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Jennifer Donovan

5 Minutes for Books

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Jennifer Donovan has been reviewing books online for over four years—and reading ever since she can remember. As a child, she favored realistic fiction, and she is still drawn to the stories of people's lives found in memoir and in character-driven fiction. Jennifer has been managing editor at 5 Minutes for Books since she launched the site in 2008 with the goal of providing diverse content meant to encourage people of all ages to read.

Cheating to Save Your Marriage

by Jennifer Donovan (5 Minutes for Books) on Sept. 16, 2011

Cheat on Your Husband—if that title doesn’t catch your eye you are more jaded than I am. When I first saw the titillating cover, I did a double take and thought, “Someone actually published a book about that?” Until I examined the door hanger on the cover completing the command “…with your husband.” It made more sense as a marketable topic, but I still wanted to find out more about the book.

Read last week’s 5 Minutes for Books on dealing with your teenage daughter.

Andrea Syrtash writes a relationship column that has exposed her to the ...

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Off to College: ‘The iConnected Parent’

by Jennifer Donovan (5 Minutes for Books) on Aug. 26, 2011

This month parents all over the country have been saying so long to their kids leaving for college. But is it really goodbye? For this generation, the answer is not at all.

Read the last 5 Minutes for Books on Lauren Shockey's Four Kitchens.

Parents and their young adult kids are more connected than ever due to the immediacy of cell phones and e-mail. The parental expectation that they should be able to reach their child at any time, usually established in high school, doesn’t change much as teens go to college, observe Barbara Hofer, a Middlebury College ...

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5 Minutes for Books: 'Bonding Over Beauty'

by Jennifer Donovan (5 Minutes for Books) on July 1, 2011

Each summer I hit the motherhood reboot button, thinking “This year we’ll have the perfect summer full of educational activities and field trips, family read-alouds, and special bonding experiences tailor-made for each child.” I don’t generally meet all my goals, but we end up doing more than sitting around staring at screens, which might otherwise be the default.

Read the last 5 Minutes for Books on myth-busting titles.

Erika Katz’s Bonding Over Beauty has given me some ideas for special projects that I can do with my soon-to-be teen daughter during these days of leisure. She and ...

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5 Minutes for Books: ‘Grow the Tree You Got’

by Jennifer Donovan (5 Minutes for Books) on June 17, 2011

This is no gardening manual—Tom Sturges’ Grow the Tree You Got is a parenting book containing advice “and 99 other ideas for raising amazing adolescents and teenagers.” I’ve read plenty of parenting books, but the problem is that after about 50 pages, while I’m nodding “yes, yes, this is just what I need,” the rest of the book often just delivers more of the same.

Read Dr. Oz and Dr. Roizen's latest, YOU: The Owner's Manual for Teens.

I have a daughter who will soon be 13. I know what I want to do to ...

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5 Minutes for Books: ‘Bring Back Beatrice’ and Other Baby Names

by Jennifer Donovan (5 Minutes for Books) on April 22, 2011

Recently, a friend told me what her name meant and asked about “Jennifer.” I said that I had no idea other than “I am a girl-child of the ’70s.” She could not believe that I didn’t know what “Jennifer” meant. And I don’t know what my children’s names mean either.

Looking for great reading selections for your children? Read Seven Impossible Things at Kirkus.

When Bring Back Beatrice: 1,108 Baby Names with Meaning, Character, and a Little Bit of Attitude by Jennifer (yes, another Jennifer) Griffin arrived on my doorstep, one of the first things I ...

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