Review: Dearest

Title:  Dearest

Series: N/A

Author: Carole Marshall

Publisher: Haitsma  Literary Agency

Published: October 24, 2011

Genre:

Format: Kindle

Pages:  167

Source: Received from author in exchange

for honest review

Read: March 24-31 2013

My Rating: 1 Star

Goodreads Synopsis: 

Meet Dr. Amelia Payne: a veterinarian and educational writer. She is a single woman living in Washington State. She no longer defines herself as the daughter of a clown and a deceased mime. At the age of fifty, Amelia has built a life for herself where the past would never find her . . . or so she hoped. The tragic tale of Amelia's life is brought to the forefront, when Claude Croft, Amelia's childhood friend, calls her in hopes of locating a bracelet he had promised his father to find. Gripped by a similar promise, Amelia joins Claude in a venture to find the jewelled bracelet, only to learn that she finds more than she bargained for. Spiralled back into her old life, Amelia is right back in the thick of the eccentric characters that once coloured her youth.A story about holding on and letting go, Dearest uncovers the past Amelia thought she knew, reveals secrets she never could have known, and the truth she finally comes to know.

Melissa's Musings:

The synopsis of this book is what pulled me in, since it seemed a little mysterious, and I figured the eccentric characters would help fill out the story and maybe add a little lightness to it, since it seemed heavy. The eccentric characters were more entertaining and easier to relate to than Amelia, the main character, on all fronts. Even so, the secondary characters felt almost as flat and underdeveloped as Amelia. All in all, this story was extremely difficult to get into.

There are a lot of deaths in the story. The fact of the many deaths isn't necessarily bad, but what I didn't like is the lack of transition between the death /people leaving Amelia to the next parts of the story. There is no speculation on her part for the reasoning behind these events. She simply moves along to the next event. It's very disconcerting, and eventually, after the third or fourth occurence, it just started to feel like overkill.

Just how many deaths can a story take, especially one as short as this? I won't name them all off, but at my count there are at least 8, including two animal deaths, though I may have missed some. And there is close to no internal commentary about these from Amelia, which makes her even harder to identify with.

Amelia, as a character is very...stoic, I suppose I would say. She's very cut and dry. There's little interaction between her and other characters and when there is, it's somewhat unfeeling. She does have a relationship with Claude that is somewhat serious, but even that felt fake, almost like insta-love. Claude and Amelia have a few intimate scenes which are written in the same stiff, formal style, that just made them feel awkward. It would have been better if those scenes had been left out entirely. 

Since Amelia was so difficult for me to connect with, I felt that the ending was lacking. The story comes to a resolution, and Amelia does show some growth. But, the process of getting to this growth and the repetition of her grandfather's message to her (which is an extended paragraph that I would guess was repeatedly written out, in full, at least 20 times) made the realization of her growth fall short. Instead of feeling happy for her that she finally learned what her grandfather had intended, I had the thought of "Finally! Now that message can stop." The ending leaves a lot to be desired, to say the least.

I do think that the main plot points of Amelia's father being a mime, her mother a clown, and her being stuck in the middle, as well as the secrets that are harbored by her parents do have potential. I applaud the author for trying to weave an intricate story around these elements, but the execution just didn't come together.

Unfortunately, I can't positively  recomend this book based on my own reading of it. But, if you like characters like clowns and mimes, you might give this a try.

I am curious though, how many deaths of people close to them do you think a character can go through before it just seems like too much and starts to seem ridiculous?

Review: Dottie and Weasel: The Lemonade Fiasco

Title: Dottie and Weasel: Lemonade Fiasco

Author: Charlotte Panning 

Publisher: Ginnie's LLC

Published: August 21, 2012

Format:  Kindle

Genre: Chlildren's Stories

Pages: 31

Source: Received from the author 

in exchange for an honest review

Read: December 30 2012

In A Few Words: Sweet story

My Rating: 5 Stars

Goodreads: Add This to your To-Read Shelf

Goodreads Synopsis:

"Dottie and Weasel: Lemonade Fiasco" is a whimsical tale about two lovable and adorable dogs.  Dottie has a tendency to be high strung, bossy, and charming.  Weasel, on the other hand, is kind and good natured.  In the ebook, the two dogs go loafing around the neighborhood.  During their stroll back home, a fiasco unfolds.  Both dogs end up in deep trouble. But don't worry; the ending creates a chuckle.

Dottie and Weasel have many neighborhood friends. In this book, the two dogs meet up with Flex the cat.  He and Dottie have what many describe as a love-hate relationship.  The two are good pals at times and archrivals at other times.  In the "Lemonade Fiasco," the archrivals part of their relationship comes out.

Melissa's Musings:

This is a very sweet story about two friendly dogs and their rivalry with a local neighborhood cat. It's a fun read that any child would enjoy. It touches on important issues especially that of pressure to do things, when Dottie feels guilty that they have to sleep outside after being doused in lemonade. She worries about Weasel and touches on the fact that if she hadn't pressured Weasel to leave the yard, they wouldn't be in the situation they're in. 

The fact that the story is almost told entirely from the animals point of view is fun and engaging as well. The only thing I would have liked more would have been if the drawings had been in color, it would have made the characters come alive even more.

Cupid's Christmas

Title: Cupid's Christmas

Author: Bette Lee Crosby

Publisher:  Bent Pine Publishing

Published: September 13, 2012

Format: Kindle

Pages: 181

Source: Downloaded when it

was free on Amazon

Read: December 8-9, 2012

In A Few Words: Sweet story

My Rating: 4 Stars

Goodreads: Add This To Your TBR Shelf

Goodreads Synopsis:

CUPID’S CHRISTMAS…A love story for both the young and the young at heart. In a spot somewhere between Heaven and Earth, Cupid is trying to overcome the forces of lust, jealousy and the events brought on by his nemeses—Life Management.

Cupid matched John and Eleanor thirty years ago, but Life Management stepped in and fouled things up. Now they are both single and back together again, but before Cupid can give them the happiness they deserve, he’s got to come up with some magic, a few miracles and a dog for John’s daughter
'

Melissa's Musings:

The narrator in this story, Cupid, is just snarky enough to be likeable, but also realistic. You can tell that he (or at least I'm pretty sure it's a he) feels for his matches, and that he wants to see things work out for them. Especially Lindsay, who keeps walking away from love, and making all the wrong choices in that department.

I enjoyed watching Lindsay grow as a character. At first she is a bit hard to like, because she's so self involved. She doesn't seem to care about anyone else's happiness but her own. Then, she loses her boyfriend, her job, her apartment. That turns her around a bit.

It doesn't keep her from being downright rude to her dads' new girlfriend. I felt bad during these initial exchanges between Eleanor and Lindsay. Bad for Eleanor that is. Eleanor's character is great at making nice with Lindsay, trying to ease her way into being Lindsay's friend, but Lindsay is having none of it at first. Finally, when Lindsay realizes that her father is actually happy, she starts to open up more to Eleanor and they develop a great relationship.

If you read this and you feel bad for Eleanor during her initial exchanges with Lindsay, then I'll warn you that you'll probably feel even worse for her during her conversations with her son Ray about her new relationship. Ray says things that are just plain mean.

The romance in this book is really nice. It's well done, with just the right amount of flirtation, worry over the relationship on Lindsay's part, easy comfort and sweetness. Lindsay and Matthew fit very well together.

I really enjoyed the explanation of how Lindsay turned her love of this one particular dog into a career path. I  wish that I could do something like that with one of my hobbies, and it's always interesting to see a character be able to do that. It gives the reader that little glimmer of hope that they may be able to, too. (If they haven't already)

Have any of you read this? What did you think?

Review: The Five Lives of Our Cat Zook by Joanne Rocklin

Title: The Five Lives  Of Our Cat Zook

Author:  Joanne Rocklin

Publisher: Harry N. Abrams

Published:  April 1, 2012

Format: Hardcover

Pages:  240

Source: Won in a Goodreads  Giveaway

Read:  July 31 2012

In a Few Words: A sweet, colorful, fun story

My Rating: 5 wonderful stars

Goodreads: Add it to your to-read shelf

Goodreads Synopsis: 

n this warmhearted middle-grade novel, Oona and her brother, Fred, love their cat Zook (short for Zucchini), but Zook is sick. As they conspire to break him out of the vet’s office, convinced he can only get better at home with them, Oona tells Fred the story of Zook’s previous lives, ranging in style from fairy tale to grand epic to slice of life. Each of Zook’s lives has echoes in Oona’s own family life, which is going through a transition she’s not yet ready to face. Her father died two years ago, and her mother has started a relationship with a man named Dylan—whom Oona secretly calls “the villain.” The truth about Dylan, and about Zook’s medical condition, drives the drama in this loving family story.

Praise for The Five Lives of Our Cat Zook

“Oona’s character is a combination of Harriet the Spy in curiosity and Anastasia in spunk. Another emotionally satisfying outing from Rocklin; hanky recommended.”

—Kirkus Reviews

Melissa's Musings:

I loved this book. The characters are loveable, the wordplay is fun, there are tons of interesting theories told only the way a child would tell them. I loved it for the variety in perspective. It was such a nice change from all the YA and Adult fiction that I normally read. 

In this story we meet Freddy and Oona, brother and sister who are being raised by their mother after their father's death. They have a cat, named Zook, who has become a beloved member of their family. When Zook suddenly gets sick, it brings back memories for Oona of the time when her father is sick too, so she has to deal with all of those memories and emotions that she's kept hidden for so long.

This book is full of stories within stories. It's told from Oona's perspective, and man is she one smart kiddo. She has very creative and inventive theories. One is the Big Whopper theory, where all the lies people tell are color coded for the kind of lie that they are. Black Whoppers are meant to hurt someone, White Whoppers are meant to make someone feel better. 

Or, there's the name theory, in which Oona declares that everyone's name is perfect for them, no matter  what. Here's a quote to explain the theory: 

"Gramma Dee's name is easy Dee RW (rhymes with) bee=honey=sweet like candy. Gramma Dee likes to make Russian taffy, which she learned from her Russian grandmother, who was born in Russia." (pg. 49)

I think what she's trying to say is that people grow into their name, or the meaning of it. They personify that meaning. I think to some extent that becomes true after a while.

I love the wordplay in this book. The play on words with Zook (the cat's) name. Then there's the fact that the kids get paid in fried Zuchinni and pizza is great, and so are the cute word games that Oona plays with Freddy to teach him to read. I love when authors take the time to add these small but important touches to their stories because it helps you become that more attached to the characters.

Oona also has a lot of responsibility for such a little girl. She picks her brother up from school, she's teaching him to read, (with rhyming games and pictures, which I loved) and she even has an after school job. She gets paid in food, but still. For someone so young, that's a lot to handle, but Oona handles most of what comes her way pretty well. She isn't too fond of her mother's new boyfriend, but for a girl whose beloved father passed away that's not a surprise.

Among  all these inventive theories and stories about cats who have 9 lives there are a lot of real life observations and lessons which are told in only the way a child can see them. Children have such a different view of the world than adults. There's such innocence, and yet such depth, as well as insight. It's easy to forget how much insight kids have until you read a story like this. And when you do, boy can it pack a punch.

 I feel a bit silly admitting this, but I found myself tearing up at the end of this novel, not because of what happens to the characters, but because of the depth and richness of the lessons that Oona learns and the changes that she goes through throughout the course of the book. Now, it takes a lot for me to cry at a book. I have to be really invested in the story, and this was definitely a story that I was invested in. It's got a little bit of everything. It's a sweet story about family, love, loss, friendships, and growing up. I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys heartfelt stories.

What about you, do you have any interesting theories that you'd like to share?