Reviews by : Appleton Public Library
It's all about a conspiracy theory...
This was NOT what I expected.
Maybe it's me, but I thought this was a true story, and that the author/authors were stated as such because the letters were written between Tara Young & Blake Watson. It wasn't until I read the copyright page, that the book is self published and is copyrighted by Young/Watson. There is also a disclaimer at the bottom of the page. Quote, "Though much of the information contained in Postmark 9/11 can be researched and found to be factual, it is a work of fiction."
Maybe somewhere in this a "real" author would emerge, but not in the "Dear Reader: On February 21, 2012 a young lady, whose identity we’ve chosen to keep private, arrived in our office with a box of letters . . .. Who is "our" offices? And nothing about an author who wrote all these letters.
Read more»This book barely got a 1 star rating.
Ellie's friend, Lucy, who is living is England, is murdered in front of her 8 year old daughter, Sophie. Ellie immediately leaves Boston to be with Sophie, and Lucy's husband, Greg.
Ellie decides she is going to stay in England, leave her husband, Phillip, who incidently, stayed behind in Boston. Her reason? "I don't know."
I thought the entire story was such a joke. She doesn't have a reason other than "I don't know"? But ~ Ellie does feel she has to stay to help Sophie through this traumatic time. I get that. But to leave her husband? Quit her job? But, oh, she would like to see the sights and see more of her brother Mikey (a grown man). And then throw in her globe-trotting, psychologist mother who is commitment phobic, who has an off again/on again relationship with their father, and they want to get married again, but then her mother decides to take a trip to Peru, because she's not sure.
I can't believe I wasted my time trudging through this book in hopes that it would get better.
For those who are commitment phobic, don't know how to have adult conversations and bury their head in "The Secret Garden", and have major communication issues ~ then this is your book.
With Heft, Liz Moore has deftly woven together the stories of two men--and in telling their stories, she lets two women's lives unfold in the margins so that the book ultimately gives insight in fragments of the lives of a woman, her son, her former professor, and a young pregnant woman attached to the professor at first only by chance.
The narrative opens with a description of Arthur Opp, in his own words, in which he says, "The first thing you must know about me is that I am colossally fat."
What I discovered, though, when I put down the book last night was that in fact Arthur Opp's girth was only the most visible.tangible weight in this novel. Each of the characters carries his or her own weight, and the metaphor of Arthur's body--by the end--in some ways seemed like the least significant of these weights, even for Arthur.
Read more»Need I say anything more with a rating of 1 star? I don't need to ~ but I will!
A dying mother sends her twin 20-something estranged daughters to spruce up their summer residence, in preparation to be sold. The residence happens to be a houseboat moored on a remote hardly visited lake in remote Australia. The cold, abusive, manipulative mother hopes that this will resolve the issues that the girls have between them.
Thank goodness this was a short fast read. There really was no resolution, satisfaction, or understanding that the characters tried to get from the other characters. They were all damaged but so self absorbed that they were unable or unwilling to see beyond their own self-inflicted pain ~ real or imagined.
Not a great book in my opinion.
One of BEST books I have read
If I could give this book 10 stars, I would have to rate it 15 stars!!!
To say I thought this was an excellent book would be an understatement. Move over some of my other favorite authors ~ and make way for Owen Laukkanen! Excellent, exceptional, high energy, addictive and well written book.
Carter Tomlin, corporate America, has a beautiful wife, two children, and a huge home on the outskirts of St. Paul, MN. But he has a secret. He lost his job. Now, how does he keep his family happy, home, cars, and the appearance of his perfect life? He decides to rob banks.
The book is extremely fast paced, and you are hooked after the first page. Carter Tomlin is a likeable guy, at first, the author drawing us into his plight. The American Dream, and the need to provide for our families. Although we would probably never go to the extremes that Tomlin did, the understanding as to the why is so gradual that you did understand! Desperate people do desperate things. How many of us have gone through a rough patch in our lives, and wanted to present to the outside world that all was normal?
Read more»I would rather have rated this a 4.5, but thought 4 stars was too low. With that being said . . .
Ezekiel "Zeke" Cooper, Clayton, Tennessee, at his 25 year class reunion, ponders his life. How could the the smart boy with a full scholarship to the University of Virginia, end up living like this? Divorced, his ex-wife's wedding the week end before, living in a shack behind his mother's house, and working on the line in an elevator plant? And the drowning death of his twin brother Carter, defining his life? Seeking refuge, he leaves Clayton, on a mission. To end his life. But events change, and he ends up at Cousin Georgia, and husband, Osbourne Lacey's home near Bailey, Virginia.
I thought it was ironic that I should finish it on Mother's Day, as a lot of the book focused on the relationship of Zeke and his mother. Zeke had a lot of issues with his mother, and they were not unfounded. He felt ambivalence towards her, but refused to even speak with her to try to resolve it. His entire adult life was spent shutting her out.
Read more»The comfort of being done with this book!
Tia had an affair with Nathan, who was married to Juliette, got pregnant, Nathan walked away, Tia had the baby, gave her up for adoption, through an open adoption, the baby was adopted by Caroline & Peter, but Caroline really didn't want to be a mother, so she did it for Peter, now it is 5 years later, & Tia decides to send pictures of the daughter to Nathan, where Juliette intercepts the pictures... This is a discombobulated, get lost in the words, where in the heck is this going story.
I had read The Murder's Daughters and didn't care for it, but I thought I would give the author another chance. I highly doubt I will be reading any more by this author.
(It is said that writers write what they are familiar with, but there are those with a more vivid imagination. I do not presume to know Ms Meyer's background, but she may have some deep-seated unresolved issues that come through her writing, or she is very imaginative.)
I enjoyed this book immensely, and certainly will be reading more of this author. Certainly one of the better books I have read of late.
Audrey Nealon owns an estate sale business, and experience has taught her that people hide things in the most unlikely places. When she is contracted to clean out the home of an elderly widow, she comes across something that shakes her to her core. In the attic is a trunkful of jewels. And in there is a ring. A distinct and unique ring worn by her mother. How did it get there? Her young mother went out on Christmas Eve thirty years ago, to pick up some last minute gifts, and never returns, and never found. Audrey is determined to find out what happened to her mother and how her ring ended up in the trunk.
The characters were well developed, believable, and the author expertly conveyed exactly how she wanted you to feel about them. There were twists and turns throughout the book, that kept you guessing. About the times that you thought you had it figured out, another twist would be thrown in.
The only thing that prevented me from giving it 5 stars, is that I thought the last 30 pages or so could have been wrapped up a little faster. Granted there was new information that was imperative to the ending, but it just seemed to go on. I began to think ~ really? could there be any more twists to the plot? can it drag on any longer? I just wanted the author to wrap it up. And finish the book.
Despite my feelings about the last pages, I will recommend this book to others. This book really deserves 4 1/2 stars.
I debated about how to rate this book, but decided it was worth 2 stars.
The entire book was almost lyrical in the writing, but at times I found it distracting and almost "too flowery". The author was so descriptive of the environment and buildings that I could visualize the settings. For this alone I gave it 2 stars.
In 1957, Lyra Copeland's mother, Louise, a schoolteacher, returns home to find that her very loving and gentle husband, a veteran of World War II, has slashed his wrists and all hell has broken loose in their home. Lyra, age 6, doesn't understand what is happening. Her once loving father is now someone she does not recognize and now fears. It continues this way for many years. His outbursts and erratic behavior is noted by law enforcement and neighbors, but nothing is ever done, until many years later.
While growing up Lyra's father's mental illness was disturbing, and her mother was in a constant state of denial. If she was that miserable, I didn't understand why she stayed in the marriage, being a martyr her entire life. I understand that it was a different era, but he was a danger to his family and himself.
While her mother, Louise, is near dying, we are offered insight to her life through her thoughts. Nothing is ever verbalized as she is unable to speak. There was not a big "reveal" at the end of the book, nor was there any confrontation as to what tore the family apart ~ we know that at the beginning of the book. There is an unexpected surprise at the end, but it wasn't worth reading the book!
When I make a decision to read a book, I read the synopsis, and others' opinions I try to have no preconceived ideas as to how the story should go, I want to enjoy the book on its' own merit. Reading the other positive reviews, and respecting their opinions, in the end I just felt the book was a disappointment.
I wouldn't recommend this book.
A young girl's story of survival
A book worthy of 10 stars. An exceptional work.
This is a work of fiction, based on the real life of Odette Meyers. Facts are taken from Odette's autobiography, Doors to Madame Marie, and from the author's visits to the the places of Odette's childhood.
Odette is a Jewish girl living in Nazi-occupied Paris during World War II. Her mother, in order to save her life, sneaks her into the French countryside, where young Odette must pose at a Christian.
I absolutely loved this book. Written in a lyrical prose that draws you in immediately. From the perspective of Odette, an 8 year old Jewish girl, it is poignant portrait of how things were for Jewish children in Paris. I can't begin to imagine what it was like, but the author, with her words, paints us a visual picture not only into the countryside, but into the heart and mind of a child in the throes of a horrific war, not fully understood by Odette, but knowing she has to keep "secrets".
This is a book that young children can read and comprehend, making sure that there is adult time to talk about the issues after the book is read. Abandonment is real to children, and Odette talks about it in this book, and addresses it with her child mind.
Even though this is may be a touchy subject for children to deal with, it is addressed in a sensitive and positive manner by the author with a message of hope.
I highly recommend this book.
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