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Saturday, May 29, 2010

Six Sentence Saturday

Welcome to Six Sentence Saturday.
Where I try to express my thoughts on recent reads using only 6 sentences!!!!.
At the end of each review I will post a
rating scale of 1-5 using the cute and original (lol) Playing Cards.
Rating scale will be as follows:

5 of Hearts- You must read this book NOW!!
4 of Hearts- A great read, put it on your TBR list.
3 of Hearts- Happy that I read it...a good read.

2 of Hearts- Just O.K but nothing to write home about.
Joker Card - Don't bother (why did I?)



Crossing Oceans -Gina Holmes
I was immediately drawn to this story: young woman loses her mom early in life, find "true" love (she thinks), ends up pregnant so she flees from home, only to return five years later because she doesn't have long to live and she needs to make things right with her father and the father of her daughter. This is an impressive debut novel by Holmes, one that took her ten years to bring to completion. I enjoyed this one very much and only found myself being upset a few times at certain characters behavior only because it didn't feel realistic to me. I totally understood Jenny's jealousy toward her old boyfriend's wife. This would be the woman who would raise her daughter when she died...that hit me hard because I know had it been me preparing to die and knowing that someone else would be mothering my children....oh, the heartache that would occur. I cried more than once while spending time with these characters and I'll be reading Holmes again.
My Rating:







A Complicated Kindness-  Miriam Toews
I honestly have no memory as to where I saw this book or whose review I read that made me request it from the library. I wish I did so that I could revisit why I felt the need to read this one. I found this a complicated weird experience to say the least. The "Mennonite" town did not feel true at all...I thought the characters came across as just regular everyday people who weren't really influenced by religion whatsoever. I kept turning the pages because at times I found the story enjoyable, even though there was not a punctuation mark to be found. I managed to finish the book, but the last chapter was horrible and left me wanting to throw the book at the wall.


My Rating:

24 comments:

  1. Sorry to hear you couldn't get on with the Miriam Toews book, Staci. I have another one of hers on my TBR and I'm hoping I'll have better luck than you did.

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  2. I can see how Crossing Oceans would make you cry. I know I will be weeping while reading it (I definitely will read it). Sounds like a great book.

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  3. Crossing Oceans sounds good but very sad.

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  4. Not a punctuation mark in sight? Bleh . . . that book would have been in the donate pile before I got half way. Sheeesh! Have a good weekend, kiddo.

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  5. The lack of punctuation would definitely bother me! At least you enjoyed one of them...

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  6. I can see how Crossing Oceans would be sad. How horrible to have to think about that you won't be there to raise your children and someone else will. Ugh. I don't think I could face reading that!

    And back to the comment count weirdness, do you notice mine always says 7, no matter what?!!! :--)

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  7. I just added Crossing Oceans to my list :).

    Lisa (lit and life) and I were talking about you the other day - we were wishing you could sit on the deck and chat with us!

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  8. I have added Crossed Oceans to my TBR list - thanks!

    Lisa (Lit and Life) and I were talking about you earlier this week - wishing you were sitting on the deck with us, glass of wine, talking, bliss...

    Have a wonderful weekend!

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  9. I'll mark the first for reading and avoid the second. Nice job.

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  10. Sounds like you had a 50/50 week. Too bad about the Toews book. I wouldn't have gotten past 25 pages.

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  11. Aww, sorry you wanted to trash the book. You're a better woman than me becuase I would have trashed it much earlier. A good and a bad so it balances.

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  12. Sorry to hear you didn't enjoy A Complicated Kindness! I liked it a lot when I read it last year.

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  13. Wowwwwwwwwww!! That first one sounds amazing...and bummer about the 2nd one! :):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):)

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  14. Too bad about A Complicated Kindness. No punctuation? Eh, I'll skip it too.

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  15. Crossing Oceans sounds heartbreaking, but good. I am sorry A Complicated Kindness wasn't better. Now you've got me curious about the ending. :-)

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  16. Crossing Oceans sounds really good Staci. Miriam Toews just doesn't do it for me. I read one of her books and that was enough for me.

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  17. I have to agree with your assessment of A Complicated Kindness. For me it wasn't the lack of punctuation - I just didn't like it very much, though can't quite remember why. Maybe there was too much angst projected by the characters. At least you liked the first one though!

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  18. I was just looking at Crossing Oceans at Target. Glad you liked it. Sounds like a 5 hankie book. :)

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  19. No punctuation?!?! Now that would drive me batty - but I do have to say that next time I am in Barnes and Noble I am going to have to check it out just to see what the heck it looks like, lol!!!

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  20. Crossing Oceans seems heartbreaking.

    The lack of punctuation in A Complicated Kindness would make me insane. Where was the editor? And how can you create a Mennonite town where the people are not that influenced by their religion? I can see where you would have been frustrated.

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  21. Crossing Oceans looks wonderful. I just put it on hold at the lbrary. You picked the perfect six sentences to review it. It sold me.

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  22. Weird what works for some and doesn't for others, I quite liked A Complicated Kindness when I read it though I've read at least two other reviews that felt the same way you do.

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  23. I'm sorry to hear you didn't enjoy A Complicated Kindness because I had high expectations for that one! (I have it but haven't read it yet.) The lack of punctuation is undoubtedly going to drive me crazy too!

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  24. Oh dear. This has been on my TBR List or Shelves (at the moment, I'm not sure which one) for a very long time. Anyway, I think it's going to stay wherever it is. I'm due for some good reading, and I don't want to take the chance with this one. Thanks!

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