review: 29 by adena halpern

On her 75th birthday, Ellie Jerome blows out her candles and wishes to be 29 again for one day. When she wakes the next morning, her wish has come true! But being 29 again when your best friend lives in the same building and your daughter never butts out of your life proves to be difficult. While Ellie is off having an adventure with her granddaughter (the only one she confides in), her daughter and best friend worry endlessly about what happened to Ellie and end up having quite the adventure of their own.

29 was a primarily fun read with Ellie reflecting on her past giving some humorous advice (remember to moisturize!) though the parts with Frida and Barbara became annoying after a while. It was also in those Frida/Barbara parts where things didn’t always add up. Frida locks herself out of her apartment and waits for Barbara in the lobby, but it then becomes clear the doorman has a key. That detail becomes even more important a bit later, but Adena Halpern continues to overlook that fact so that Frida and Barbara can have even more trouble.

About the audiobook: Adena Halpern’s 29 is read by Lorna Raver. Raver’s reading was spot-on with Barbara having a particularly grating tone while Ellie, Frida, and Lucy sounded their respective ages. 29 was published by Blackstone Audio in 2014 and runs 9 hours.
4/5 Review copy provided by Audiobook Jukebox.