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    City Mouse
    City Mouse
    City Mouse
    Audiobook9 hours

    City Mouse

    Written by Stacey Lender

    Narrated by Vanessa Daniels

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Priced out of their Manhattan neighborhood, Jessica and Aaron move with their young daughters to the one place Jessica swore she'd never go: the suburbs. But to Jessica's surprise, life in the commuter belt makes a great first impression. She quickly falls in with a clique of helpful mom friends who welcome her with pitchers of margaritas, neighborhood secrets, and a pair of hot jeans that actually fit.

    Still, it's hard to keep up in a crowd where everyone competes for the most perfectly manicured home and latest backyard gadgets. And what's worse, as the only working mom in her circle, Jessica sometimes feels disconnected and alone. So she's thrilled when she's invited to a moms-only weekend at the beach, which she assumes will mean new opportunities for real talk and bonding. Instead, the trip turns into a series of eye-opening lessons, and Jessica must decide if she's strong enough to be honest with herself about the sort of life she really wants.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateMay 22, 2018
    ISBN9781977383532
    City Mouse
    Author

    Stacey Lender

    Stacey Lender started her career as a roadie and rose through the ranks from luggage schlepper to marketing executive for entertainment brands including Radio City Music Hall, USA Network, Madison Square Garden, Sesame Street Live, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and One World Observatory at the top of One World Trade Center. She grew up in the suburbs of New York City with a god-awful perm and later graduated from Cornell University. Today she lives in Manhattan and Connecticut with her husband and two daughters, and has traveled to all fifty states. City Mouse is her first novel. For more information, visit staceylender.com.

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    Reviews for City Mouse

    3.5/5

    43 ratings18 reviews

    What did you think?

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    • 3/5
      I enjoyed City Mouse and peeking into the "real" lives behind the perfect exterior that the characters in the book created. While I don't live in the suburbs of NYC, this book closely parallels the suburban lifestyles in my area. But now I wonder what other secrets the moms are hiding! A fun, entertaining poolside read.
    • 2/5
      I found this one really quite awful. It’s not the worst I’ve read, but it comes close. The main character is completely unlikeable, and the book reads more like a bad “reality tv” script than anything else. Everything about living in suburbia is exaggerated to the point that I wonder if the author herself has ever actually lived in a suburban setting. At least where I’m from, most suburbanites don’t have a several-thousand dollar outdoor kitchen setup, interior decorators at their beck and call, and alcohol-fueled PTA fundraisers. It’s so unrealistic that it’s almost funny. The book is all about keeping up with the Jones’ when everything is just smoke and mirrors, but there’s no real depth to any of the characters and the overall plot is week. Would not recommend.
    • 3/5
      Completely predictable with a sanctimonious ending, City Mouse is essentially Mean Girls gone Mom.Jessica and family move to wealthy Suffern from NY City in order to purchase a McMansion for their family. Nearly every peer she meets there is a terrible person, or married to a terrible person and as they inflict their terribleness onto Jessica she finds herself losing who she really is in order to fit in. It's a quick read and if you don't care about being able to predict nearly everything that happens then you will enjoy this.
    • 2/5
      I went in to this book without any expectations. That being said— this was alright, but no great. I'm usually a fan of chick-lit. I wasn’t blown away by the plot or the writing. Left with an overall feeling of “Meh.”*Received an ARC in exchange for an honest review
    • 4/5
      Jessica always swore she would never leave NYC to move to the suburbs, but that was before Jessica and her husband, Aaron, had two children and no space in their high priced apartment. After finding a lovely spacious home in a wonderful neighborhood, however, their luck seems too good to be true. Their neighbors have children the same age and all seems too perfect. With a new circle of friends and a high level of expected parental involvement at the preschool, Jessica and Aaron struggle to balance commuting to work in the city and fulfilling their ever growing social obligations. Keeping up with the neighbors, their constant parties, and the social nuances of suburban inclusion leads Jessica and Aaron to wonder if the suburban life is worth it after all.This novel was a quick read, which reminded me of "Mean Girls" grown up into a bitchy group of suburban moms. Not particularly realistic but probably validating for anyone who has found herself wondering if their cliquey social group is worth all the drama.
    • 5/5
      Absolutely addicting book! I literally could not stop reading it! I think I read half the book in a day, it was sooooo good! Highly recommend!!
    • 3/5
      I had high hopes for this book as a fun summer read. The writer's style is engaging and fun. Which makes it all the more disappointing when this story never makes it out of Real Housewives territory. The themes are age old and well-trodden: city person getting used to the suburbs, making new friends as an adult, navigating motherhood, finding true friends. Unfortunately you can see plot lines coming a mile away with this one. I almost stopped reading but kept going in the hopes that the book at the end would elevate itself out of Real Housewives territory, But alas not. There are better fun frothy summer reads out there.
    • 4/5
      City Mouse is a contemporary adult novel -- along the Desperate Housewives genre without the mystery. Jessica is the protagonist, has a high powered job that she loves, but finally is convinced by her husband to move to the suburbs. There she meets an instant group of woman friends and feels like she belongs but quickly she realizes that there is much more to them than meets the eye. I definitely enjoyed this book, the content, and the fast paced nature of it. Jessica is a very likeable character and I saw a lot of myself in her. I could picture this happening to myself if my husband and I weren't lucky to live in a bit of a hybrid of city/suburb. The prose was also well written.I guess my biggest beef with it was the fact that I'm not sure what I was supposed to necessarily get out of it at the end. I'm not sure what Jessica actually learned and if it was the right lesson after all. I personally don't want to live in the suburbs, but also, I don't think that everyone is like that, and is the lesson really just not to move there in the first place? The author does put down some caveats to cover her bases at the end, but I just felt dissatisfied. The other issue that I had was the synopsis pretty much tells you what three fourths of the book is and the "trip" is almost at the end of the book. That said, I can't deny that it was an ideal summer book, one that I blazed through from cover to cover, and would definitely recommend to any woman who wants a good poolside book.
    • 4/5
      I received this book as part of the Early Reviewers program. This is the story of Jessica and Aaron who have outgrown their apartment and in search of affordable housing, move from the cities to the suburbs exchanging apartment living for home ownership. As they become part of the neighborhood and become part of the block of families, they learn that the perfect families are not always what they seem. It takes one girls weekend getaway for Jessica to learn exactly the complexities of the relationships of her new neighbors. If you are looking for a deep thought provoking story, you won't find it in this book. You will find an easy read that will reiterate that everything is not always as it seems and make you wonder what is really going on behind closed doors. I give this 3.5 stars.
    • 3/5
      I'm so glad that Stacey Lender finally admitted near the end of this book that there might possibly be good people living in the suburbs, because I was starting to feel very discouraged. Actually, I was starting to feel very grateful for my own suburban mom-friends, because Lender's characters, besides being mostly interchangeable, are also all mean and petty, not to mention serial adulterers.Our heroine Jessica finds that out the hard way when she and her family move to Suffern from Manhattan, looking for more space and a yard. Thinking she's hit the mom-friend jackpot when it turns out that right next door is a mom with a daughter the same age as her own daughter, Jessica gets pulled into the competitive sport of volunteering and car-pool. Jessica and her husband both enjoy the social scene at first, but when Jessica is invited to join a mom's-only beach weekend, she starts to really figure out who these new friends are.Lender is a skilled writer and this book kept me turning the pages, even though the subject matter is nothing new. I look forward to seeing what she writes next, and hope that she chooses material that better showcases her talents.
    • 4/5
      An ‘advance reading copy’ of CITY MOUSE: A NOVEL by Stacey Lender was sent to me by Akashic Books in exchange for an unbiased and honest review.Jessica and Aaron Almasi are a young couple with two young children, living in an extremely cramped apartment on the Upper West Side in Manhattan. They are experiencing severe growing pains with their apartment situation and are very discouraged and frustrated after looking at scores of newer, more expensive, bigger places to live. Aaron would like to move to the suburbs where their kids will have more room and they can have more space and privacy. The move would be doable, cheaper and more satisfying and Aaron couldn’t be more mistaken!Jessica tries to fit in with a local ‘mommies group’ and while they are helpful in some areas, their lifestyle choices make Jessica increasingly uncomfortable. Some reactions:The amount of money being spent is obnoxious; appalling; unreasonable; and completely out of my realm of understanding. Designer everything; gift baskets, flowers, clothing - always a one-upmanship level of control over friends and neighbors.Aaron and Jessica’s ‘quality of life’ begins to spiral downwards quite quickly while their ‘quantity of life’ and pretentiousness grows alarmingly.Jessica thought she knew herself but suffered a full-blown identity crisis after moving to Suffern. (a play on words? suffern=suffering?)After a girls weekend in South Carolina with huge amounts of alcohol, drugs and blatant infidelity, Jessica comes to her senses and realizes she must remove herself from this suburban lifestyle. Aaron is pulled into the poisonous atmosphere also, and luckily new work opportunities allow the couple to move back into their beloved city.The writing is tight and crisp with some humorous moments. I was prepared not to like this book, but the main characters were intelligent, reasoned and very capable of introspection. Aaron and Jessica care for each other and their children and want to do what’s best for the family. They are honest and likable. Their situations are very real. They are good communicators. I was rooting for them all the way through the story!I did enjoy this book and would heartily recommend it.
    • 3/5
      I received a copy of City Mouse by Stacey Lender from Early Reviewers. This novel is about a young professional couple, Jessica and Aaron, who are living in a one-bedroom apartment in New York City with their two young daughters. Their fruitless efforts to find suitable housing in the city lead to a move to the suburbs. Jessica is reluctant to make the move but once the house is purchased, she throws herself full force into the suburban commuting mommy world. She is thrilled to work from home on Fridays so she can be part of the stay-at-home moms' coffee club. The couple hire a nanny for the other four days of the week and settle into their new lifestyle. Jessica and Aaron soon are part of a social circle of other couples with young children. Over time, Jessica becomes disillusioned with the suburban lifestyle and discovers some disturbing issues with her new friends. This book is an enjoyable, easy read that falls into the chick lit category. It is good for a predictable beach read but there is little substance to the characters or story. There was a bit too much drinking, recreational drug use and sex for my taste. 3 stars.
    • 5/5
      I received this book through the Early Readers Group of Library Thing. I really enjoyed this book. At first, I thought it would be a chick lit book, but I was pleasantly surprised that it was not. The first time author has written a nice novel about a young couple who move from downtown New York to the suburbs. The couple become a part of the neighborhood cookouts, dinner parties, etc. At first things seem OK, but after a wild and unsavory weekend with the tightly knit women in the neighborhood, the wife realizes that the lifestyle of the other women is not compatible with her family values regarding sobriety, sexual activity outside of marriage, and drug use. After she shares her weekend experience with her husband he agrees that living in the suburbs was not all he expected and they decide to move back to the city where they both feel at home. A very enjoyable, light reading, no heavy drama, but a pleasant novel that kept my interest. So many novels these days have some historical aspect, but this book was truly contemporary reading. Congrats to the author on a great first book! I look forward to the next.
    • 4/5
      An interesting and light read about a NYC couple who move with their two daughters to the suburbs. The story is told from the wife’s point of view, as she makes her way through this huge adjustment, discovering more about herself and what she wants in life and in her marriage. I enjoyed this unique story and especially liked that it was set in New York and even included some historical tidbits about Alexander Hamilton!I received this book as part of the LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers in exchange for an honest review.
    • 3/5
      Jessica and her husband are finally ready to make the big move from the city to the suburbs, but Jessica doesn’t find the paradise she expected. She’s having a little trouble making friends, when the neighbor brings over a treat and invites her to a cookout. Everyone is friendly at first, but on closer acquaintance, she finds a few flaws. These new friends fight too much, drink too much, swear too much, and that’s just the warm up.But Jessica is so desperate to fit in that she ignores all the warning signs and throws herself and her two kids into every activity she can fit into her schedule. She’s got the nanny, the preschool, the giant mortgage, the commute – so why isn’t it as fulfilling as she expected?So far, this is about what I expected from this book. For all that I believe in sisterhood and feminism, I know that the mommy wars can be nasty. They shouldn’t be. We should support each other. But in reality, so many women are insecure about their choices and they take that out on each other. My main complaint about this book was the amount of sex in here, and the amount of casual cheating going on in this group of friends. Maybe my friends are the exceptions here, but I would NEVER consider flirting with, much less sleeping with a friend’s husband, and I’ve never had one hit on me. (So awkward!) Really, I didn’t identify with these women very much at all. It was like reading about a myth of suburban life, and nothing like what I actually experience. For this reason, I have to give it 2.5 stars.
    • 5/5
      City Mouse by Stacey LenderJessica, her husband and daughters move out of New York City to the Suburbs. This is not exactly what she had hoped for but Jessica is determined to fit in. She meets a group of neighborhood Moms, they welcome her to their group. As time goes by the women decide to go on a weekend "Mom's only" trip to the beach for some fun, friendship and friend bonding.Jessica is put into a world that she is not really wanting to be (in). As she quickly falls into a new clique, she is adjusting to her new environment and friends. As she makes changes to her life, she also learns about friendship, self discovery and (her) meaning of life. An original story with likable characters, engaging dialog, secrets revealed and laugh out loud moments. Stacey Lender pulls you deep into Jessica's life with flare, grabbing your attention and not letting go. I highly recommend City Mouse to those who love a great (women's fiction) story.*I received this book from LibraryThing in exchange for an honest review.
    • 4/5
      This was an engaging non stop read for me. I enjoyed experiencing her life in suburbia after living in NYC. I love NYC and have always wanted to live there which made it more fun to read her stories.Many of her experiences mirror what you see in communities and school networks across the country although maybe a little more extreme. Some of the partying, drug use and nanny habits aren't something I have experienced so I am not sure how realistic it is -- although to be fair I live in a more middle class world.It is encouraging also as it affirms loving the one you are with, accepting all others and pursuing your life well. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys chick lit. A great beach read. I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
    • 3/5
      An easy read, fairly standard characters and plot, but fun. Jessica, the city mouse, moves reluctantly to the suburbs, and tries to fit in with a group of moms she meets. They're not quite what they seem, as she finds out, but she makes another friend, and after some angst, all ends well. Nothing special, but decent.