Unliving the Dream by Sandra Vischer – Book Review

Things are darn near perfect for Alex Fisher: she runs a successful business with the love of her life, her husband and the father of her two great kids. She’s managed to sail through nearly forty years without so much as a hiccup. That is, until the night her husband announces he would like to make a change—a change that has apparently been going on for months without Alex’s knowledge.

Yes, he has been having an affair with Alex’s assistant. Suddenly Alex is bouncing through divorce, through her daughter’s subsequent rebellion, and through the big questions of who she really is and what she wants in life. No longer living the dream, Alex uses her calm logic, internal dialogue, and sizzling wit—not to mention her friends—to turn the shock of a lifetime into an adventure of self-discovery that takes her from the tropical waters of the Caribbean Sea to the Utah wilderness and along the impoverished streets of Peru.

In this universal tale, told through Vischer’s unique voice, Alex finds that no one escapes unscathed—but we can all have a good laugh and some major personal growth along the way. A humorous, compassionate, and honest look at how the worst time in one’s life ultimately leads to unexpected fulfillment and authenticity.

Alex Fisher thought she had it all, lovely children, great job, and a happy marriage. That was until her husband James delivered a bombshell. He’d been having an affair and was leaving her, for someone she presumed was a friend.

Unliving the Dream is about Alex needing to find another life story for herself, and her two children Lily and Jack.

I usually really like books of self discovery, and there were parts of the book that I really enjoyed, but for some reason, that I’m not sure of, this just missed the mark for me, personally.

I particularly liked the way the prologue opened with Alex asking questions in her head. I also really liked the way Sandra portrayed Alex never giving up on her daughter Lily. The plot was interesting, the characters realistic, and the setting perfect.

Overall Unliving the Dream was an easy read, and a book to choose if you like stories about family relationships and self discovery. For me, I just didn’t connect with it, and it took me quite a while to get through it.

I was raised by loving parents who taught me to believe that I could fulfill my dream of having a successful career, a happy marriage, and a wonderful family. When my dream was shattered by divorce, I realized there were a lot of other women out there who suffered the same experience. That’s when I decided to write Unliving the Dream. I wanted to share the challenges of divorce that require humor and resiliency to bounce back bigger and better than ever! My hope is to inspire women to realize that divorce is not the end – that if you let it, it can be a great new beginning.

I grew up in the northwest suburbs of Chicago the second of four sisters. It was an idyllic childhood that led me to the halls of Southern Illinois University where I studied English Literature while also being a member of the Famous Writer’s School of Westport, Connecticut. I married my college sweetheart and went to work for IBM in Chicago. After I was transferred to Portland, Oregon, we started our family and I made the decision to stay home and raise my daughter and son.

Ten years later, my husband and I founded a business that became an instant success. Within a couple of years that success got in the way of our marriage and I found myself divorced and single parenting at the age of thirty-nine. Later, when my kids went off to college, I sold my half of the business and thought about my youthful dreams of becoming a writer.

www.sandravischer.com
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