If you already have your mind made up that you don't like Hillary, then I can't make you read this book. If you think she murders babies or runs child-snatching rings out of pizza parlors, then this book may not be for you.

But everyone else...check this out. All I can say is I found it delightful and refreshing and surprising in the way that Curtis Sittenfeld usually is. It begins more or less like a fictionalized biography, with Hillary and Bill meeting in law school and having a romance. But then it veers off into what-if territory. I don't want to give the plot away, but I found the plot plausible and satisfying, and the character development perceptive and just.

Curtis Sittenfeld seems to always deliver so much more than the reader expected, and she delivers once again with Rodham.

Like all of Curtis Sittenfeld's books I really enjoyed this one. It is a little different from her previous books as many of the characters are real people and she has captured the essence of them perfectly. Although I have never met Hillary Rodham (Clinton) and don't pretend to know what is in her head, I can certainly hear her voice coming through in the text. And Ms. Sittenfeld has Donald Trump down perfectly, his speech and his affect. My only regret is that real life did not turn out like her book!!

I wasn't sure what to expect, but this was a fascinating read. I couldn't put it down! Quite a unique take on a fictional story of a real person and what could have been with different choices.

I feel like this book is going to cause a lot of controversy, and yet I am looking forward to see that. While reading I was left with mixed feelings, it felt like fanfic, and yet I was still intrigued about what could have been had Hillary not married Clinton, and I appreciate the complex decisions and turns that Sittenfeld took and made.

Curtis Sittenfeld is one of my favorite authors and I was so excited to see that she's doing another book based on a famous woman's life.

I enjoyed this book a lot though it took a lot longer to read than I would have liked. It's well written with engaging dialogue but reads like a biography... I don't tend to read biographies so, if I'm going to invest the energy, it feels a little bit like I should be learning something and not reading fiction. That's where all the tension was for me.

I have been looking forward to Curtis Sittenfeld's new novel, Rodham, which will be published in May 2020, ever since it was first announced as a possibility. The novel imagines the trajectory of Hillary Rodham's life if she had never married Bill Clinton.

Hillary Clinton's defeat in 2016 is still very raw for many, and the idea of imagining an alternative future for her is a fraught proposition because it taps into that rawness. Anyone who has read Sittenfeld's other works can also predict that she's not likely to hold back on discomfort, ethical ambiguity, and awkwardness in imagining this story. In both Prep and Sisterland, she draws on the potential for first-person narrators to gain their readers' trust in order to create complicated characters that are both easy to identify with and difficult to like.

Rodham exhibits all of Sittenfeld's strengths: depth of characterization, a compelling narrative, and complicated choices that have no easy answer. At times, it is a stressful read, especially as she threads the storyline through with details from real events, bringing up painful moments from the 2016 presidential campaign and offering a more detailed imagining of Bill and Hillary's relationship than I for one want to think of given what we know about him.

As is always the case for me with Sittenfeld's work, Rodham succeeds for exactly the reasons that it is at times uncomfortable to read. The story is complex, the characters are complicated, and the narrative is masterfully designed. It's a satisfying novel, and I am looking forward to hearing what everyone else thinks about it.

Such an interesting concept for a book! I had no idea what I was getting into by reading it... A fictional account of someone's life, especially someone who's still alive seemed interesting enough that I had to try it out. That, and I really like Curtis Sittenfeld. I didn't know much about Hillary Clinton going in, I'm neither fan, nor not fan. But I thought this book was a fascinating look at how our choices shape our lives. What would Hillary's life had looked like had she not chosen to marry Bill Clinton? This novel delves into race, sexism, and ambition in way that it's hard to remember that it's fiction. It includes major players of today, like Barack Obama and Donald Trump. This book kept my attention all the way through, and I couldn't stop thinking about it. This is definitely another hit for Sittenfeld.

This author is a favorite and her new book does not disappoint. This is a thoughtful and balanced telling of Hilary’s life. Curtis is a master storyteller and she manages to delve deeply into this famous and remarkable woman’s life. Well done

An interesting thought experiment. How would Hillary, the country, and/or the world be different if she never married Bill. Well plotted. Provocative. Will most definitely be the book everyone is talking about in 2020.

This is the story of Hillary Rodham if she hadn't married Bill. I was curious about how the author would get Hillary's voice "right," and I think she nailed it. Sittenfeld imagined a complex female character that we already think we know so thoughtfully and with such fairness. Ambition, motherhood, desire, and sexism are all explored through this Hillary character, and I found it to be a super fun read.

Fans of Curtis Sittenfeld will not be disappointed with this alternative history of one of America's most influential, controversial, divisive women-HRC herself! We meet Hillary Rodham as a law student at Yale and the novel quickly heats up, as does Hillary's romance with Southern charmer and fellow student Bill Clinton. Their love affair deepens and really sets the stage for some life changing decisions for our heroine. Which path will she pursue? Can she handle a lifetime of infidelity? Is she worth more? The latter half of the novel is incredibly well imagined and the characters are intricately developed. I couldn't put it down and can't wait to recommend it!

A fascinating take on a "what if": What if Bill Clinton and Hillary Rodham met, fell in love, but didn't marry and instead went their separate ways? How might Hillary's path in life have gone? I found myself deeply intrigued by the author's imagining.

I might as well quit reading 2020 releases now because I have found my favorite book of the year. This is a work of historical fiction is based on the premise that Hillary Rodham heeded the red flags that came with dating Bill Clinton in the 1970s. Curtis Sittenfeld really captured the voice of a strong, brilliant, independent female narrator, who also happens to be familiar to the entire world. Much of this historically fictional account is actually not that historical (in the sense of time, not fact - it's incredibly well-researched), which makes the story all the more poignant.

Hillary Clinton is a polarizing character, and because of that, this book won't be for everyone. (But what book is?) However, that's a shame, as this is such a whip smart and warm take on the could've-been, that I feel bad for anyone who doesn't read this book.

This alternative history of the life of Hillary Clinton will thrill her fans. And everyone will relate to the "what might have been" scenario that we all think about our own lives. Sittenfeld provides an insightful look at how women are held to a different standard than men, both in their personal lives and their careers.

Total me problem and not this books fault; I should’ve known better than to pick it up when I feel a real revulsion for Mrs. Clinton.

I discovered American Wife by accident and thoroughly enjoyed it, perhaps because I didn’t know or care to know much about the Bushes. Rodham struck me as so intimate I was embarrassed and voyeuristically thrilled at the same time. I devoured it whole. I’ve had such mixed feelings about Hillary ...this book has given me some peace and her my forgiveness.
Trump is well played also. Hilarious. Bill, not so much.

This book was FASCINATING. And I can't say much more because any one that talks about this book is going to spoil it.

I relished every word of it. There are so many complex decisions that Curtis Sittenfeld made in the imagined life of Hillary Rodham that blew my mind. And I just adored every bit of the story. I would love to sit for hours and just pick Sittenfeld's brain. This was such a page turner....I just kept wanting to know what was going to happen next. I honestly wish it had been longer to be honest..because my only complaint is there was too many big time jumps.

Obviously for anyone that hates Hillary Clinton I don't think this book isn't going to change your mind about her and you probably won't enjoy it. But I loved every single line.

A wonderful read. Loved the "what ifs" that fill the story. The perfect companion to the current political situation. Story well constructed, and not predictable. Worth the read. Will be popular in my library. Can't wait to share it.

2020 Update 18 - I was so excited to find out Curtis Sittenfeld had a new novel due out this year; I have been a fan since reading ‘Prep’ in 2005. When I found out it was a fictionalization of Hillary Rodham Clinton’s life, maybe somewhat similar to Laura Bush in ‘American Wife’ I freeeeeaked out. Maybe I should have prefaced this review with a disclaimer that I’m a longtime Hillary fan. 😆 Really though, a novel about what might have been if Hillary had broken it off with Bill? What she might have made out of her life on her own? SIGN ME UP. I really loved this book, and it was an emotional read for me. Besides the homesickness brought on by all the mentions of locations in my home state that I’m familiar with, I recognized myself in this fictionalized Hillary too. I’ve also always been “opinionated for a girl.” While I don’t have a shred of the drive or ambition that HRC has, I admire it so much in her...I think Sittenfeld did a great job exploring what might have been. This comes out in May 2020, be in the lookout!! 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️