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3.53 AVERAGE
3.53 AVERAGE
The book was engaging, and a real quick read, because many of the pages had only a sentence or two on them. And while I thought that the idea was very clever, I found the character/situation very unbelievable. Would an educated mother in her profession really be without a phone? Would she really not realize the significance of what she was going through? Would she really leave such sensitive information on a note and not wait to discuss it face to face? I know that it's necessary for the refrigerator note idea, but it just didn't work for me. The story does pull on the heart strings, and the characters did grow, but my skepticism about the nature of some of the notes made it no more than a three for me. I liked it, but I didn't love it.
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
So I read this book in a total of 45 minutes. It's the shortest read I've ever read so far. This book really wasn't for me. I did like the notes on the fridge that told the story. I just didn't like the story. The book is about the relation between a mother and a daughter. The relation isn't that good, well, that's an understatement since they basically never see each other and leave each other notes on the fridge to talk to each other.
At one point in the book the mother finds out she has breast cancer and that's the point where it goes downhill for me. Both mother and daughter are very naive about the whole situation. They keep talking about reading books about it but it avsolutely does not feel like they do, seeing their reaction. My mum has had breast cancer so this hit close to home for me. This is where another point hits. Even though the mother has cancer they still NEVER see each other. This honestly made me mad. At one point the mother is constantly home because she is so weak and still the daughter thinks her friends and boyfriend are more important then her mother. (while she keeps saying she wants to see her mum more often) Maybe this is all just me, but I do know this story isn't for me. The description on my copy said it would be uplifting but I'm very confused what in the world uplifting is about this story.
I give it 2 stars because I did like the idea of notes on the fridge and the start of the book. And I also like a quick read.
At one point in the book the mother finds out she has breast cancer and that's the point where it goes downhill for me. Both mother and daughter are very naive about the whole situation. They keep talking about reading books about it but it avsolutely does not feel like they do, seeing their reaction. My mum has had breast cancer so this hit close to home for me. This is where another point hits. Even though the mother has cancer they still NEVER see each other. This honestly made me mad. At one point the mother is constantly home because she is so weak and still the daughter thinks her friends and boyfriend are more important then her mother. (while she keeps saying she wants to see her mum more often) Maybe this is all just me, but I do know this story isn't for me. The description on my copy said it would be uplifting but I'm very confused what in the world uplifting is about this story.
I give it 2 stars because I did like the idea of notes on the fridge and the start of the book. And I also like a quick read.
Une histoire très touchante que le lecteur suit à travers des post-it laissés sur le frigo par une mère et sa fille. Très beau livre !
This was tense, lovely, amazing, harsh and smooth.
I didn't expect much character development from this format, but the characters were too stereotypical for me to really care about them. This would probably be a good book for a teenage girl whose mother has breast cancer, but I'm left wondering why I bought this novel. I found it when I was unpacking a box and noticed I had read half of it, but I remembered nothing of it. Since I had already invested more than 100 pages, I decided to finish it before I threw it in the box of books to sell. It took me twenty minutes to read the remaining 103 pages. I'm not sure that twenty minutes was well spent.
emotional
sad
fast-paced
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I just want to start by saying younger me thought this book was brilliant. Adult me, however, is left with a lot to be desired. This is not a bad story by any means - in fact, it’s just the opposite. It was sweet, and as an adult I can appreciate the nuances I assume the author intended. Life can speed by in the blink of an eye, and with everyone wrapped up in their own stories it’s often easy to forget that we’re part of someone else’s. In fact, the entire vibe of this story reminded me of a juvenile Jodi Picoult. The execution just fell flat to me. Throughout the duration of the book I just kept getting frustrated at both Claire and her mother. In life, we make time for the ones we love. ESPECIALLY given the breast cancer revelation.
I don’t know…I just wish I could recapture the emotion I felt so intensely the first time around. I was 13/14 and sobbing when it was completed. Claire’s final letter to her mother was achingly sweet. I would often wonder about the context in between the notes - but during my re-read whenever they would reconcile after a fight through a post-it note I would roll my eyes. Perhaps I’ve become cynical and jaded. Perhaps I’ve grown up.
Either way, this story has dropped from a 4-5 star read to a 2 star read. My apologies to the author and other readers who enjoyed it. If I were to recommend it, I would suggest pre-teens read it. They would definitely appreciate it more than I.
emotional
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes