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| Name : | Amanda J. |
My Reviews
I feel like this book should be the crowning jewel of an author who has written for decades, but it is her first book. It is a breathtaking glimpse into the lives of Clare and Henry, a couple that is destined to be together. It is beautifully written and put together perfectly. Definitely a good read for people who like characters who have depth and substance.
Just Listen is definitely not a book I would suggest to other adult book clubs. It's target audience is adolescent youth and I think it would probably only be enjoyed by them or their parents who want insight into the lives of youth.
The one thing I did want to read more about in this story was about Whitney and her struggles. In sections mentioning her story I found that I wanted them to be longer and more involved. If the book had been her story I think I might have enjoyed it much more.
Please keep in mind that I am an adult who likes books that have deeper conversations, complex characters, and story line twists and turns. So, this book might be a great read for 12 to 16 years olds, but it didn't appeal to my personal taste.
I started this book scared that I would hate it. I was surprised that Seth was able to take a historically romantic story and add the elements of adventure and humor to it. I personally think this would be a really funny movie someday.
I have never read Kipling before, but I think this is a great tale of a boy becoming man. I think it's interesting that Kipling wrote this book while in America where he and his wife were raising their children. I can't help, but wonder if some of the parental elements of this book are from personal experiences while raising their children.
I am not rating this book as "I didn't like it," because it was not written well or a classic piece of literature. Mainly, my rating is because as a female reader I was not happy with the negative way women were treated by the males in this book. They were an after thought and only for pleasure, not for building and sharing ones life with.
I think that the story was very dark and the characters where almost heartless, except for their self love. The main character is as fickle in love as Romeo, except Romeo eventually got his act together. Dorian unfortunately, never does.
To me Lord Henry uses his theories and experiments as a cover for his inability to have a successful relationship with his wife or friends. If your best friend is your personal experiment then you should seek psychiatric help.
This book was really long and wordy. I felt like it could have been streamlined and few places could have been removed. There was very little happiness in the book. After 900 pages, I needed something happy to happen, but every point of light in the book was quickly covered in darkness.
If you enjoy reading characters that are stuck in a rut and can't move on until they have not other option, then this one would be a good read for you.
I enjoy reading characters that evolve. So, this book wasn't a great fit for me personally.
This is a great story of friendship that I think most women can relate to. I think every circle of friends has at least one of these characters within them and therefore this book, to me, made me think about what my circle of friends could accomplish together.
I really wish the author would have included more about the house near the park (you will have to read the book to find out what that means). I think it could have been more developed more as a part of the lives of the characters.
I thought that this book was a nice easy read. It did slow a little in places, but the author recovers nicely. The last few pages made me cry with laughter.
I picked this book up strictly because of the title. How can you not be interested in the Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society!!! I found the story behind the title to be a beautiful story of a woman who falls in love with a group of people who in all the important ways become her family. It is written as correspondence, so it moves quickly without lots of internal monologue. I made me laugh and cry and I found it to be a nice way to spend a weekend.
This is nothing I would have picked up on my own, but through the Book Movement book drawings I was very happy to receive a copy. I found the story of the O'Connor family very heartfelt and beautiful. I related to the characters and wanted them to see them find success during their journey. I wanted to be able to step into their living room and provide comfort when they were in need. I really appreciate the author showing the Native American traditions and heritage of the characters. I think this is a great story of a father helping his son to become a man and to never give up when he is passionate about something. Overall, I think the book was very well written, pleasant to read, and well paced.
If you love murder mysteries you will love this book by Agatha Christy. It is full of characters you like and characters you absolutely wouldn't trust! It was very adventurous and it kept you looking over your shoulder at the other characters in the story. It almost reads as if you, the reader, are an eleventh guest of U. N. Owen.
I took my time reading The Bell Jar. Knowing that this book was basically her autobiography I didn't want to rush it and miss something. It is very poignantly written by an obviously tortured soul. If she hadn't lived it, I think it would have been a completely different story. Because she lived it we have the unbelievably detailed story of her decent into numb darkness and the treatments she had to undergo before assimilating back into society.
I have, to all of my friends, dubbed this book as the sequel to Harper Lee great American novel, "To Kill a Mockingbird." I happened to read "The Help" directly after finishing TKAM completely unaware of how much their parallel. I could not help but see a little of Scout Finch in "The Helps," Ms. Skeeter Phelan. I highly recommend this book as a part of any book club or individual's reading enjoyment.
I think this book was the hardest for me to read of the past 3 Austen novels I picked up. It was one of her earlier books and I think as you read her later works, you can definitely see her come into her own. What I didn't like about this particular book is that Emma the main character is such a meddler/spoiled/stuck up and she just flat out annoyed me.
It took way to long to get to the end and once you were there it all unfolded very quickly and too perfectly.
There is a reason this book, this love story is told over and over in every form of artistic expression imaginable. It is, in my opinion, the pinnacle of Austen's career as a writer. I have seen lots of movie remakes and tv shows on this, but the book is so much more! I couldn't put it down.
This book brings fantasy to the real world (literally that is what it is about). I had seen the movie before reading the book, but the book adds so much more insight and depth to the story. This is a young adult read, but I enjoyed it as an adult.
Criticism: some parts of the story start to feel very repetitive, but if you push thru there is a solid fairytale ending to enjoy.
When I read the description of the story, I was so excited...a little history (which was quite accurate) and a little fantasy all wrapped in one book. The story felt very cyclical...he gets caught, gets away, does a little magic, and repeat. I did finish the book, mostly because of stubbornness, not because I couldn't put it down.
I was excited to get away from the popular vampire/werewolf stories that are coming out in mass print. I thought I would try a story about a dragon, for a change of pace. I liked the concept for the story, but it just took too long to get my attention...250 pages too long. When I got to the good part that was exciting, I was to annoyed to enjoy it.
However, it is set up well for a sequel...should the author like to continue.
One of my dear friends loves, Wuthering Heights, but I disagree that it is the best of the B-sisters books. I liked Jane Eyre much more for her hard work, strength, and intelligence. I did describe the book as dark, but this is a Gothic novel and does seem a little dark. With that said, it is a book I could see reading again and therefore I marked it as a book I liked with a book club referral.
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