The Girls from Ames by Jeffrey Zaslow

I traveled light on the cruise. One book (Blink), and my Kindle, which now has many books on it. It was delightful to have all those books and their total weight was no more than a few ounces that fit in my purse.

I still prefer a real book with all the tactile and sensory factors that go with it. But for space and weight and the reality of always having something on hand to read, you can't beat the Kindle.

Jeffrey Zaslow is a columnist for the Wall Street Journal. A few years ago he wrote an article about women and friendships. He received an email from a woman from Ames, Iowa describing her great friendship with ten other women from Ames. Eventually this communication resulted in this book. It chronicles the close friendship of eleven girls from Ames, Iowa, who are still close friends even though they no longer live close together geographically.

I almost can't describe how I felt about the book. If you have close friends - even if they haven't been your friends for forty years - who live close to you, or far away, I think you can relate to this book. There is something universal about women's friendships even though the individuals in one group may be completely different than those in another group of friends. Zaslow does a great job of capturing that. There is something about time spent together, and having gone through hard times together that is a sure binding between women.

It was a fabulous book. (Crazy Ladies, you need to read this!). I have to say that one drawback of reading this on the Kindle was that the photos weren't as easy to see - labels were mixed up, and the photos weren't as clear as in a real book.