Teddy Rose Book Reviews Plus More


Dec 07

30

Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

Posted by Teddyrose@1 on December 30, 2007
Posted in Books Read 2007 • Historical Fiction • Jeffrey Eugenides  | 7 Comments


Well Written With a Twist

Middlesex spans three generations of a Greek-American family, the Stephanides. Calliope, of the youngest generation narrates. Through her, we learn the history of all of the generations and their secrets. The story is really about Calliope, but we can’t learn about her without first going through her family history. You see, Callie is not your regular kind of girl.

With lyrical prose that flies off the page, Jeffrey Eugenides writes a refreshingly different story, one that will stay with me. He gets a little wordy in a couple places, however his humor and beautiful writing makes up for this.

I haven’t read his book The Virgin Suicides; however, I definitely plan to now.

4/5

Also reviewed at:

1morechapter.com

Copyright 2007-2010: All the posts within this blog were originally posted by Teddy Rose and should not be reproduced without express written permission.

Dec 07

26

The Crazyladies of Pearl Street by Trevanian

Posted by Teddyrose@1 on December 26, 2007
Posted in Books Read 2007 • Historical Fiction • Trevanian  | 4 Comments


Nostalgic Coming of Age Story

The novel opens with the young Jean-Luc, his mother and sister moving into a slum on Pearl Street in Albany. His father sent word to Jean-Luc’s mother to meet him there but as usual, he doesn’t show up. Once again the mother and her two small children have to fend for themselves.

This richly textured coming of age story, through the depression reads more like a memoir than fiction. I listened to the audio version and Tom Bosely did an excellent job narrating. I listened to this book while working out at the gym. I could hardly wait for each workout to listen to more.

I was truly sorry that this delightful book had to end. I have never read a book by Trevanian before, but I plan to read more now.

4.5/5

Copyright 2007-2010: All the posts within this blog were originally posted by Teddy Rose and should not be reproduced without express written permission.

Dec 07

17

Rhett Butler’s People by Donald McCaig

Posted by Teddyrose@1 on December 17, 2007
Posted in Books Read 2007 • Donald McCaig • Historical Fiction  | 8 Comments

Gone With the Wind, it is Not

When I first heard that Rhett Butler’s People was coming out and that it was authorized by the Mitchell estate, I got vary excited!! I could hardly wait to get my hands on it and I ordered one for my mother in-law for Christmas as well.

I must say that I was disappointed. The writing style and the historical detail were good, although, the book did drag in a couple parts. I also found that McCaig wrapped up all of the loose ends, without leaving anything to the imagination. I find it hard for the characters to live on in the world of my imagination, when an author wraps up everything so neatly.

Some of the characters seemed to be written out of character. Melanie Wilkes is a big example of this. She was still the loving, meek woman she was in Gone With the Wind; however, Craig has us believe that she wrote intimate letters to a girl friend about sex. Mitchell’s Melanie would never have done this.

I did enjoy McCaig’s take on some of the minor characters, such as Wade and Belle. However, if you haven’t read Gone With the Wind and only saw the movie, you won’t know whom some of these minor characters, such a Wade, are.

I am not sorry that I read Rhett Butler’s People. It was worthwhile and I enjoyed it for the most part. In my opinion, it is not a work of literature that will stand the test of time like Gone With the Wind has.

3/5

Copyright 2007-2010: All the posts within this blog were originally posted by Teddy Rose and should not be reproduced without express written permission.

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