Scan barcode
innae's review against another edition
3.0
I borrowed this book from a neighbor, and therefore it was never bookcrossed, so I didn't put down my thoughts when I read it. I hunted down a review or two to kickstart my memory --
This is the tale of a woman (from 1978) who trades places with her own grandmother (at the turn of the century) and the trials they both face. It is an intriguing romance and I quite enjoyed the story. I recommend a read.
This is the tale of a woman (from 1978) who trades places with her own grandmother (at the turn of the century) and the trials they both face. It is an intriguing romance and I quite enjoyed the story. I recommend a read.
readingwithcats's review against another edition
I feel like this is one of those books that I found too late. Pre-teen me would have loved it. Adult me? Not so much.
linwearcamenel's review
challenging
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
oleitorconstante's review
DNF
Escrito no fim dos anos 70, encontrei este livro que aparentemente foi esquecido pelo tempo a partir de um artigo do BuzzFeed sobre alguns finais surpreendentes. Mal li a sinopse chamou a minha atenção: uma mulher que vai parar ao corpo da sua avó no passado, quando estava prestes a casar, através de um espelho.
Mal terminei a leitura anterior e enquanto não chegava a encomenda da próxima, resolvi pegar neste e adorei os primeiros capítulos e a escrita da autora.
Infelizmente, pouco depois da protagonista viajar ao passado parece um livro diferente. Torna-se monótono, desinteressante e confuso e aproveita pouco o facto de conhecer coisas do futuro.
Chegado aos 53% já estava a forçar muito a leitura, por isso resolvi dar uma espreitadela a um resumo na internet, para ver se valia a pena continuar. Não para mim
Escrito no fim dos anos 70, encontrei este livro que aparentemente foi esquecido pelo tempo a partir de um artigo do BuzzFeed sobre alguns finais surpreendentes. Mal li a sinopse chamou a minha atenção: uma mulher que vai parar ao corpo da sua avó no passado, quando estava prestes a casar, através de um espelho.
Mal terminei a leitura anterior e enquanto não chegava a encomenda da próxima, resolvi pegar neste e adorei os primeiros capítulos e a escrita da autora.
Infelizmente, pouco depois da protagonista viajar ao passado parece um livro diferente. Torna-se monótono, desinteressante e confuso e aproveita pouco o facto de conhecer coisas do futuro.
Chegado aos 53% já estava a forçar muito a leitura, por isso resolvi dar uma espreitadela a um resumo na internet, para ver se valia a pena continuar. Não para mim
tr4278's review
This book was on a list of best time-travel novels of all time so I figured I’d check it out. And wow. What a wild ride! Grandmother and granddaughter switch bodies. The first half set in the early 20th century was better, both because I liked Shay better and the fact that there was still some suspense over whether she’d go back to 1978. With that question answered, Brandy’s portion in 1978f didn’t have the same appeal, although I did really enjoy the fish-out-of water aspects of it. (Brandy going to a disco was hilarious.)
The sexual politics felt really progressive at times and extremely regressive at others (uh, Marek??). There are some interesting historical details about Colorado, and I appreciated the realism of having Shay go back in time and not know everything about history or even her own family history because really, few 20-year-olds actually would. Overall recommend as a fun read if you’re interested in time-travel and have a tolerance for dated gender norms and semi-bonkers plot twists, which I will go to in the spoilers now.
Wow, giving birth to your own mom is super bizarre! I kept thinking there’s no way that’d happen and yet it did. Not to mention Brandy having to give birth despite never having had sex. And poor Rachel. Her “mom” can’t connect with her bc she is her daughter and her daughter disappears at 20. And all her furniture is stolen? I felt sadness over that sideboard from Wales that I am not sure I felt for any other character. Also, the relationship with marek was so underbaked it was raw. We’re we supposed to think 1970s men were longing for submission and virginity after dating feminists? Or was that just Marek’s kink?
The sexual politics felt really progressive at times and extremely regressive at others (uh, Marek??). There are some interesting historical details about Colorado, and I appreciated the realism of having Shay go back in time and not know everything about history or even her own family history because really, few 20-year-olds actually would. Overall recommend as a fun read if you’re interested in time-travel and have a tolerance for dated gender norms and semi-bonkers plot twists, which I will go to in the spoilers now.
psalmcat's review
5.0
One of my FAVORITE favorites! I read this book over and over as a young teenager, back in the 70s. Simply could not get enough of the romance, the historical bits about the old west in the Denver area...
manwithanagenda's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
This turned out far, far better than I thought it would be. I had to stay up until almost 3am to finish it! Millhiser has crafted a great story with plenty of family drama, humor, romance (with the character's own grandfather no less - somehow, not gross), historical detail, and, of course, one cursed mirror. The object has its own mysterious history that bookends the novel with good atmosphere.
It's 1978 and the night before Shay Garrett's wedding. Her parents disapprove of the marriage thinking at 20 she is too young and they suspect she doesn't love Marek. Even with these misgivings her mother, Rachel, gives her one of the family treasures: an antique mirror with wavy glass and a frame made of interlocking bronze hands. It had come to the family by way of a marriage and hidden in the attic for years. Shay's grandmother Bran, at 98, has been mute and distant since a stroke twenty years earlier, but has a strong reaction to mention of the mirror.
Shay Garrett doesn't share her mother's interest in family history and has only vaguely paid attention to the stories behind many heirlooms in the family home. For that alone she deserves what's coming to her.
The mirror has been set up in her bedroom, redone in a fussy Victorian style, and standing on the thick carpet, Shay tries on the antique bridal veil. A thunderstorm begins, and she catches sight of her grandmother behind her in the glass.
She is awakened on the bare floor by a woman who vaguely looks like her mother, but has hair piled on top of her head. The mirror looms large in the corner and Shay notices that the carpeting is gone, the woodwork is varnished, not painted, and the body she's in is not her own. She is told that no matter what fits she throws she will be married in the morning.
Shay begins to understand she has switched places with her grandmother in the past and she has no hope, except through the mirror, of returning to her time.
'The Mirror' follows three generations of Shay's family. Herself, Bran (trapped in Shay's body in the future), and, interestingly, Rachel, whose disconnect from her 'seer' mother makes her cling to the physical artifacts of her family's history. Poor Rachel has the worst time of anybody, unfortunately.
The book commits to the period, and a lot of research was done about Boulder at the turn of the century through the 1970s. The different reactions Bran and Shay have to the mores of the day were often delightful. Shay challenging her husband on his attitudes about sex and Bran's realization that Shay's fiancé, when dancing with her at a disco, is obviously a demon. Amazing. Highly recommended.
It's 1978 and the night before Shay Garrett's wedding. Her parents disapprove of the marriage thinking at 20 she is too young and they suspect she doesn't love Marek. Even with these misgivings her mother, Rachel, gives her one of the family treasures: an antique mirror with wavy glass and a frame made of interlocking bronze hands. It had come to the family by way of a marriage and hidden in the attic for years. Shay's grandmother Bran, at 98, has been mute and distant since a stroke twenty years earlier, but has a strong reaction to mention of the mirror.
Shay Garrett doesn't share her mother's interest in family history and has only vaguely paid attention to the stories behind many heirlooms in the family home. For that alone she deserves what's coming to her.
The mirror has been set up in her bedroom, redone in a fussy Victorian style, and standing on the thick carpet, Shay tries on the antique bridal veil. A thunderstorm begins, and she catches sight of her grandmother behind her in the glass.
She is awakened on the bare floor by a woman who vaguely looks like her mother, but has hair piled on top of her head. The mirror looms large in the corner and Shay notices that the carpeting is gone, the woodwork is varnished, not painted, and the body she's in is not her own. She is told that no matter what fits she throws she will be married in the morning.
Shay begins to understand she has switched places with her grandmother in the past and she has no hope, except through the mirror, of returning to her time.
'The Mirror' follows three generations of Shay's family. Herself, Bran (trapped in Shay's body in the future), and, interestingly, Rachel, whose disconnect from her 'seer' mother makes her cling to the physical artifacts of her family's history. Poor Rachel has the worst time of anybody, unfortunately.
The book commits to the period, and a lot of research was done about Boulder at the turn of the century through the 1970s. The different reactions Bran and Shay have to the mores of the day were often delightful. Shay challenging her husband on his attitudes about sex and Bran's realization that Shay's fiancé, when dancing with her at a disco, is obviously a demon. Amazing. Highly recommended.
takethyme's review
4.0
*Update*
Most of her stories are available on Kindle but they are also available to read (free!) on openlibrary.org. If you are looking for something for your Halloween challenge, sign up now.
Sadly, I recently read that the author passed away in 2017. "The Mirror was Mrs. Millhiser's most famous book, one that was so popular with readers that it was one of the most frequently stolen books at public libraries. Several readers have even commented that they named their children after characters in the book."
~~~~~
I read THE MIRROR, a time travel piece of historical fiction, years ago. It was my first introduction into the genre and I loved it. I read it again about ten years later and still appreciated it as much as I did the first time. I recently pulled it off my keeper shelf and decided to see if my opinion had changed now that I am older. It did.
My old hardcover copy is missing its dust jacket and some of the pages are aged. If you are lucky, you may find the book at a public library. It also could be stuffed behind other books in a thrift shop or sitting on a dusty table at someone's garage sale.
I have seen it listed under the 'horror' genre but I disagree. Scary? In a mild but unique way. Mind-rush? Yes, definitely. Imagine switching bodies with your grandmother and then giving birth to your own mother. Dated material? Yes, it was written in 1978 so, for a brief time, you'll 'see' the way the characters dress, 'listen' to Disco music and 'watch' the accepted nuances of that time period.
It begins with aprologue 'backward'. Read it! It is your first tidbit of what the mirror is. And what it does. The story finishes with an epilogue 'forward'. In between, is the oddest narrative I have ever read. It is a wild stretch of the imagination. It will cause you to suspend your disbelief and confuse you.
THE MIRROR is a highly descriptive story of three generations of women. Shay Garrett was getting married the following day. Rachael Garrett, Shay's mother, was trying to pull everything together. And Grandma Bran was on reprieve from a nursing home and was to be the special guest at the marriage ceremony. And can you guess what Shay's parents' wedding gift is? THE MIRROR.
The wordplay was wonderful. "As she rubbed the stiffened muscles of her neck, she felt the diamond cold against her skin and wished that it could rain inside the house and wash away the dust of decades, generations, decay, and boredom."
And, FYI, Ms. Millhiser wrote another time-travel book: [b:The Threshold|133739|The Threshold|Marlys Millhiser|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1297435613s/133739.jpg|128834]. Her stories were written long before Diane Gabaldon's time travel series. [b:The Mirror|133738|The Mirror|Marlys Millhiser|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1387654530s/133738.jpg|2077062] is a favorite with most of its readers.
~~~~~
I lowered my original rating from 5 stars down to 4 because of that dated material I mentioned earlier.I also wished there was better closure between Rachel and Jerry. Oh, someone even came up with a summary and study guide! If you want a story that will blow your mind, try THE MIRROR.
Most of her stories are available on Kindle but they are also available to read (free!) on openlibrary.org. If you are looking for something for your Halloween challenge, sign up now.
Sadly, I recently read that the author passed away in 2017. "The Mirror was Mrs. Millhiser's most famous book, one that was so popular with readers that it was one of the most frequently stolen books at public libraries. Several readers have even commented that they named their children after characters in the book."
~~~~~
I read THE MIRROR, a time travel piece of historical fiction, years ago. It was my first introduction into the genre and I loved it. I read it again about ten years later and still appreciated it as much as I did the first time. I recently pulled it off my keeper shelf and decided to see if my opinion had changed now that I am older. It did.
My old hardcover copy is missing its dust jacket and some of the pages are aged. If you are lucky, you may find the book at a public library. It also could be stuffed behind other books in a thrift shop or sitting on a dusty table at someone's garage sale.
I have seen it listed under the 'horror' genre but I disagree. Scary? In a mild but unique way. Mind-rush? Yes, definitely. Imagine switching bodies with your grandmother and then giving birth to your own mother. Dated material? Yes, it was written in 1978 so, for a brief time, you'll 'see' the way the characters dress, 'listen' to Disco music and 'watch' the accepted nuances of that time period.
It begins with a
THE MIRROR is a highly descriptive story of three generations of women. Shay Garrett was getting married the following day. Rachael Garrett, Shay's mother, was trying to pull everything together. And Grandma Bran was on reprieve from a nursing home and was to be the special guest at the marriage ceremony. And can you guess what Shay's parents' wedding gift is? THE MIRROR.
The wordplay was wonderful. "As she rubbed the stiffened muscles of her neck, she felt the diamond cold against her skin and wished that it could rain inside the house and wash away the dust of decades, generations, decay, and boredom."
And, FYI, Ms. Millhiser wrote another time-travel book: [b:The Threshold|133739|The Threshold|Marlys Millhiser|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1297435613s/133739.jpg|128834]. Her stories were written long before Diane Gabaldon's time travel series. [b:The Mirror|133738|The Mirror|Marlys Millhiser|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1387654530s/133738.jpg|2077062] is a favorite with most of its readers.
~~~~~
I lowered my original rating from 5 stars down to 4 because of that dated material I mentioned earlier.
areadinggal's review
4.0
The book brought to life what could possibly be going through a girl's mind if she's suddenly transplanted to a different decade/century. Excellent reading for the first 2 sections about Shay and Rachael. But when it comes to Brandy, the book drags on, and it was as though the author couldn't decide how to end the book.