You know, on first glance it gives the appearance of being a rather trivial book, because of both it's format; which consists entirely of faxes, letters, and emails, which make for a very quick read...and because of the subject matter; single 30+ female tries to produce her first movie and is dealing with assorted Hollywood stereotypes, ex-boyfriend, and sick sibling at the same time.

HOWEVER, this book really has some wonderful prose and is much more than a fun page-turner. The following quote from the book (a letter to her ex-boyfriend) was also in a review of the novel. It's an example of some of the beautiful writing which runs throughout this fine book:

"Maybe we're all born with a protective mental coating like a pomegranate seed has, an invisible placenta that prevents reality from piercing our tender brains, that allows us to fool ourselves until our last breath, that lets us actually believe that one day we'll be discovered and one day we'll be rich, one day the world will see our hidden genius, that lets me believe that somewhere in the recesses of your sweet heart and hard head you still care for me".

If you like this kind of writing, and want to get quickly involved in an interesting, sometimes funny/sweet /sad novel, this one is for you.

19 of 22 found the following review helpful:

The power of letters to tell a story  Feb 03, 2004
By Peggy Vincent "author and reader"
The T and OA of the Hunt Sisters is a powerful debut novel, and I'm glad I have a signed first edition. It was the recent selection of the First Edition Club of Book Passage, an iconic bookstore in Corte Madera, CA - and this book is a real winner.
The entire book is a collection of letters of wildly varying length from Olivia Hunt to all the various important people in her life: her sister (who is battling with leukemia in Ohio), her ex-lover (whom she still loves, but he's an artist in NM), and her best friend (who is trying to get pregnant). There are tons of short and hilarious, acerbic and sarcastic letters to Hollywood directors, actors, producers, money-lenders, etc., because Olivia wants to revive her flagging career by coordinating a big-budget production of Don Quixote, starring Robin Williams.
It's a strange juxtaposition of events that come together during the year plus a few months that these `letters' span, and by the end you care deeply about every single one of the characters. Don't miss it.

12 of 13 found the following review helpful:

Outstanding, Dazzling, Generous, and Sad.  Sep 12, 2006
By Guillermo Amaro "& Ninoska Titinger"
This book is the result of very fine work balancing hilarity and heartbreak.

Elizabeth Robinson's 1st novel tells itself as a chronological compilation of emails, faxes, and letters from Olivia Hunt, a struggling Hollywood producer who is working on a remake of Don Quixote.

Her Hollywood career is about to sink and she goes through a series of hilarious events, like driving off with her ex boss' custom made butter yellow car and diving it into the ocean, only to be taken to jail for unruly behavior and stealing someone's car for a couple of hours.

Olivia's younger sister Madeleine is dying and Olivia writes stubborn, smart, and deeply moving emails and letters to and about her dying and defenseless sister.

Her letters are like music, they make you feel her moods, her doubts, her ideas and her dreams, they open up her world and her heart to you, and they are beautifully written and detailed with charm and lyrical quality.

This warm and fresh story is a reminder to all of us of how hope can grow in the darkest and hellish of places; of how it can make us want to fight for our dreams and our beliefs; of how Hope is Happiness.

Spontaneous, honest, warm, and sad.

A wonderful story of hope and fate.

11 of 12 found the following review helpful:

A book to share with your girlfriends  Jan 17, 2004
By girlfriendbooks.com
The True and Outstanding Adventures of the Hunt Sisters is a story of true sisterly love. It'll make you laugh. It will make you cry. It's not sappy. It is strong and real and tender and funny. And it's not just about sisters. It's about one woman's relationship with her sister, her best friend, her parents and the lost love of her life.

7 of 7 found the following review helpful:

Couldn't finish  Apr 03, 2005
By Big Deal Lucille "indigok"
I got suckered in by this book by the praise on the cover. I hate when that happens. It fell far short of expectation and I quit halfway in. It's very one sided, written in one voice in one letter after another. The problem: I never once believed this character would in a jabillion years go to the trouble to do anything as old-fashioned as writing long detailed sing songy letters. Tedious.

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