Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
I know...everyone read this book years ago. I only discovered Adriana Trigiani in Lucia, Lucia and then The Shoemaker's Wife (which is the best!), but this was a very good read. I will know read anything she writes. Thanks again Adriana for a well-written book.
I loved a return visit to Big Stone Gap series after many years away. It was like coming home to your cozy seat on the couch and blanket. What works so well about this series is that the characters are both flawed and accepted. And this can also be frustrating. A few times, I found myself being a bit frustrated with Ave Maria, just wanting her to open her eyes... That said, I have had the same sort of experience in real life. We all have our "mud" we get stuck in and it is appropriate that there are no easy outs for Ave Maria either.
If I wasn't a fan of the series already, I am sure this book wouldn't stand alone all that well. Part of the affinity for it, is having seen the characters grow and develop over time.
If I wasn't a fan of the series already, I am sure this book wouldn't stand alone all that well. Part of the affinity for it, is having seen the characters grow and develop over time.
I love the Big Stone Gap series. I'd nearly forgotten how much. The magic is still there for me. One thing I hadn't realized is that the book is written in present tense. In my creative writing workshop earlier this summer, we were discussing such things and I said then how I prefer writing to be in past tense and isn't most fiction told that way anyway. How interesting to realize at least one book I love is not. Now, I want to start pulling beloved books from the shelves to examine the tense! Hmmm... I guess if it wasn't jarring to me, then it's well done either way. But I digress.
This book showcases a part of the United States I can barely imagine. While I have no desire to move to Appalachia, I can appreciate Trigiani's efforts in transporting her readers there. Growing up in a small town gives me a foothold in understanding Ave Maria's world. And remaining single at 35 in a relatively small community gives me a window into her character's mind. I love the supporting cast of characters as well, and though the story is a wee bit predictable, I still love where it takes me. I look forward to rereading the other two stories in the trilogy and finally reading her fourth book about Ave Maria and family.
This book showcases a part of the United States I can barely imagine. While I have no desire to move to Appalachia, I can appreciate Trigiani's efforts in transporting her readers there. Growing up in a small town gives me a foothold in understanding Ave Maria's world. And remaining single at 35 in a relatively small community gives me a window into her character's mind. I love the supporting cast of characters as well, and though the story is a wee bit predictable, I still love where it takes me. I look forward to rereading the other two stories in the trilogy and finally reading her fourth book about Ave Maria and family.
I think this was my least favorite book of the bunch. There was nothing wrong with it, but it just didn't resonate the same way the others did. In this one Ave Maria goes through a period of estrangement with her best pal Iva Lou and I had a hard time really understanding it. I enjoyed their trip to Scotland and it actually made me want to travel there based solely on their descriptions. This book also had a smattering of recipes included in the text when various foods were mentioned. I can't remember if that happened in the other books; if it did, I didn't notice. I thought it was sort of cutesy and though it wasn't a terrible thing in any way, I liked it better in "Like Water for Chocolate" (a great book, by the way... espec. if you like magical realism). Even though this final book in the Big Stone Gap series didn't rock my world I am quite glad to have read them again. They are a bit melancholy but satisfying and comforting too.
One of the main character's name is John McChesney, just like my dad. I had to read it. I was pleasantly suprised with a quaint story line and Appalachian comfort.
What an unexpected pleasure this story was...unique characters...humorous, touching, uplifting...I looked forward to knowing the conclusion, but at the same time didn't want it to end...happy to discover it's the first in a series!
Ava Maria has more on her plate than she can handle. Small town life meets big time crises. However, her friends help her deal with the skeleton in her family's closet and her own self discovery. If I remember this had me laughing out loud, though it was a little over the top for me in terms of Ava Maria's blind spots.
The last quarter of this book is awfully saccharine, but otherwise a fun summer read.
Ave Maria is not my kind of narrator. She tries to be cheerful, and everyone around her for the most part seems friendly, but everything grated on my nerves. In between her misinterpreting people's motivations, and no one offering explanations, or straight out concealing information, there is so much miscommunication. And Ave Maria, in turn, again and again laments lost time due to these misunderstandings, while saying she ought to look forward. But she keeps misunderstanding! I lost patience with the whole thing.