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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
Hattie migrates from the South to Philadelphia and tries to survive and thrive. I really tried to like this book but after following the 11 children of Hattie and her 1 grandchild, I was depressed. Each story follows one of the 12 offspring and each ends sadly.
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Did not intrigue nor inspire me. Was mediocre at best. Too much media hype.
I really enjoyed this book by the end. At first, it was really hard to get into because it felt more like these interconnected short stories than a novel. The author tells the story of each of hattie's children chapter by chapter, the child is introduced, somewhat developed, and never heard of again. Once I decided to approach the book as short stories, it was more enjoyable.
This is not a feel-good novel. I'm usually okay with that. None of the characters are likeable. I'm usually okay with that. Most chapters are written about a different character (with Hattie as a common bond). I'm usually okay with that. It might be the combination of all three of those things or something else but this book just didn't do it for me. I never felt pulled to pick it up and putting it down was very easy. In the end, it left me feeling unsatisfied. I wanted to know more about the characters and how (if?) they evolved. I was saddened by every single character's story. Lots of survivors but no thrivers. Hattie's tribes were very damaged. No doubt because Hattie herself was very damaged. I would have to think long and hard before reading another book by this author.
This story had such an original feel to it. I was hooked from the first chapter and finished it feeling satisfied with the way that all the mini stories within it came together. This is not a feel good, overly ideal view on a family. It's raw and real and heartbreaking at times, but I enjoyed it more for that reality. i think this is well worth diving in to.
Wanted to love this book . . . didn't. It might be because I had a hard time relating to the lives of the characters.
The direct look at Hattie was the only part I truly enjoyed. The rest was hard to get through.
Compelling, but more so in the early stories than in the later ones. Maybe because the unrelenting hardship and misery get harder to take in. I guess I shouldn't expect happiness in a book with an Oprah's book club sticker on it.
I wanted more from this. The ending didn’t do it for me. Some stories were super Interesting and others had me flipping through them. Totally didn’t get the ending. 1.5 stars.