Recent Reading Adventures

I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this book considering that I had randomly chose it to read. I had no substantial reason for choosing it.

The storyline includes some heavy topics. One of the characters is raped and the reader is exposed to her struggle as a result of this traumatic experience. To add to her struggle, it takes place during an era when women didn't report nor talk about rape. The reader sees how such a traumatic experience effects her life including her relationships.

The story's chapters vacillate from mother and daughter with each giving their own life's point of view. In reading the story, it's obvious that if truth had been revealed, relationships could have been much more pleasant and life for them wouldn't have been as heartbreaking.

Moms and daughters alike will appreciate the relationship between Babs and Laney as much of their struggle is what mom wants vs what daughter wants. Laney grew up in a time when feminism was growing and her mother Babs tried her best to keep morally and culturally to the time she grew up when women's lives were at home happily married. And their desires in life clashed. Mix this clashing with deep rooted trauma and the storyline did not disappoint.

For those who prefer clean books, this book does have a rape scene and some sexuality in it. I personally think some of the sexuality could have been less detailed but it didn't interfere with my enjoyment of the overall story. * * * *

This genre is not my typical go to for reading so I'm basing my rating on my experience with this genre. I rated this using different measures than I would other genres and types of writing styles. The 4 star rating is based on measures compared to other books written in similar fashion as this one in the same genre. Another words, I didn't rate this compared to a Pulitzer Prize winning book.

This book was predictable as most contemporary, Christian chic-lit is but even so, it's an enjoyable read. I chose this to read as a relaxing, easy read since my previous books contained heavier more emotional issues and plots. It's a fun book with a quirky plot of Gretchen taking on her first house flipping project with a handsome carpenter at her side. And you probably already know the rest of the story. * * * *

The setting of this book takes place in a fictional town on the Mississippi coast. The story spans across a few days leading up to and through hurricane Katrina. The characters are a struggling poverty stricken African American family. The reader is exposed to the issues this family faces including poverty, joblessness, alcoholism, death and also the cultural issues that plague poverty stricken families. These issues include teen pregnancy, dog fighting, stealing, lack of education, hunger and the lack of parental involvement. One of the most saddening and infuriating issues the author brings to story is older boys taking sexual advantages of younger girls. The girl in this story innocently allows herself to be used believing she is truly being loved but not old enough to know the difference. It's heartbreaking to know this happens more than not in poor communities.

This book contains strong language though I don't believe the author used these words just to fill space and sell the the book. I believe she used them to accurately portray the conversations the characters would have used had it been real.

This book was different than what I usually read. The author's style of writing was bit hard to follow at times but it is written well.

From this book, I gained insight to some of the cultural issues that plague the poverty stricken African American community. This was both saddening and hard to understand but does give the reader a more empathetic POV into these families...and for that I am grateful to have read this book.  * * * *

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This is a historical fiction with the protagonists being Italian immigrants in the early 1900s before WW I. I enjoyed being exposed to this part of American culture through the lives of Italian immigrants. It's a clean, secular book. There isn't much action in the way of unexpected twists so it can be slow read, not to be mistaken as boring but rather slow and easy.