Because of You: The bestselling Richard & Judy book club pick

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Minnie is raised in a much lower social class than she was born into. The vocabulary of the incredibly immature Hope, and how she raises Minnie as her BFF, is really grating. My review is of the audio book version, as well as the story. I’m rather an audio book novice – I have this terrible habit of falling asleep whilst listening to books – its not boredom – especially not in this case, but rather a voice in my ear soothing me to sleep! As if its want to be this light and fluffy story but the plot itself doesn’t really fit with that, and its too silly and full of plot holes that honestly don’t make sense, if the author actually sat down and researched a little?

Seventeen years later, the gods who keep watch over broken-hearted mothers wreak mighty revenge, and the truth starts rolling, terrible and deep, toward them all. Because of You by Dawn French is published with Penguin Michael Joseph Books. It is the fourth novel from the number one bestselling author and is described as ‘life-affirming and moving, a stunning new novel, told with Dawn French’s signature humour, warmth and so much love.’ Because of You was longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2021. I think feeling sorry for Hope also came from knowing that Florence’s dad was a self-loving idiot who would have ruined his daughter’s life, just like he did his wife. I like the way that Dawn French kind of made him out to be the baddy in the book, and that he was an MP too.

About the Author

In a story that is full of heartbreak and sadness, his inability to get his words correct, provide much needed lightness. Dawn French has a very unusual style of writing, one that is quite uniquely her own. Many of us are familiar with her sense of fun and her gentle nature when portraying characters on our screens and this sense of humanity seeps through in her writing. There are elements of the story that I recommend any reader not to question too much as to do so would very much take from the poignancy of this tale. I've read a couple of Dawn's books, because I really like her as an actress, and to what we think we know about her. But I do hesitate, because I don't really enjoy them. Maybe she's given too much license. I think that she could be edited more. We can definitely understand the impulse in that moment. The hard part for her and anyone else to be sympathetic to is that she kept the baby. And so she does, for 17 years.

Because Of You is Dawn French's stunning new novel, told with her signature humour, warmth and so much love. The ending requests you to suspend believe to the point that you could also read the Graffalo and believe that the mouse is real. A bright, brilliant and heartbreaking tale of two mothers, two babies and the far-reaching consequences of one fateful day Yahoo! Style Both women are very different. Hope is 20 years old and a cleaner, however she is ambitious and has plans. Her boyfriend Quiet Isaac, is from Sierra Leone and an engineering student. with strong family values. Their baby was unexpected but nevertheless, much wanted.

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I adored According to YES. It's so different to anything I've read in forever, so charming, wise, brilliantly written. I loved it all Marian Keyes I absolutely loved Because of You. Fantastic, passionate, compassionate, so much wisdom, a lot of humour, very real and credible' BERNARDINE EVARISTO, Booker Prize-winning author of Girl, Woman, Other Unfortunately, Hope’s baby is stillborn whilst Anna has a beautiful baby girl she calls Florence. A few hours later as Hope is heading home she goes past Anna’s room where both she and her partner are asleep and she sneaks a peek at the baby. Little Florence lifts her hand to Hope and at that moment she loses all sense of what is right and wrong and puts the baby in her night bag and carries her out to the car where her other half is waiting. Terrible. Dawn French is a talented comedian, but this book is dreadful and so unrealistic with so many errors. There seems to have been no research done on any of the themes. How did it get past the editor?

Fans who have waited five long years for French's fourth novel won't be disappointed: Because Of You is a book with a beating heart, a story told with warmth and verve Daily Express I absolutely loved Because of You. Fantastic, passionate, compassionate, so much wisdom, a lot of humour, very real and credible BERNARDINE EVARISTO, Booker Prize-winning author of Girl, Woman, Other It was a bit of a surprise when I saw a novel by Dawn French on this year's Women's Prize longlist since I knew she'd written a memoir but wasn't aware she wrote novels as well. Of course, I'm a fan of her work as a comedian so I was excited to try her fiction. “Because of You” is a family drama concerning a newborn girl that's stolen from a hospital by a grieving mother whose child died in birth. Minnie is raised by loving mother Hope without any knowledge of her true origins. But, when Minnie becomes pregnant as a teenager, the truth must come out and there are dramatic consequences as she's reunited with her birth parents Anna and Julius. That's a bit of a spoiler but I don't think the plot is the best thing about this book. Where it's most successful are in the lively characterisations and scenes which are imbued with a wry sense of humour. It also realistically portrays a racially diverse cast of characters without making the politics of skin colour a primary element of the story. Because Of You is a tale told with warmth by a storyteller who never takes herself too seriously Sunday Express

I'm finding it difficult to distill what I thought about this story. The blurb says 'told with her signature humour, warmth and so much love'. And we can hear Dawn French's voice throughout. If you follow Dawn at all, you know what I mean. But I actually thought that hearing Dawn's 'voice' throughout was distracting. And the humour, such as it was in a difficult story such as this, was like 'cheap'. And I didn't laugh, and after the first couple of throw out lines, didn't even smile. It began to annoy me.

I could see the charm in the writing that others have praised in the narrative – it is indeed warm and heartfelt but sadly it really didn’t work for me. The publicists have highlighted Russell Brand’s one word comment – “incredible” – to promote the book but if you look up the dictionary definition of ‘incredible’ you will see that the word actually means “impossible to believe / difficult to believe. Extraordinary“. I am firmly in Russell’s camp. An enlightening and feel-good read offering a fresh look at life and how to embrace it. Funny and enjoyable to the end We Love This Book criminal mummy tells stolen daughter the truth at age 17. Why? Who knows. They then turn themselves in at the police station. Why? Who knows.Because of You is a story of a mother’s love, loss and sacrifice and shows how those bonds between a mother and child can never really be lost. I have to admit to being rather wet-eyed by the end. You may well need tissues. There might be some aspects that seem rather far-fetched but for me there could have been no other other way for the story to go. Dawn French said in her interview that she wanted to explore the themes of nature vs nurture and loss. Honestly, the very thought of hinging the exploration of nature vs nurture on a stolen baby and a stillbirth makes me uncomfortable as a parent. The exploration of loss felt no more than a lip service as it seemed like the author wanted to generate warm feelings for Hope in the readers' minds, so she conveniently chose to sideline the grief of Anna. Maybe it's me, but I fail to see why there should even be an expectation of warm feelings here for someone who committed the unimaginable crime of stealing a newborn, no matter what circumstances drove her to do it or how much effort she put into raising that baby. As a parent, this not only felt disturbing to me but it also felt offensive. if you want something special and a well done and written story, that is heartbreaking and makes you feel with the mothers and the child that goes through what’s happening in this book?