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4.09 AVERAGE
4.09 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Signed up for a writing class by this author, so I thought I should read one of her books. Very disturbing, but touching subject matter. Akin to a Jodi Picoult novel, but without the legal drama.
It took me a while to begin reading this book, even though I love reading Katrina Kittles work. The reason is that I knew this was a book about child pornography and incest.
Once I started though, I could not put it down. I read the book in two days, desperately hoping Jordan's parents would be caught and sent to jail, praying Jordan would finally feel safe and secure in his new home. Yet I knew this was fiction. That is the power of good story telling and Katrina Kittle is a master of characterization. Her story people do not feel like characters, they feel very real.
This is a story that may stick with you long after you have reached the final page.
Once I started though, I could not put it down. I read the book in two days, desperately hoping Jordan's parents would be caught and sent to jail, praying Jordan would finally feel safe and secure in his new home. Yet I knew this was fiction. That is the power of good story telling and Katrina Kittle is a master of characterization. Her story people do not feel like characters, they feel very real.
This is a story that may stick with you long after you have reached the final page.
Katrina Kittle is on my top Authors list! This book has a very dark plot, with some gruesome subject matter. However, the characters and writing make it easy take in. Very good, touching and heart wrenching read.
Read 7/14
Read in 1 day. Could not put it down.
I love stories that begin with a chapter, even a few pages, that tells you where the characters will end. This is how this book begins.
Story deals with a very tough subject, the most horrendous of child sexual abuse, that caused by parents. The authors handles the subject matter very well and I was left feeling hopeful. I truly hope there are families like the Ladens that are loving and can take kids in like Jordan and love them thru their tragedy to such a degree that they have a real chance at life.
Read in 1 day. Could not put it down.
I love stories that begin with a chapter, even a few pages, that tells you where the characters will end. This is how this book begins.
Story deals with a very tough subject, the most horrendous of child sexual abuse, that caused by parents. The authors handles the subject matter very well and I was left feeling hopeful. I truly hope there are families like the Ladens that are loving and can take kids in like Jordan and love them thru their tragedy to such a degree that they have a real chance at life.
Easy to read flow-wise, but hard to read due to the subject matter. Easy to believe in that you truly never do know the truth about those who seem to be so normal and popular, but hard to believe in that a family would just take a kid in so quickly and not worry and monitor him around their own kids after the abuse he was subjected to. Very uncomfortable and disturbing subject matter, but interesting to read from the multiple viewpoints the story was told from to give the reader an idea of how everyone is affected. So, overall, I give this a middle-of-the-road review.
The kindness of strangers, now that I have finished reading it, seems like a miniature life I lived with Sarah and the boys. The book horrified and disturbed me to an extent where I prayed for little Jordan's life, and you know it's a great book when you're praying for a character. The story is truly heartbreaking and plays around with trust and love, shattering any possible flowery image of life the reader might have, but the bitter truth about child abuse only makes it more real, more capable of bringing tears..
A sensitive issue turned into a touching story with thoughtful treatment, the story narrated in each character's perspective keeps it engaging to the level of staying-up-all-night-reading. Here's five stars pulled straight out of the bottom of my melted heart.
A sensitive issue turned into a touching story with thoughtful treatment, the story narrated in each character's perspective keeps it engaging to the level of staying-up-all-night-reading. Here's five stars pulled straight out of the bottom of my melted heart.
The author did an incredible job of portraying the very disturbing topics of child sexual abuse and child pornography. While the story was often difficult to read in the sense that there were events that were very upsetting and disconcerting, it was incredibly well-written and hard to put down. I feel that "The Kindness of Strangers" may not have been the best title for this book, since the Laden family were not strangers to Jordan. There were a couple of times that the book seemed more like a PSA for recognizing signs of child sexual abuse than a novel, but I think those instances needed to be included as the characters were learning those signs as well. Overall, a very good read.
Although this was a very challenging topic- pedophilia, and I normally would not choose to read a book about this subject, I was drawn in from the first page and couldn't put it down.