I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion. Thanks to NetGalley and to the publisher!
This book is about Nick and Emma, in a relationship now for several years. They are young, working in Manhattan and feel that it is time to give up their respective homes to search for an apartment where they can live together.
The story follows Nick and Emma in not only their search for an apartment, but also through their jobs, friendships, milestones and also through Emma's relationships with her parents, her brother Max and his family.
There is a lot of struggle regarding the move and Nick and Emma not only have mixed feelings with giving up certain freedoms, but they also have problems finding a location and also deal with two potential landlords: one who is discriminatory and judgmental that Emma and Nick aren't married and the other that you just won't believe!
Emma is also about to be the maid of honor in her best friend's lavish wedding, making Emma rethink where her relationship with Nick is going and her own position in life. Not helping Emma's esteem is her well established brother and his overbearing wife, along with what I describe as their two rambunctious children.
Don't get me wrong, Nick and Emma have a good life but they are facing several challenges at one time, regarding their own relationship, where they are in their careers, and in life in general, causing both to be overwhelmed at times.
There are two other major things that occur. One in their relationship and one in general towards the end of the story, but I won't spoil it here.
I really enjoyed this story. I feel that there aren't enough stories out there where you can really care about the characters. I was intrigued to see where they were going, and what was going to happen to them. And, the other characters just seemed so real! I was pleasantly surprised to see that it was so much more than just a story about a couple. Plus, it takes place in New York, my favorite city.
The author did a fabulous job describing how in life, we all have to take a step back, reassess certain situations and just maybe, hopefully, see things in a different light, take that wisdom and move on in our lives in a positive direction.
Wow. Just wow. I haven't been this riveted to a book in a long time. This book is so captivating but heartbreaking, too. Claire Armstrong is in her early forties but has been diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's Disease, something her own father suffered from. She has two daughters, Caitlin, from a previous relationship and Esther, with her husband, Greg.
Right away, I felt devastated for Claire. I love books where I actually care for the characters. Not only does she have this horrible disease, but because it is early onset, there are times where Claire is aware of what's happening to her. I can't imagine anything more frightening.
The book is told in alternating points of view: Claire, Greg, Caitlin and Claire's mother, Ruth. There are a lot of things to work through for this family, not only Claire's disease but issues with her daughter Caitlin as well.
SPOILER ALERTS AHEAD: Just like Claire, Caitlin finds herself young and pregnant by a guy who is in no way committed to her. In fact, he is under the impression that Caitlin has terminated the pregnancy when in fact, she has not. Caitlin has dropped out of university and on top of everything else, such as dealing with her mother's illness, Caitlin learns that Claire has kept a secret from her. All her life, Caitlin has believed that her father has wanted nothing to with her, when it has been Claire who had never told Caitlin's father that she even existed.
Claire feels that with her illness rapidly taking away her identity, that Caitlin should find her father and start a relationship with him, since she won't be with them mentally much longer. Claire has enough lucid moments to help Caitlin arrange a meeting with her father and we are left to believe that she will start a relationship with him and his current family.
There are other parts to Caitlin's story, such as meeting a boy who falls in love with her, but to be totally honest, the only reason I sympathized with Caitlin was because she was losing her mother even as she was still with her. I had a hard time drumming up compassion for her when she lamented about being a pregnant dropout because that was all her doing. However, you can't help feeling bad for her knowing that she's well aware of what's happening to her mother.
The other person you feel for is Claire's husband Greg and their three year old daughter, Esther. Greg misses Claire so badly and to make matters worse, they have not been married very long. Also, you know that Esther is getting a raw deal because she will never really know her mother.
You also feel the struggle that Ruth, Claire's mother, is also dealing with. She has already buried her husband (Claire's father) due to the same disease, so having to see her daughter taken by the same thing is incomprehensible.
Fortunately, due to a suggested exercise from a counselor, Claire starts a memory book which everyone contributes to. They all write memories and paste mementos in the book. The reader gets to see what is added to the book and why and reading some of the stories behind the items can be downright heart-wrenching.
For me, the person I felt worst for is Claire. I read this book on my Kindle and I have never highlighted so many things in a book before. One of the things that Claire notices that during her struggle with knowing she is rapidly losing a grip on reality is the fact that at times, she's fully aware of what's going on. While she is grateful that she still knows certain things, it terrifies her that she knows what's happening. She says, "This part is the worst part. The part when I know what I am losing. This is the part I never want to end and the part I want over now."
The other part that really stuck out for me is when she observes that when trying to come up with a witty retort to someone, "I am not a pitiable person, and not just a disease. But nothing comes to mind, which reminds me, only too clearly, that I am both."
Even though the book is filled with sadness, there are happy moments, too. And the main message of this book is love. Claire's husband loves her so much that he finds a way to break through his wife's disease and finds the love they used to share. I won't go into that here, but if you read this book, I guarantee that you will find what Greg does unforgettable.
This book was so wonderful for several reasons. One, I really cared about these characters and that says to me that the author possesses real talent to make me have compassion for people who aren't even real. Two, it is a book that I know will stick with me. Three, it brings awareness to a horrible disease that I can only pray we will see a cure for someday soon. Alzheimer's robs people of their most cherished family members. I lost my grandmother to this monster and think of how hard it was to actually grieve for her while she was physically still here. For more information visit www.alz.org.
*Book provided by publisher on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review* Thank you for the opportunity to read this novel.
Hello, everyone! I would love to try and keep this blog up to date, because I do not do a blog on every book I read. I DO list them on Goodreads, but maybe I SHOULD start writing about each one.
I HAD to write about this one. I just finished The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman.
I was so excited to read this. I am going to be totally honest...and you will hopefully get a kick out of this. I actually bought this book back in February. I started it in September and finished it last night. I know that sounds like a huge gap, but I get distracted with other books and things to read. Also, I hardly ever buy books. I know that sounds strange, but I just get a lot of books from my library. If a title I want is new and I know it won't be in the library readily available, I just put them on hold and wait. I have plenty of other books in my pile to keep me occupied. But, I digress!
So, I bought this book, threw it in the pile and read other things. I was so looking forward to reading it because it takes place in New York, which is my favorite city. And, even though I don't live there, I visit as much as I can. Anyway, this was a historical piece taking place in Coney Island back when Dreamland was being constructed and also in Manhattan during the time of the famous Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire.
The book focuses on Coralie, the daughter of a "professor" who runs The Museum of Extraordinary Things in Coney Island. The museum features side show sort of attractions, including people, like the Butterfly Girl, etc. What I liked about this part of the book was reading about the human side of the performers that were explored. I also liked researching certain things, like Dreamland, which I had never heard about until I read this book.
The other part of the book is about Eddie, an immigrant who lost his mother and traveled through very trying times and situations with his father in order to start a new life in New York. Eddie is very jaded by the life his father has carved out for them doing back breaking work in a factory. Eddie sets out and makes his own life, shunning his father due to his bitterness. Eventually, Eddie finds his place in the world as a photographer.
There is a love story in this as well as a mystery woven through the book surrounding one of the workers in the Shirtwaist fire.
Now, that being said, it sounds like it would be totally engrossing and I am sure to some people, it was. But, I started this book in September and ended it last night on November 8, 2014. I kept putting it down to read other things. I wanted to see what happened, but I found it kind of overwhelming. There are a lot of bad things that happen in this book and the author pulls no punches when describing certain events.
Now, like I said, I wanted to finish it, but to be totally honest, I was glad when it was over. I started a new book with an overwhelming sense of relief. I know that must sound dramatic, but I really was relieved.
I couldn't help notice the long list of other Alice Hoffman books in the first pages of this book. Unfortunately, The Museum of Extraordinary Things was my first Ms. Hoffman book, but, fortunately, it will not be my last. This is for two reasons. One, I noticed a good amount people saying on Goodreads that they wished she would come forward and say she didn't write this one. This gives me the impression that her other ones were written differently, and I am all for giving another one a whirl. And, two, I am always looking for a different author with a good number of titles on their list.
If you have a favorite Alice Hoffman book, please let me know about it in the comments below!
On to the next book!
Well, I started out being really into this book. I thoroughly enjoyed Jojo Moyes' book Me Before You, so, naturally I was looking forward to reading this. Then, I was excited when I got into it so quickly.
I know I am going to get a lot of eye rolls at this review because it got so many rave reviews on Goodreads. But, as it went on, I disliked it. That being said, that could be my fault because I couldn't get past one thing and I am hoping someone out there can clarify this issue.
First, a very short summary. Jess, a single mother of a 10 year old math prodigy and an approximate 15 year old stepson, Nicky, struggles every day of her life. Her husband, and both the children's father, Marty, has abandoned the family for what Jess thinks is a break, and doesn't help at all with the kids he has left behind. She works as a cleaner and a barmaid but can't make ends meet.
Jess' part in the story really starts when her math wizard daughter, Tanzie, is given an offer to attend a prestigious school due to her ability in math. However, even with a 90 percent scholarship, Jess cannot afford the rest of the tuition.
It is then presented that Tanzie can win big money if she wins a math competition. However, the competition takes place in Scotland and Jess can't afford to get there.
Enter Ed Nicholls, a rich computer software guru who Jess cleans for sometimes. Ed is on the brink of getting charged with insider trading, but still agrees to drive Jess, Tanzie, Nicky and their dog Norman to Scotland after feeling he owes Jess for getting him home in a drunken stupor one night.
The rest of the book takes place over days during the car trip to Scotland. It is a good story, but totally predictable.
I am going to throw it out there. Jess started getting on my nerves. I understand people have horrible troubles and really struggle. But, her attitude annoyed me. "I'll just sleep on the chair" "We'll just take a bus." Even later, (I won't spoil it here) when the family receives very generous donations for a completely different matter: "We'll pay back every penny." She took on the air of a martyr and that is something that bugs me.
It also seemed to me that as the car ride went on, Jess acted sort of entitled to this huge favor Ed was doing for her. Putting her feet up on his dashboard, making Ed's car a trashbin...I don't know, I just think she should have seemed a little more respectful and appreciative.
But! Here was the real issue that I couldn't get past and I hope someone can clear this up: HOW OLD WAS MARTY SUPPOSED TO BE? I say this because it stated in the book that Jess was 19 when Nicky came to live with them. It also stated several times that Nicky was 8 at the time as well. So, if Nicky's father was supposed to be around the same age, he had him at 11?? Let's say he was one year older....12? Two years older than her ...13? Am I missing something?
For the most part, I liked all the other characters in the book. Tanzie and yes, Norman were my favorites. :)
Please feel free to leave your comments and PLEASE, someone help me with the age thing!
I was so excited to read this! Number one, I received a free copy from Bethany House in exchange for an honest review. Number two, I love Beverly Lewis' books and finally number three, I drove about an hour to York, Pennsylvania when I heard that Mrs. Lewis was doing a book signing. I couldn't wait to meet her! Plus, the very DAY that I set out to go to the book signing, was the day I got the book in the mail.
One day, many years ago, I was in Lancaster County, and I saw Mrs. Lewis' book, The Shunning, in gift shop. I read the back of the book and was immediately intrigued. I got the book and needless to say I was hooked and have read almost all of Mrs. Lewis' books so far (I am two behind in the Hickory Hollow series).
The River is a story of Tilly and Ruth, two sisters who left their Amish roots for the more modern world, each for their own reasons. They have been busy making new lives in the "English" world so when they receive word from their brother back in Lancaster County that their parents are set to have a little anniversary celebration and would like them to consider coming back to join in the festivities, both girls hesitate.
Tilly blames herself for her youngest sister's drowning years ago and still can't come to terms with it, while Ruth still struggles with being hurt by a former beau, still living in Lancaster County.
Their brother then informs them that their father is having health issues and this pushes the sisters to the decision that they should return to their home.
After they arrive home, secrets are revealed and feelings and hearts must be somehow mended. Tilly and Ruth themselves must find peace with decisions they have made in the past as well. Can they find solace within the family and with themselves?
I really enjoyed this book. I love when you really want to know what happens to the characters in a story.
And as far as meeting Mrs. Lewis, she was an absolute delight. She was very gracious and appreciative of her fans. I was so glad I made the trip to meet her!
Have you read the book? Let me know what you think!
Juliette is going through a hard time in life. Her beloved grandmother has just passed away, and her mother is facing a cancer diagnosis. Through a shared love of food, cooking and the family restaurant, Juliette finds the support she needs from her parents and her four siblings. However, Juliette finds something missing. She is lonely and is looking for her true love.
While she's waiting, she throws herself into helping her brother, Nico, open a restaurant and into piecing together the story behind a photograph of a man who is NOT Juliette's grandfather, that was hidden in one of her grandmother's cookbooks.
This book was so charming. It's part love story, part mystery. I love books where characters seem so real. As an added bonus, the book features actual recipes that Juliette is making in the story.
I read somewhere there is a sequel coming and I hope that is true! I can't wait to see what happens with the characters in the book.
This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review from Waterbrook Multnomah. A Christian fiction book, it is also has a side of mystery. This story is about Laura and her return to her hometown, unfortunately, due to his mother's death. This homecoming holds not only the sadness of Laura's mother, but also the chance to reunite with her old high school boyfriend and her best friend, too.
However, rumors are circling the small town that Laura's father, who was presumed dead in a drowning when Laura was a teenager, has been seen on the outskirts of town. Reeling from the death of her mother, Laura sets out, hope against hope that her father may still be alive.
I admit, this took me a little bit of time to get through...however, I am glad I stuck with it. It was part just regular Christian Fiction, but part mystery, too. It kept my attention enough to keep going to find out the mystery part.
I think the author made well rounded characters, because even the side stories were interesting. All in all, I enjoyed this story and I would recommend it.
Thank you to the Blogging for Books program for the copy of this book.
