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3.87 AVERAGE
3.87 AVERAGE
Florence Adler Swims Forever started off really strong in my opinion. Rachel Beanland's writing made this a sweet and easy read. I gave this book a 3/5 rating because it got a bit slow for me in the middle and I wish it ended differently. I enjoyed the bits of history throughout the book and that it’s actually a true story based on the author’s family! I didn’t love this story, but I didn’t not like it either. The family secrets, tragedy, history, and little bit of romance kept me intrigued. This book would make a really great beach read.
This book had a quick start then slowed down to a point I got bored. It finally picked back up again and I was unable to put it down but I do feel like the ending was too short with too many open questions.
Florence is home from college in the summer of 1934 in Atlantic City where she is training to become one of the few women to swim the English Channel. But something goes wrong one day and she drowns. Florence’s mother decides that Fannie, Florence’s pregnant sister who is in the hospital on bedrest, must not be told for fear that it could lead to premature labor. Meanwhile there is Fannie’s less-than-wonderful husband to contend with, Fannie’s observant seven-year old daughter who needs parenting, and a teen that they have taken in who left Nazi Germany and whose parents still need help to get out. Ah yes, the family is Jewish and so there is the issue of antisemitism to deal with as well. This is a rich family saga told well. And it is based on a true story.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
I adored this book! I love a good slower paced family drama, and this one was well done. I especially liked the format of telling each chapter from a different characters perspective. It allowed the story to unfurl in a really nice way, the way each character had to face the repercussions of this big secret. Each family member had a different reaction to the death of Florence, and that's a major part of the story but also what secrets are uncovered as a result. I didn't want the book to end, I wanted to keep going with the characters.
Anna was probably my favorite character, but they were all well developed. The beginnings of the Holocaust serve as the undercurrent of her story and what a parent would do to save their child. Even while if is there, this is not a book about the Holocaust. It isn't often that there's Jewish representation in a historical fiction book that isn't about the Holocaust, but it was well done and much appreciated.
The authors note at the end that it was based on a true story added so much to it all. I look forward to reading what Rachel Beanland comes out with next.
Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for an advanced copy of this book.
Anna was probably my favorite character, but they were all well developed. The beginnings of the Holocaust serve as the undercurrent of her story and what a parent would do to save their child. Even while if is there, this is not a book about the Holocaust. It isn't often that there's Jewish representation in a historical fiction book that isn't about the Holocaust, but it was well done and much appreciated.
The authors note at the end that it was based on a true story added so much to it all. I look forward to reading what Rachel Beanland comes out with next.
Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for an advanced copy of this book.
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Great summer read. I appreciated it more when I learned of the authors connection to the true story.
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It was ok. I was waiting for it to pickup and it finally did with 20 pages left.
It scratched the surface of a lot of gender/ethnic/ethical issues but didn’t do enough to really get you thinking.
It scratched the surface of a lot of gender/ethnic/ethical issues but didn’t do enough to really get you thinking.
With her debut novel, Rachel Beanland has a winner! Based on a true story and characters amongst the author’s own forebears, this novel is a wonderful saga about the lengths family members will go to protect their own when tragedy strikes. It also gives the reader some historical insight into how the rise of Nazism in Europe is affecting the world in 1934, even the world of Atlantic City, New Jersey, where the story takes place.
Florence Adler, a 19-year-old champion swimmer who has plans to swim the English Channel that summer, tragically drowns while training. After she dies, her family — pressed especially by her mother — decide to keep her death a secret from Fannie, Florence’s older sister who is hospitalized because of a difficult pregnancy.
Told from multiple points of view, the story allows the reader to understand and to feel what each of the numerous family members and related characters are going through as they try to cope with Florence’s death — and to keep it a secret from Fannie until her baby is born. This is a beautifully written story that makes for a wonderful read, and I definitely look forward to the author’s next novel!
Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader’s copy.
Florence Adler, a 19-year-old champion swimmer who has plans to swim the English Channel that summer, tragically drowns while training. After she dies, her family — pressed especially by her mother — decide to keep her death a secret from Fannie, Florence’s older sister who is hospitalized because of a difficult pregnancy.
Told from multiple points of view, the story allows the reader to understand and to feel what each of the numerous family members and related characters are going through as they try to cope with Florence’s death — and to keep it a secret from Fannie until her baby is born. This is a beautifully written story that makes for a wonderful read, and I definitely look forward to the author’s next novel!
Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader’s copy.
I heard such wonderful things about this book. I loved the relationships between Stuart, Joseph, Anna, and Gussie. I didn't care for the other characters much.
I didn't realize this takes place in the years leading up to the Holocaust. I loved the way that was intertwined throughout the story. I also loved that Florence is based on a true story.
The book was slow moving and a little dull in places. It didn't really seem like there was much of a climax. Then it just ended. While the character development was amazing, the plot left much to be desired.
I didn't realize this takes place in the years leading up to the Holocaust. I loved the way that was intertwined throughout the story. I also loved that Florence is based on a true story.
The book was slow moving and a little dull in places. It didn't really seem like there was much of a climax. Then it just ended. While the character development was amazing, the plot left much to be desired.