattiness and where the women don't spend all of their time destroying each other.

I liked this book and recommend it as a heartwarming, tug to the heartstrings read.