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Book Review: The Death of Bees by Lisa O’Donnell

The Death of Bees by Lisa O’Donnell

  • Method of Obtaining: I received my copy from the publisher.
  • Published by: Harper
  • Release Date:  1/2/2013
        

Today is Christmas Eve. Today is my birthday. Today I am fifteen. Today I buried my parents in the backyard. Neither of them were beloved.

Marnie and her little sister Nelly are on their own now. Only they know what happened to their parents, Izzy and Gene, and they aren’t telling. While life in Glasgow’s Hazlehurst housing estate isn’t grand, they do have each other. Besides, it’s only one year until Marnie will be considered an adult and can legally take care of them both.

As the new year comes and goes, Lennie, the old man next door, realizes that his young neighbors are alone and need his help. Or does he need theirs? But he’s not the only one who suspects something isn’t right. Soon, the sisters’ friends, their other neighbors, the authorities, and even Gene’s nosy drug dealer begin to ask questions. As one lie leads to another, dark secrets about the girls’ family surface, creating complications that threaten to tear them apart.

Written with fierce sympathy and beautiful precision, told in alternating voices, The Death of Bees is an enchanting, grimly comic tale of three lost souls who, unable to answer for themselves, can answer only for each other.

Reason for Reading:
  • I enjoyed The Secret Life of Bees and this book was compared to it in the summary.

I also recommend:

 

My Review:

I was surprised at how quickly The Death of Bees by Lisa O’Donnell grabbed my attention. I mean, well, I guess a story that begins with two young girls burying their parents in the backyard will do that to you. But where do you go from there?

The Death of Bees is told from several different perspectives: an older sister, Marnie, who is quite jaded for being as young as she is; a younger sister, Nelly, who sees the world from a completely different perspective; and Lennie, the old man next door who has been labeled a sex offender.

But don’t worry – the book doesn’t take you in that direction. Instead, it introduces something entirely different.

What this book does is take a good hard look at the social system here. It’s telling that young girls, upon the death of the parents, would so fear being split up that they would go through immense horror to avoid that particular horror. The Death of Bees examines how we view child abuse, neglect, sexual predators, and rebellious children. Although the story is rather too neatly wrapped in a bow and handed over on a platter, it does provide an interesting springboard to start conversations about these hard topics. Lisa O’Donnell does an admirable job of bringing them to light, and although I wish she’d left things a bit more open-ended (as you cannot solve all of these issues in a mere 300ish pages) I understand why she finished the book the way she did.

Don’t just take my word for it! Check out what these bloggers say!

Leeswammes’ Blog | The Siren’s Tale | The Book Pod

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Lydia
8 January, 2013
Coming of Age, Contemporary, reviews, Social Issues
1 comment
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Book Review: The People of Forever Are Not Afraid by Shani Boianjiu

The People of Forever Are Not Afraid by Shani Boianjiu

  • Method of Obtaining: I received my copy via the publisher via NetGalley.
  • Published by: Hogarth
  • Release Date: 9/11/2012
        

Yael, Avishag, and Lea grow up together in a tiny, dusty Israeli village, attending a high school made up of caravan classrooms, passing notes to each other to alleviate the universal boredom of teenage life. When they are conscripted into the army, their lives change in unpredictable ways, influencing the women they become and the friendship that they struggle to sustain. Yael trains marksmen and flirts with boys. Avishag stands guard, watching refugees throw themselves at barbed-wire fences. Lea, posted at a checkpoint, imagines the stories behind the familiar faces that pass by her day after day. They gossip about boys and whisper of an ever more violent world just beyond view. They drill, constantly, for a moment that may never come. They live inside that single, intense second just before danger erupts.

Reason for Reading:
  • It looked interesting – I’ve also been on a kick of war-stories lately

I recommend:

My Review:

The People of Forever Are Not Afraid by Shani Boianjiu is a rough … really rough read. The story deals with three Israeli women, Yael, Avishag, and Lea, and is not the typical linear story that I’m used to seeing. Rather, it seemed as if this book was made up of fragments of a story which took us from the girls’ childhood through adulthood.

In each fragment, the reader is given a glimpse of what is going on – and that glimpse could be describing a place or job, it could be delving into the mind and thoughts of the girl it’s focused on, or it could be a third party narrator talking about the ramifications of a certain action and what is going on in the outside world. Regardless of how the narration style is, each snippet of the story is powerful, written in an extremely detached fashion, and very, very stark.

If you are interested in seeing how the wars in the Middle East are viewed through the eyes of female soldiers, then this is a book that will very much interest you. I caution you, however, if you are looking for just an interesting story with a plot that’s easy to follow. I don’t really think there’s a plot in this book – instead, it’s like a patchwork quilt, with each square a portion of a story until the book (or quilt) as a whole is complete.

Don’t just take my word for it! Check out what these bloggers say!

Biblioklept| Bookreporter| Gilmore Guide to Books

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Lydia
29 September, 2012
reviews, Social Issues, War
0 comments
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Book Review: The Yellow Birds by Kevin Powers

 The Yellow Birds by Kevin Powers

  • Method of Obtaining: I received my copy via the publisher from NetGalley.
  • Published by: Little, Brown & Co.
  • Release Date: 9/6/2012
 
       

“The war tried to kill us in the spring,” begins this breathtaking account of friendship and loss. In Al Tafar, Iraq, twenty-one-year old Private Bartle and eighteen-year-old Private Murphy cling to life as their platoon launches a bloody battle for the city. In the endless days that follow, the two young soldiers do everything to protect each other from the forces that press in on every side: the insurgents, physical fatigue, and the mental stress that comes from constant danger.

Bound together since basic training when their tough-as-nails Sergeant ordered Bartle to watch over Murphy, the two have been dropped into a war neither is prepared for. As reality begins to blur into a hazy nightmare, Murphy becomes increasingly unmoored from the world around him and Bartle takes impossible actions.

Reason for Reading:
  • I saw this featured in the BEA Buzz Books released and thought it looked interesting.

I also recommend:

 My Review:

This is not a pretty story. It’s stark, harsh, filled with horror, and made me, honestly, want to yell and scream at someone – anyone. And the thing is, I think that’s the emotions it was supposed to evoke in me.

In The Yellow Birds by Kevin Powers, in less than 250 pages, we’re taken on a journey. A journey to war – in all it’s brutal, killing glory. This is a story about two Privates – each with their own path in life and death, and the hell each will leave as their legacy.

I honestly don’t know how to review this book. As far as a review goes, let me just say that this is a seriously depressing book. It’s about war, and it does not paint a pretty picture. There’s no soldier playing guitar for a bunch of little refugee kids here. There’s no parties, no laughter, no fun and games behind the lines as everyone tries to ease up on the stress level. This is what happens when hope has been not just taken away, but stomped under the feet of a commanding officer and then forced into the rotting guts of a dead enemy. Get the picture? I hope so – because I kind of wish I’d had someone to pound that into me.

After reading The Yellow Birds I was in a stupor for the rest of the day… on into the next day. There was an analogy Kevin Powers talked about – how rushing into battle is like that moment before you collide with another car in an accident. There’s that same feeling of helplessness – the knowing that you may very well die in a mere second. I had a horrific accident almost one year ago – a driver pulled out in front of me, running his stop sign, and I collided with him. I was going 52 mph. That moment before impact felt like years, and in those years I had a thousand (at least) thoughts run through my head. But first and foremost? I didn’t want to die. I wasn’t ready. And yet I think so very little about the soldiers we have out there living that moment every single day of their lives – both active duty and inactive.

I don’t want to get political in this review, I just want to say that it drove its point home to me. I don’t know what it’s like to be a soldier in war – and frankly I know that I wouldn’t have the guts to do it. But I can educate myself about it, and that’s what this story has done for me.

Don’t just take my word for it! Check out what these bloggers say!

BookPeople’s Blog| Chicks Dig Books| Dulwich Books Review

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Lydia
16 September, 2012
reviews, War
0 comments
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Book Review: The Time Keeper by Mitch Albom

The Time Keeper by Mitch Albom

  • Method of Obtaining: I received my copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
  • Published by: Hyperion
  • Release Date: 9/4/2012
 
       

In Mitch Albom’s newest work of fiction, the inventor of the world’s first clock is punished for trying to measure God’s greatest gift. He is banished to a cave for centuries and forced to listen to the voices of all who come after him seeking more days, more years. Eventually, with his soul nearly broken, Father Time is granted his freedom, along with a magical hourglass and a mission: a chance to redeem himself by teaching two earthly people the true meaning of time.

He returns to our world–now dominated by the hour-counting he so innocently began–and commences a journey with two unlikely partners: one a teenage girl who is about to give up on life, the other a wealthy old businessman who wants to live forever. To save himself, he must save them both. And stop the world to do so.

Told in Albom’s signature spare, evocative prose, this remarkably original tale will inspire readers everywhere to reconsider their own notions of time, how they spend it and how precious it truly is.

 

 

 

Reason for Reading:
  • It’s a story about Father Time – caught my interest.

I also recommend:

 My Review:

The Time Keeper by Mitch Albom has been on my excitement list for a while now. Such a great cover, an author I really enjoy, and a story about Father Time – how could I not be excited!

What I expected and what I got were two different things, however. Instead of getting an interesting, complex story about a fantastical creature, I got instead chopped bits of a story, tossed together like a bit of a human salad, and mixed all up.

This story is part Dor, part Victor, and part Sarah, but does not spend enough time with any one of them to make me, as a reader, feel connected to them. I felt a bit of pity for Sarah, was highly annoyed by Victor, and just.. confused by Dor (Father Time). That lack of connection took this book from something that, I was hoping, I would connect to and feel inspired by, to simply a story that, frankly, wasn’t really that good.

I think where this went wrong was the way the book was formatted, first of all (bold lettering making a statement before a paragraph about the character). This constantly jarred me and made me realize I was reading a book and kept the characters from fully forming in my imagination. Secondly, Victor and Sarah were just not very likable. Victor, an old, rich man who is dying after a full life, wants to find immortality, and Sarah, a teenager who has just been dumped by her first crush, is suicidal. It wasn’t big enough for me, not real enough. Where are the people who have dealt with huge issues and struggling against depression – it’s out there: the homeless, the abused. What about those who are working for good and want to continue to live to see that succeed?

I’m disappointed that The Time Keeper didn’t work for me. I’m disappointed that I spent all that time (although maybe there’s a lesson for me?) anticipating a story that did not live up to its promise. But most of all, I’m sad that I invested my precious time in a story that felt rushed, and unwilling to commit time back to me.

Don’t just take my word for it! Check out what these bloggers say!

Pam’s Reviews | Reflections with Coffee | WTF Are You Reading

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Lydia
12 September, 2012
Fantasy, Inspirational, reviews
1 comment
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Book Review: The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin

 The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin

  • Method of Obtaining: I received my copy from the publisher via TLC Book Tours.
  • Published by: Harper
  • Release Date: 8/21/2012
 
       

You belong to the earth, and the earth is hard.

At the turn of the twentieth century, in a rural stretch of the Pacific Northwest in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains, a solitary orchardist named Talmadge carefully tends the grove of fruit trees he has cultivated for nearly half a century. A gentle, solitary man, he finds solace and purpose in the sweetness of the apples, apricots, and plums he grows, and in the quiet, beating heart of the land-the valley of yellow grass bordering a deep canyon that has been his home since he was nine years old. Everything he is and has known is tied to this patch of earth. It is where his widowed mother is buried, taken by illness when he was just thirteen, and where his only companion, his beloved teenaged sister Elsbeth, mysteriously disappeared. It is where the horse wranglers-native men, mostly Nez Perce-pass through each spring with their wild herds, setting up camp in the flowering meadows between the trees.

One day, while in town to sell his fruit at the market, two girls, barefoot and dirty, steal some apples. Later, they appear on his homestead, cautious yet curious about the man who gave them no chase. Feral, scared, and very pregnant, Jane and her sister Della take up on Talmadage’s land and indulge in his deep reservoir of compassion. Yet just as the girls begin to trust him, brutal men with guns arrive in the orchard, and the shattering tragedy that follows sets Talmadge on an irrevocable course not only to save and protect them, putting himself between the girls and the world, but to reconcile the ghosts of his own troubled past.

Reason for Reading:

  • There is quite a bit of good buzz going around on this one.

I also recommend:

 My Review:

There are books that are beautiful pieces of fiction that fade quickly from memory, and then there are beautiful pieces of fiction that linger and and slowly impress more and more meaning into memory until you are overwhelmed by how exquisitely done they are. The latter is The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin.

This is such a quiet story – the dialog is sparse and doesn’t stand out from the story as a whole, but rather fits into a stream of consciousness that includes nature and an entire group of people in such a way that.. I just don’t know how to describe it. It’s beautiful. I have been ranting over this book to literature students at school, unable to keep my gushing praise from just one aspect of the book, but flitting from one to another, finding an abundance of things to talk about.

There’s the descriptions – so beautiful and so vivid that I could see the orchard in my mind’s eye and I could feel the grass beneath my feet and smell the fruit. There’s a particularly harsh scene where I could hear the screams, feel the heat of the room, and felt my body ache with the pain two young women were experiencing. Every step in the journey through this book had me enraptured – I had to know more, to feel more, to see more. I cried, heart-rending sobs over the fate of one character and the lack of options available to her. I felt enormous pity and love for another character and wished I could just hold him and give him the few comforts he desired. I wanted to mother another character, and to strike down the other. I felt such a violent range of emotions that it was like I was riding a roller-coaster and could not see what was just around the bend.

I am stunned that this is a debut from author Amanda Coplin. I could only hope that someday I could write something as profoundly moving as I found The Orchardist to be.

About the Author

A native of Washington State, Amanda Coplin has been a Fellow at The Fine Arts Work Centre in Provincetown,

Massachusetts, as well as Ledig House International Writers’ Residency Program in Ghent, New York. She lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Website | Facebook

For more reviews on The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin,

please visit the book tour.

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Lydia
5 September, 2012
Historical, Literary Fiction, reviews
2 comments
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Book Review: What Happened to My Sister by Elizabeth Flock

What Happened to My Sister by Elizabeth Flock

  • Method of Obtaining: I received my copy from the publisher via TLC Book Tours.
  • Published by: Ballentine Books
  • Release Date: 8/7/2012
 
       

Nine-year-old Carrie Parker and her mother, Libby, are making a fresh start in the small town of Hartsville, North Carolina, ready to put their turbulent past behind them. Violence has shattered their family and left Libby nearly unable to cope. And while Carrie once took comfort in her beloved sister, Emma, her mother has now forbidden even the mention of her name.

When Carrie meets Ruth, Honor, and Cricket Chaplin, these three generations of warmhearted women seem to have the loving home Carrie has always dreamed of. But as Carrie and Cricket become fast friends, neither can escape the pull of their families’ secrets—and uncovering the truth will transform the Chaplins and the Parkers forever.

Look for special features inside. Join the Circle for author chats and more.

Reason for Reading:

  • The summary caught my eye.

I also recommend:

 My Review:

This book blew me away. In a very good way. What Happened to My Sister by Elizabeth Flock is the continuation of a story titled Emma and Me, but I did not know that. I had never read anything by Flock, and picked up What Happened to My Sister knowing very little about it.

That did not at all distract from the powerful impact this book had on me.

It always astonishes me when authors are able to really get inside the head of young, abused girls. Carrie, or Caroline, has been abused in nearly every way you can imagine, and she is so beat down by those who are supposed to love and care for her, that when she speaks so politely or matter-of-factly about eating paper with ketchup that my heart just aches and aches for her. I found myself wondering if I would be able to recognize her, like Honor, the other main character in this book.

What Happened to My Sister moves between two narratives, but doesn’t take the traditional route of alternating chapters. The story goes on through as many chapters needed for Carrie before moving to Honor and picking up – so instead of feeling disjointed, it moves smoothly through the timeline. It worked so amazingly well, people.

It’s hard to gush and recommend a book like this without wondering how it will impact others who pick it up – so let me warn you. The story here is of some really heavy matter. It will bruise, if not break your heart, to read Carrie’s story. It’s not a light, or humorous read – but it’s a book that should be read and discussed. It made me examine my own heart, and opened my eyes, and has given me a nudge to start seeing those around me in public places. The Carrie’s of our world are out there, and they need as much help as they can get.

About the Author

Former print journalist Elizabeth Flock reported for TIME and PEOPLE magazines before becoming an on-air correspondent for CBS News. Her acclaimed debut novel, BUT INSIDE I’M SCREAMING, chronically the psychological struggles of a young television reporter in New York, was released in 2003. Her second novel, ME & EMMA, became a New York Times bestseller and was an Indiebound (formerly Booksense) Notable Book of 2005. EVERYTHING MUST GO, Elizabeth’s third novel, loosely based on a clothing store in Connecticut, was published in 2007. Elizabeth’s books have been translated into seven languages and published in twelve countries.
Her fourth novel, SLEEPWALKING IN DAYLIGHT, came out in 2009, and was chosen as an Indie Next List (formerly Booksense) title. WHAT HAPPENED TO MY SISTER, a follow-up to ME & EMMA, will be published by Random House on August 7, 2012.
Elizabeth Flock lives in New York City.

For more reviews on What Happened to My Sister by Elizabeth Flock,

please visit the book tour.

GIVEAWAY!

What Happened to My Sister Giveaway

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Lydia
29 August, 2012
Contemporary, reviews, Social Issues
5 comments
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On the Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

Order from:

 

Reason for Reading:
  • There was buzz on Twitter about this book and how difficult it was to get into, so my curiosity was peaked!

I also recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

‘m dreaming of the boy in the tree. I tell him stories. About the Jellicoe School and the Townies and the Cadets from a school in Sydney. I tell him about the war between us for territory. And I tell him about Hannah, who lives in the unfinished house by the river. Hannah, who is too young to be hiding away from the world. Hannah, who found me on the Jellicoe Road six years ago.

Taylor is the leader of the boarders at the Jellicoe School. She has to keep the upper hand in the territory wars and deal with Jonah Griggs – the enigmatic leader of the cadets, and someone she thought she would never see again.

And now Hannah, the person Taylor had come to rely on, has disappeared. Taylor’s only clue is a manuscript about five kids who lived in Jellicoe eighteen years ago. She needs to find out more, but this means confronting her own story, making sense of her strange, recurring dream, and finding her mother – who abandoned her on the Jellicoe Road.

My Review:

On the Jellicoe Road is, quite possibly, one of the most complex young adult novels I’ve read to date. I will fully admit to feel frustrated and wanting to give up anywhere from 5 to 50 pages in – simply because the narration style, the back and forth, and the strange groupings of children had me confused. But then a story began to emerge and I was sucked in.

When that story hit me, I lived, breathed, and slept this book until it was done. My mind went into overtime working over the connections and trying to piece everything together neatly. But I didn’t lose the entertainment either – because I was seriously entertained by the antics of the Cadets, the Townies, and the Boarders. My best advice when trying to figure out what’s going on is to sit back and let the story wash over you and be patient, because oh.. your patience is going to be rewarded.

When Melina Marchetta began to tug together the pieces of this story, revealing bits and pieces, adding in a twist here, and taking one away there, I knew something special was happening. I wasn’t wrong. There’s a reason this book was a Printz winner, people. And if you are not a young adult reader, or are frustrated by the endless amount of “fluff” out there, then I tell you to go out right now and pick this book up. It’ll restore your faith – it did for me.

By far one of the top reads for me this year, and I picked it up on a whim after seeing some chatter about it on Twitter. So glad I dove into this one and stuck it out..

Don’t just take my word for it! Check out what these bloggers say!

Belle’s Bookshelf| Justin’s Book Blog | Alexa Loves Books

  • Method of Obtaining: I checked my copy out from my local library.
  • Published by: Penguin Australia
  • Release Date: 8/28/2006
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Lydia
24 August, 2012
Coming of Age, reviews, Young Adult
0 comments
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The Book of Tomorrow by Cecelia Ahern

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Reason for Reading:
  • Cecelia Ahern has been my go-to guilty pleasure author for a while.

I  recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

Tamara Goodwin has always got everything she’s ever wanted. Born into a family of wealth, she grew up in a mansion with its own private beach, a wardrobe full of designer clothes and all that a girl could ever wish for. She’s always lived in the here and now, never giving a second thought to tomorrow. But then suddenly her dad is gone and life for Tamara and her mother changes forever. Left with a mountain of debt, they have no choice but to sell everything they own and move to the country. Nestled next to Kilsaney Castle, their gatehouse is a world away from Tamara’s childhood. With her mother shut away with grief, and her aunt busy tending to her, Tamara is lonely and bored and longs to return to Dublin.When a travelling library passes through Kilsaney Demesne, Tamara is intrigued. Her eyes rest on a mysterious large leather bound tome locked with a gold clasp and padlock. What she discovers within the pages takes her breath away and shakes her world to its core.

My Review:

When offered the chance to read and review The Book of Tomorrow by Cecelia Ahern, I’m not going to lie – I squealed a little bit. You see, Cecelia Ahern is one of my guilty pleasure authors. I read her books when I want to cry a little bit and she became my go-to gal when I outgrew Nicholas Sparks.

That’s what makes this review so hard to write.

I’m going to go a little off-topic, but stick with me – it’ll make sense soon. When I was a kid, I remember getting on a ride at DisneyWorld – the people mover one. You know – the one that you just ride around in an open monorail type thing and listen to facts about the park? Well, I thought that was just the beginning of the ride and it would end up top where those rockets were because I really wanted to ride those rockets (I never got to ride those rockets. I don’t think I would fit in them now.) But instead, we just twisted and turned and moved slowly and instead of listening to what was being said and enjoying the view and the rest for my feet, I twisted my hands and wiggled and whined and complained and then… the ride was over and it was time to go stand in another 2 hour line. You see, I was so caught up in the anticipation of something happening, something I expected to happen, that I didn’t enjoy the breeze, or the view, or the time with my family. I wanted more, I craved more… but I never got it.

That’s what The Book of Tomorrow reminded me of. I read, and then I read some more, and then I read more and I was teased and given glimpses of those fantastic rockets and I (metaphorically) wiggled and twisted in anticipation but… I never got what I wanted. However, unlike DisneyWorld and my parents (who never told me the rockets were at the end, it was my imagination that betrayed me), I expected more from Cecelia Ahern because in her previous books – she gave me more.

So that is why I was disappointed in The Book of Tomorrow. I expected a character that would seduce me, but instead I got Tamara Goodwin, a snarky, bratty, horrible girl who had me wanting to smack her down more than a few dozen times. Her mother, her aunt, and her uncle were.. quirky and strange, sure – but I never cared two bits about them because, frankly, I was teased and teased but never given anything to help me understand. Instead, like those rockets, they lingered out of reach and never materialized in front of me.

Then there was the “mystery” and “gothic” nature of the book. It didn’t work for me. The ruins sounded well.. dirty and not mysterious. I don’t know if they weren’t described well enough or there wasn’t enough background given on the characters, or what the deal was but the story there felt unfinished and haphazard.

The only thing I liked about this book was seeing the end, because then I took my huge dose of reality, closed the book, swallowed the bitterness and sat down to write this review.

So do I stick with Cecelia Ahern? I’ll give her next book a shot, because one sour book isn’t enough to put me off. But I think she needs to stick with what she knows best – relationships and character-building… leave the fantasy and gothic stories to people who invest themselves well in them.

About the Author

For more reviews on The Book of Tomorrow by Cecelia Ahern, please follow the book tour.

 

 

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Lydia
24 July, 2012
Coming of Age, Fantasy, reviews, Young Adult
2 comments
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Americans in Space by Mary E. Mitchell

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Reason for Reading:
  • This is one of the books for my 2012 TBR Reading Challenge

I also recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

Life is a challenge for 36-year-old Kate Cavanaugh, high school guidance counselor to a motley group of at-risk students. Two years after finding her young husband dead in bed beside her, Kate’s storybook life has vanished, and she and her two children are still reeling. Her daughter Charlotte, once a sweet girl, has morphed into an angry, tattooed, tongue-studded teen; and Hunter, Kate’s four-year-old, keeps his feelings sealed tight inside and an empty ketchup bottle clasped to his heart. When a tragedy occurs at the Alan B. Shepard High School, it’s Kate who finds herself in need of counsel and guidance. What she does next catapults her and her family down an unfamiliar road, on a trajectory into space—toward understanding, forgiveness and healing.

My Review:

I have had Americans in Space on my TBR pile for over two years now. When culling through some of my selections from that time I decided, on a whim, to keep this one because the title fascinated me. No other reason- I just liked the title. So, when picking books for a TBR yearly challenge for the blog I put this one on the list – again, because I liked the name.

I’ve read quite a few books on loss and grief and recovery. I consider myself to be a fairly good judge of when a book is getting it right, because I get this feeling in my gut – you know, the one that feels like you’ve just been kicked? Well.. my gut is bruised from reading this book.

I don’t know which characters story affected me more, but I’m telling you right now: mother-daughter tension – check; mother-son confusion – check. This book has just about everything, from dependencies to rebellion to recovery and learning to live life again.

So what kept me from making it one of my all-time favorite books? My issue isn’t with the characters, the writing, or the story – it’s that the book was released with several glaring issues in editing. There are words that… well aren’t words, and phrases that don’t end correctly. I found one sentence that looked like it stopped mid-sentence and another latter half of a different sentence was pieced on to its end. That made me feel discouraged – that these things could crop up and mar my enjoyment. And frankly, for a professional book (Editor and all) they should not have been there.

Don’t just take my word for it! Check out what these bloggers say!

Genre Go Round | Musings at a Picnic | BlogCritics

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Lydia
21 July, 2012
Coming of Age, Contemporary, reviews, Social Issues
0 comments
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Tell The Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt

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Reason for Reading:
  • The cover caught my eye, the ratings on GoodReads sealed the deal.

I also recommend:

Summary from GoodReads:

1987. There’s only one person who has ever truly understood fourteen-year-old June Elbus, and that’s her uncle, the renowned painter Finn Weiss. Shy at school and distant from her older sister, June can only be herself in Finn’s company; he is her godfather, confidant, and best friend. So when he dies, far too young, of a mysterious illness her mother can barely speak about, June’s world is turned upside down. But Finn’s death brings a surprise acquaintance into June’s life—someone who will help her to heal, and to question what she thinks she knows about Finn, her family, and even her own heart.

At Finn’s funeral, June notices a strange man lingering just beyond the crowd. A few days later, she receives a package in the mail. Inside is a beautiful teapot she recognizes from Finn’s apartment, and a note from Toby, the stranger, asking for an opportunity to meet. As the two begin to spend time together, June realizes she’s not the only one who misses Finn, and if she can bring herself to trust this unexpected friend, he just might be the one she needs the most.

My Review:

Tell the Wolves I’m Home is a quiet little book with a message that should be shouting to be heard. Hidden behind a story of a big issue (AIDS) is a story about the complicated relationships between uncles and nieces, sisters and brothers, sisters and sisters, and children and parents. Add into the mix an unknown entity and memories and pain and you get a story that has a heartbeat that is impossible to ignore.

In Tell the Wolves I’m Home, we’re told a story from the perspective of young, 14 year old June. Every Sunday she, her sister, and her mother make their way to her mother’s brother’s house where he is painting a portrait of the sisters. He’s dying, you see, and June is so very close to him and feels his soon-to-be-absence keenly.

But Finn, her uncle, has his secrets as well, and June is faced with them after he passes away. It’s how June deals with these secrets and her family where the book begins to speak loudly. I read this story through tears – and I’m not often moved by contemporary stories. It tore at my heartstrings and I raged at the injustice shown by the characters while realizing that those same injustices happen every day here in life. Carol Rifka Brunt has taken on a difficult subject and tackled it strongly, clearly, and with an extraordinary amount of empathy and I closed this book reluctantly – unwilling to say goodbye to its characters.

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Lydia
14 July, 2012
Coming of Age, Contemporary, reviews, Social Issues
2 comments
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