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3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
SECRETS OF TRUTH AND BEAUTY is a surprisingly sweet read with strong undertones of Sarah Dessen’s work. At times a little choppy, the novel is overall a nice and quick read, perfect for those days when you want a little slice of optimism in the face of hardship.
Characters are strong in this book, but Dara is by far the most well-drawn and most likable. Unlike many other protagonists in books that deal with weight, Dara is not constantly apologetic of it, and undergoes a very real struggle to not let her weight define who she is. Dara’s infuriatingly controlling mother is the perfect foil to her growth in self-esteem; you’ll want to step right into the story and give Mrs. Cohen a good hard slap in the face. We can relate all too well to Dara’s struggle to love herself, when other important people in her life cannot seem to love her as she is.
When the plot moves to the goat farm, the story loses a bit of its footing and credibility as we are introduced to a number of characters that are never quite fully fleshed out. In the second half of the book there is a bit of wavering as to the story’s main conflict. Is it still about Dara’s learning to work with the body she has? But wait! What about that slightly weird arc regarding homosexuality? And what is UP with the romance that comes out of nowhere? The numerous elements introduced to us in the back half of the story conflicted with one another and made for some confusion.
Still, I definitely enjoyed SECRETS OF TRUTH AND BEAUTY. Dara is a darling protagonist, and you will not be able to resist cheering for her as she learns how to believe in herself and not let others’ words affect her so deeply.
Characters are strong in this book, but Dara is by far the most well-drawn and most likable. Unlike many other protagonists in books that deal with weight, Dara is not constantly apologetic of it, and undergoes a very real struggle to not let her weight define who she is. Dara’s infuriatingly controlling mother is the perfect foil to her growth in self-esteem; you’ll want to step right into the story and give Mrs. Cohen a good hard slap in the face. We can relate all too well to Dara’s struggle to love herself, when other important people in her life cannot seem to love her as she is.
When the plot moves to the goat farm, the story loses a bit of its footing and credibility as we are introduced to a number of characters that are never quite fully fleshed out. In the second half of the book there is a bit of wavering as to the story’s main conflict. Is it still about Dara’s learning to work with the body she has? But wait! What about that slightly weird arc regarding homosexuality? And what is UP with the romance that comes out of nowhere? The numerous elements introduced to us in the back half of the story conflicted with one another and made for some confusion.
Still, I definitely enjoyed SECRETS OF TRUTH AND BEAUTY. Dara is a darling protagonist, and you will not be able to resist cheering for her as she learns how to believe in herself and not let others’ words affect her so deeply.
Dara Cohen can't believe her luck. After one misinterpreted English project gets her kicked out of school and practically ignored at home, she decides it's time to meet the sister she has never known. Her parents aren't exactly happy about her decision but she has made up her mind. Surprisingly, her sister seems more than willing to have her.
Once there, Dara sees no reason why her parents would have kicked her sister out. She is the perfect host and an even better worker at the goat farm. She seems like the perfect person to Dara but old secrets are well hidden.
Then there are the other residents of the farm. Owen, a gay high schooler, whose parents couldn't accept him, Sascha, a big lumberjack type, and Belinda, the silent owner of the farm. No matter how weird they all seem, they are the first people that seem to accept Dara for who she is and how she looks.
Is this the family that Dara has always wanted? Will Dara's parents ever change their feelings toward Rachel and allow her back into their lives and hearts?
The story of Dara was a little bit typical but the subplots to the story help balance that out. I wasn't expecting anything serious in Secrets of Truth and Beauty but it was a good surprise. Dara has a lot of mixed feelings towards her family and herself. They are shown throughout the book and they develop very well.
Another thing this book addressed was homosexuality. That definitely came out of nowhere for me. Owen was a great character and the topic was addressed amazingly well. It wasn't overdone but it really felt like it was important to the story and people in today's society. Megan Frazer both addressed how some adults react to their children coming out and how teenagers sometimes inadvertently insult homosexuals with their remarks. It was just such a great thing for her to weave into the story.
Overall, Secrets of Truth And Beauty was a great story, while a little bit predictable. This is another title that is going on my list of summer books to reread.
Once there, Dara sees no reason why her parents would have kicked her sister out. She is the perfect host and an even better worker at the goat farm. She seems like the perfect person to Dara but old secrets are well hidden.
Then there are the other residents of the farm. Owen, a gay high schooler, whose parents couldn't accept him, Sascha, a big lumberjack type, and Belinda, the silent owner of the farm. No matter how weird they all seem, they are the first people that seem to accept Dara for who she is and how she looks.
Is this the family that Dara has always wanted? Will Dara's parents ever change their feelings toward Rachel and allow her back into their lives and hearts?
The story of Dara was a little bit typical but the subplots to the story help balance that out. I wasn't expecting anything serious in Secrets of Truth and Beauty but it was a good surprise. Dara has a lot of mixed feelings towards her family and herself. They are shown throughout the book and they develop very well.
Another thing this book addressed was homosexuality. That definitely came out of nowhere for me. Owen was a great character and the topic was addressed amazingly well. It wasn't overdone but it really felt like it was important to the story and people in today's society. Megan Frazer both addressed how some adults react to their children coming out and how teenagers sometimes inadvertently insult homosexuals with their remarks. It was just such a great thing for her to weave into the story.
Overall, Secrets of Truth And Beauty was a great story, while a little bit predictable. This is another title that is going on my list of summer books to reread.
Secrets of Truth and Beauty is a multi-layered coming of age story of 17-year-old Dara Cohen. Once a junior pageant winner, Dara is now an overweight teen with some very deep-seeded self-loathing and dysfunctional parents. When an English assignment is misinterpreted, she is removed from school and forced to go to therapy. Striking out on her own, Dara tracks down the long lost sister she never had and spends the summer working with her on a goat cheese farm. During the summer, Dara makes a good friend; finds love; and self acceptance.
At first, Dara constantly insists that she is not constantly obsessing about her weight or hates her body. As we get deeper into Dara's inner conversations, the more it is revealed that the opposite is true. Her inner conversations with herself include put downs, insults, and isolating herself from things that she would like to do. A misconstrued comment from her newly acquired gay BFF about Mama Cass from the Mamas and the Papas acts as a catalyst for Dara to become the person she has been keeping hidden out of fear of being ridiculed for her weight.
This book is engaging, well written, and thoughtful. It has a high readability level. Once you're into the story, it is hard to put down.
At first, Dara constantly insists that she is not constantly obsessing about her weight or hates her body. As we get deeper into Dara's inner conversations, the more it is revealed that the opposite is true. Her inner conversations with herself include put downs, insults, and isolating herself from things that she would like to do. A misconstrued comment from her newly acquired gay BFF about Mama Cass from the Mamas and the Papas acts as a catalyst for Dara to become the person she has been keeping hidden out of fear of being ridiculed for her weight.
This book is engaging, well written, and thoughtful. It has a high readability level. Once you're into the story, it is hard to put down.
I had hoped more for this book but unfortunately found it to only be average or slightly below average. There were some interesting issues at hand, however, they could have been elaborated on more for how long the book was. To me, the story had a slow beginning and didn't really grab me until more than half way through. The writing was decent but not uplifting nor impressive. It definitely applies to teenage concerns and sexual development. There were a few innuendoes about sex but nothing racy. This is an appropriate read for 9th grade and up.
When Dora's autobiography project turns into a diatribe about fat v. thin, I thought this would be a good companion book to Big Fat Manifesto. Instead, it's about two sisters reconnecting after 17 years (which isn't quite right, because until she was nine, Dora didn't even know that Rachel existed), about finding yourself and being at peace with who you are, not what your parents (or society) wants you to be.
I wish there'd been more reflection in the book, and that the plot wasn't quite so trite. Still, the setting and characters were well-drawn and I think older MS students will enjoy it.
I wish there'd been more reflection in the book, and that the plot wasn't quite so trite. Still, the setting and characters were well-drawn and I think older MS students will enjoy it.
I really enjoyed this. I really liked Frazer's treatment of Dara's weight. It rang true for me and I found her easy to relate to, whereas a lot of big girl YA characters are just like "I EAT MY FEEEELINGS" or whatever. Dara was more, like, regular. In retrospect, the long-lost-sister and utopian goat farm are kind of implausible, but I never really questioned it while I was reading it. It was a fun read and it all seemed to make sense. I liked the little mystery element, too. A good, fun read.
Enjoyable, warm, engaging and thought-provoking.
I particularly loved Dara herself, with her insecurities, her humor, her compassion, and her joy she really struck me as someone I would have liked to have as a friend. I also enjoyed all the sweet and quirky details about the characters of Jezebel farm. So much of this rang true to me with respect to perceptions of weight and how it impacts our self-worth. Some passages were painful to read, but the pain was always leavened by Dara's personality. And in the end I believed that she had achieved something truly significant.
I particularly loved Dara herself, with her insecurities, her humor, her compassion, and her joy she really struck me as someone I would have liked to have as a friend. I also enjoyed all the sweet and quirky details about the characters of Jezebel farm. So much of this rang true to me with respect to perceptions of weight and how it impacts our self-worth. Some passages were painful to read, but the pain was always leavened by Dara's personality. And in the end I believed that she had achieved something truly significant.
This is one of those books that I put off reading for a long time, but I adored it! I thought Dara was a fantastic character and her story compelling. I only had two problems with it 1) the parents are are pretty undefined and 2) WHAT IS UP WITH THE COVER??? It has nothing to do with the book!
2.5 stars - Firstly, worst cover I have ever seen. I had to take the book jacket off just so I didn't become enraged at the fact that the cover has someone who looks more like Maddie on it. The story was lovely, but a bit unorganized, and the characters were bland. I enjoyed Belinda and Dara, but her parents and Owen had too "big" personalities and nothing decisive about them, and Milo was a train wreck. His symbolism was perfect, but he was an awful love interest. If this had been edited a few more times and had a different cover, it could have been an incredible book. But it is just a nice story. If you have the time, read it. Otherwise, you aren't missing out.