Not Your Shoe Size

Not Your Shoe Size by Jennifer DiVita is about a life-long friendship (90 years!) between Julia and Collette. Their lives and friendship are played out in snippets that had me laughing out loud at certain points, and then crying in other spots.

Ms. DiVita’s characters drew me in and made me want to be their friend, as it was so easy to relate to each of their personalities. I’ve used the phrase “Act your age, not your shoe size” numerous times and that just made me relate to them more. We went through both the good times and the bad times with Julia and Collette and every experience and issue made them closer.

As a woman in her mid-fifties, I can absolutely understand how life-long friendships are crucial and this book made me realize how blessed I am to have this type of friendship with friends from my own childhood that are still in my life. (Side note: I’m buying them this book when it comes out and hugging the heck out of them all the next time we get together.)

This novel didn’t feel like fiction, but as if I were reading a true life story of friendship. That’s amazing.

I was given this book as an ARC by NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

Book Review 📚
Not Your Shoe Size by Jennifer DeVita - 4/5 ⭐

As with all books I read, I was sold by the cover. The title gave me an inclination to what I was expecting but I couldn't of been more wrong.

Not Your Shoe Size is a beautiful story about 2 lifelong best friends, Colette and Julia. We follow their story and friendship all the way up to when they reach 100. They both have a POV which really shows you the differences and similarities to their lives.

DeVita truly captured the meaning of friendship. Not only the happy and amazing moments, but the heartache and sad moments too. There are moments where you will need tissues. The entire thing feels as though this was all "true life" and the two women got together and tell their story. Amazing.

Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for allowing me to read this ARC - this is an HONEST review from my own personal opinion.

I chose to read Not Your Shoe Size based on its description, and I have to say it did NOT disappoint! I adored this book that details Colette and Julia at different stages in their lives. It begins at age ten and goes all the way up until age one hundred.

I feel like Jennifer DeVita truly captures each age in an honest way. Parts of it echoed some of my concerns with getting older. However, the ideas of living each day to the fullest and that age is just a number truly resonate with me at this stage in my life.

I definitely suggest reading this book!

I loved the cover and description of Not Your Shoe Size and must say, I was not disappointed. Colette and Julia's friendship over 100 years gave me all the feels. I have two besties from childhood and I could see so much of my friendships in here. DiVita capture the essence of true friendship: the good the bad and the ugly perfection.

I think the author really portrayed friendships through the ages from childhood to adulthood and into old age. It was a well written, fast paced story that I will read again at another point.

If you like stories of women and friendship - this is the book for you!

I definitely suggest reading this book!

What I appreciate about this book is the relatability of the characters for people of all ages. Since it follows Julia and Colette through their lives, beginning at ten years old, then almost anyone can read and relate to their experiences. The topics covered in the book, such as life-long friendship, struggles at different ages, choices to be made, cultural differences, ageism, and more are true to real life experience. Switching the point of view between the two main characters also enhances the life experiences brought out in the novel.

What a funny read as we walk through the years of friendship between two ladies. Some of us can relate to those stages of life that are mentioned in the book. The women's personalities are so polar opposite, yet they bring out the best of each other.

Love this debut book and the humor brought through its pages as we all deal with aging - might as well have a giggle or two.

Disclaimer: I received a digital copy of this book with no expectation in return. The thoughts and comments above are my own and I voluntarily gave them.

This book begins when Julia and Colette are young girls and it very quickly takes us through their lives, through being young adults, then through to middle age and then, of course, through to old age too.

Not Your Shoe Size was such an easy book to read and i really enjoyed speeding through the chapters just so that i could find out what was happening next.

It was quite an emotional read and i found myself laughing along one minute and sniffling into my sleeve the next!

The two main characters were wonderful and i could really relate to both of them.

This was a wonderful, heartwarming story about life-long friendships…….

Cute, unique way of doing a concept as old as time (no pun intended lol). I enjoyed how the book described every age of their life from young to old and the characters' thoughts and lives as they aged. Sweet relationship between the two. Well done.

Julia and Colette are polar opposites especially in their views on aging. Beginning at age ten, the two battle to see which one of them ages better. Devoted to each other throughout their lives, they survive divorce, deaths, and everything in between. They realize that "acting your age not your shoe size" is just an idiom not necessarily a life rule.

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I honestly wasn't sure what to expect from Not Your Shoe Size from Jennifer DiVita but I am very glad that I added it to my be read list. The cover caught my eye along with the title.

Not Your Shoe Size is about two best friends who are alike but also not alike in so many ways but that doesn't matter because their friendship is key to both of them all throughout their lives. They even share the same birthday and try to celebrate it together each year although that doesn't always happen. From childhood to college years, marriages, divorces, deaths and so much more, their friendship stays solid even with a few hiccups here and there. As each chapter progressed, so did their ages and as I was nearing the end, I was worried how it would end, on a happy or a good note? (spoiler, good note). While some people may be offended how one of the characters sees her elders as, the other character tries to remind her there is so much more to them as just old people. It's unfortunately how a lot of people see them and it's a shame more people don't have someone in their lives to help them focus on the good parts of our lives and how to see others.

While the beginning felt very light, just like life, there was some hard parts to read. As we get older, we lose people close to us and as a daughter and a granddaughter who has lost all of her grandparents and both parents earlier than most people do, it was easy to identify the pain each character went through during that loss. The same goes for dementia and Alzheimer's which also runs in my family. It's a fear of the unknown and will that happen to me that you wonder and hope doesn't happen.

So much was shared in their lives in one book that I almost wished it was a series of books for us to explore and know the characters even better. We get a snippet of this and that here and there as I craved more but wasn't disappointed in it at all. Tears were cried during the harder parts because of life events I have also experienced and to me that is excellent writing to get a reader to identify with the feeling Jennifer put behind that portion. I recommend this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Books Go Social for the ARC.

"Not Your Shoe Size" by Jennifer DiVita is a delightful and relatable journey through the ups and downs of friendship, aging, and the quest for eternal youth. DiVita's novel is a charming exploration of two lifelong friends, Julia and Colette, who couldn't be more different in their approach to growing old. This heartwarming and often humorous tale takes readers on a multi-decade adventure, chronicling their experiences from childhood to menopause.

The novel's premise, which starts with a childhood assignment to write their own obituaries and aims to see who can live to 100, sets the stage for a unique and engaging narrative. Julia and Colette's contrasting personalities and philosophies on aging create the perfect backdrop for their lifelong competition. Julia, the embodiment of embracing the natural aging process, and Colette, the epitome of chasing after the elusive fountain of youth, make for compelling and endearing characters.

Jennifer DiVita's writing style is witty and poignant, striking a perfect balance between humor and heartfelt moments. The story unfolds through a series of vignettes that capture the essence of each stage of life, making it highly relatable for readers of all ages, especially women navigating the challenges and joys of growing older in today's ageist society.

One of the book's strengths is its portrayal of the enduring and complex bond between Julia and Colette. Their unwavering friendship and shared experiences provide a touching backdrop to the humorous competition that runs throughout the narrative. As the story progresses, readers will find themselves rooting for both women, as they each discover their own path to aging gracefully and happily.

"Not Your Shoe Size" is not just a story about growing older; it's a celebration of the beauty and wisdom that come with each stage of life. It reminds readers that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to aging and that the true secret lies in embracing one's individual journey.

In summary, Jennifer DiVita's "Not Your Shoe Size" is a heartwarming and relatable tale that navigates the complexities of friendship, aging, and the pursuit of happiness. It's a must-read for anyone looking for a touching and humorous exploration of the art of aging gracefully and finding joy in every stage of life. This book is a delightful reminder that growing old doesn't mean losing one's zest for life—it's an opportunity to bloom in every way imaginable.

Julia and Collette are life-long friends whose story shared with us begin when the girls are in fourth grade. Opposites even back then, they attracted instead of repelled. They saw each other through teen years, college years, marriage, children, divorce, death, and their own twilight years.

The chronicling of each decade of the two women's life was humorous, heart-warming and wrenching at the same time. As a middle-ager, I felt this book had such an impact as I compared my life, thoughts and emotions with their present and past years. So much was relatable as to world and life views as you age. The hard part in reading this book is recognizing the accuracies of mindsets and thought processes from where you are and realizing you are getting a vicarious look at where you are heading through Julia's and Collette's lives. Aging is inevitable and time relentlessly marches on; DiVita did a brilliant job with this story.

A unique story about friendship and growing old together. It reads like a witty "What to Expect When You're Expecting.... To Age". While it's fiction, it's still educational and funny! Colette and Julia are doing life together and their friendship gives us a glimpse of to opposite ways of aging. I think it captures everyone woman's struggle on how to age. We want to age naturally and yet our youth-obsessed culture pushes back against it. This story perfectly captures that tug of war we face between the opposing characters viewpoints.

Told through short, witty, and poignent vignettes, the story moves quickly through the decades (each decade is a chapter of their lives) and steers through all milestones of the growing up process (puberty, parenting, menopause, death and becoming old). It is a great story that grips the reader in wanting to find out what the two women get into next and how it ends. The ending is LOVELY! You won't be disappointed.

Each chapter gets better especially as the women age and come into their own wisdom, which is like life. It's an easy read and perfect for book clubs, giriflriends and wine!

Amazing book! I loved the plot and how the story followed the main characters throughout their lives. And the humor was spot on!

The perfect Buddy Read for you and your best friend.
The book follows two women (complete opposites, but bffs) through their lives.. Ages 10 to 100
If you've had a best friend since childhood, you know all the trials you each have faced over the year. The good and the bad.
It will make you laugh, and it will make you cry.
Less than 300 pages, I finished this book in one rainy day, as I couldn't put it down.

It was a very nice story. About a life-long friendship of two girls born on the same day, staring from age 10 till 100. Colette and Julia, so different in the attitude to aging but still remain best friends through their whole life. If to compare myself to them, then I am more like Colette - I don’t want to age quickly and don’t want people guess my age from my appearance. Although I don’t wear heels (which I did in my youth and till mid-thirties), I prefer sneakers and truck boots, which I still consider making me younger :)
The moment when Julia, suffering from Alzheimer’s, took Colette’s hand on their 100’s birthday was very touching!
I enjoyed the book very much!

It's inevitable that opposites attract, even in friendships.

DiVita tells the story of two women, Julia and Colette, who had to write their own obituaries for a homework project when they were ten. (Okay, that's not a traumatic assignment at all. Who was this teacher, anyway?)

These life-long friends enter their later years with very different philosophies about life.

Julia embraces her grey hairs and wrinkles. Colette attempts to keep any signs of aging at bay.

With each day closer to 100, they clash. They laugh. They learn, but most of all, they stick together through it all as they realize there's no perfect way to age. No perfect way to live. No perfect anything, but a great friendship can come pretty damn close when its all said and done.

Expect tears, laughter, and a lot of head nodding when reading this book.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.