Daily Archives: September 25, 2010
North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell Read-Along – Part 4
Posted on September 25, 2010
The Girl Who Fell From the Sky by Heidi Durrow
Posted on September 25, 2010
Order from:
Reason(s) for Reading:
- I’m a cover girl – I love interesting covers and this has one.
- I’d heard it might be a book I’d be interested in from a friend.
I recommend:
- Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
- Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok
Summary from GoodReads:
This debut novel tells the story of Rachel, the daughter of a Danish mother and a black G.I. who becomes the sole survivor of a family tragedy. With her strict African American grandmother as her new guardian, Rachel moves to a mostly black community, where her light brown skin, blue eyes, and beauty bring mixed attention her way. Growing up in the 1980s, she learns to swallow her overwhelming grief and confronts her identity as a biracial young woman in a world that wants to see her as either black or white
My Review:
It’s interesting to me that I started reading this book at a time in my life when I really needed a book with this message. Unfortunately, although it looked promising, The Girl Who Fell From the Sky just didn’t deliver for me.
I wanted to get the message, but a lot of the book seemed trite and like it was trying too hard. I understand from researching a little bit that this book stems from the real-life background of the author, Heidi Durrow, who is the daughter of a Danish immigrant and an African-American Military man. I don’t mean to discredit her experiences and how she perceived things – I’m speaking merely from a readers point of view. The story was just too confusing.
There were so many messages being attempted. Racial tension, mental disorders, post-traumatic stress in children were just a few that stood out to me. As the story moved from person to person to get their points of view I felt like I was being whipped back and forth and it was hard to follow the actual story. Was the author intending a bit of mystery by keeping one of the most important bits of information from us? Because in a book like this – there really doesn’t need to be mystery. Let us know from the outset what we’re dealing with or it just seems overwhelming.
This is another of those instances where awards were given and I’m left feeling as if maybe I’m just not smart enough to “get it.” I guess I’ll learn to live with that and file this one away. Maybe I’ll “get it” more as time passes and I reflect back on it.
Check out these review(s):
