The Necklace

"Ownership is overrated. We should elevate sharing. Wealth is individual; sharing is collective. We are not what we own. We are what we do, who we help, and the difference we make in the world. At the beginning, the group was so narrow in its concept of sharing. We think that by sharing we give up something, that we get less. But the more we've shared the necklace, the more profound the experience has become. By sharing, we've gotten so much more. If we share, there's enough on the planet for everyone." -Jonnell McLain, The Necklace (pg. 206)

The rest of the title of this book is "Thirteen Women and the Experiment that Transformed Their Lives." So it strikes me as self-explanitory. 13 women come together to buy an extrodinary diamond necklace, coming to the agreement that they will share it among them. The book is divided into chapters meaning to delve deeper into each woman's life before, during, and after the necklace while still trying to explain everything that happened with the group as time went on. I believe that i gauged the duration of the book as taking place over 5 years, although that was a little hard to discern. And that will be my only complaint, is the slight difficulty in following the timeline.

While yes this book is a little cheesy at times, I wish I had a diamond necklace to give me more confidence in my self, inspire me to get in shape, or help my friends through rough patches in their lives, but I know it's not likely. However, you have to remember that this is a true story, so however cheesy it seems at times, it is real, it happened, and it is possible for others. Plus the fact that not everything goes right for the women or the group is helpful in toning down the cheesy level. We all know that when you place 13 women in a group there are bound to be fights, but surprisingly they were not over the things I had anticipated.

All in all I enjoyed the book greatly. I love learning about people and their different situations, so this book catered to me. I liked the women and the concept, as well as the story they lived. And I can't wait to pass it along to my friends to read!