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4.02 AVERAGE
4.02 AVERAGE
Wanted to love this and I really enjoyed the bits of actual news stories and items from the time. Overall a good story but rather than love it I just liked it. It took me awhile to get into the narrator’s storytelling style and at times it seemed forced and too full of lingo.
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A story of a down and out teen, who finds himself driving 2 giraffes from NY to the San Diego Zoo. A historical fiction that references pre-war America, the Dust Bowl, racism, sexism and our relationships with animals.
I was hooked on the story at the beginning, while the middle dragged quite a bit, the ending was wonderful.
The characters were fairly unmemorable except for the giraffes!
I was hooked on the story at the beginning, while the middle dragged quite a bit, the ending was wonderful.
The characters were fairly unmemorable except for the giraffes!
Honestly, the best book I've read in a very long time. The story is about an orphaned teenage boy from the Dust Bowl, an old man, a spirited redhead young woman, and two giraffes. Based on true events of 1938 when two giraffes survive a hurricane in the Atlantic ocean to arrive at the New York harbor. The author weaves a wonderful adventurous story of how a seventeen year old boy drives these giraffes across the U.S. on the Lee Highway to the San Diego zoo with an old man and a young woman who dreams of becoming a Life magazine photographer.
The author does an excellent job through dialog and story telling of transporting the reader back to the 1930s to experience flash floods, dust storms and mass exodus, unscrupulous circus owners, the harshness and desperation of the depression, the threat of Adolph Hitler, and road trips in a time of the Green Book and when there were auto courts and campsites along the road. A must read.
The author does an excellent job through dialog and story telling of transporting the reader back to the 1930s to experience flash floods, dust storms and mass exodus, unscrupulous circus owners, the harshness and desperation of the depression, the threat of Adolph Hitler, and road trips in a time of the Green Book and when there were auto courts and campsites along the road. A must read.
Similarly to how Woody felt as though he couldn't write his story quick enough, I felt myself feeling as though I couldn't read this book quick enough! Reading along as Woody wrote his story added a wonderful, emotional, and relatable touch to the book. I felt myself there, making the cross country trip, but also in the VA room. The ending was unexpected; actually, quite a few details wrapping up the book were extremely emotionally unexpected. Tear jerker for me! Extremely glad I picked up this First Reads.
adventurous
fast-paced
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It didn’t wow me but it wasn’t the worst. It dragged on in areas but I liked the ending.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated