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4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
adventurous
informative
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A Sensational, Heartrending Page-Turner!
I did not prepare myself for this book and I felt my heart squeezed at times while reading it. I did not realize that I was reading too quickly to be able to see how it ends and I finished it the day I started, which is quite unusual for me.
Keeping Lucy is an emotional story about Virginia, a mother with a broken heart, who sets off on a road-trip to find the missing piece of her life: her daughter Lucy. This painful and, at the same time, heartwarming journey full of bittersweet parental adventure and discovery is aided and abetted by her best friend Marsha, who is the embodiment of what a real friend should be. I absolutely loved the turns and twists embedded in the story without much complication and how it flows so naturally.
Overall, a great read for a day at home.
(Special thanks to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the advance reader's copy in exchange for honest review.)
I did not prepare myself for this book and I felt my heart squeezed at times while reading it. I did not realize that I was reading too quickly to be able to see how it ends and I finished it the day I started, which is quite unusual for me.
Keeping Lucy is an emotional story about Virginia, a mother with a broken heart, who sets off on a road-trip to find the missing piece of her life: her daughter Lucy. This painful and, at the same time, heartwarming journey full of bittersweet parental adventure and discovery is aided and abetted by her best friend Marsha, who is the embodiment of what a real friend should be. I absolutely loved the turns and twists embedded in the story without much complication and how it flows so naturally.
Overall, a great read for a day at home.
(Special thanks to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the advance reader's copy in exchange for honest review.)
T. Greenwood has a talent unlike any other author. Creating a story from true events and turning it into a masterpiece. Within 24 hours of starting this, I have already finished. From the first page, it pulled me in and I didn’t want to leave.
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Well written, and moving; ending was a little fast paced, with more room for development.
If I needed to describe this book in two words: Beautifully heartbreaking! 3.75 stars rounded to 4!
You guys. This book wrecked me! It's such a testament of a mother’s love
You guys. This book wrecked me! It's such a testament of a mother’s love
The first half of this book was definitely a 5-star read for me, but the second half wasn’t as wonderful (though it was still very good).
This book will give you other mommas out there something to get teary- eyed over for sure. The way Greenwood describes Ginny becoming a mother, thinking about her daughter who is not with her, etc. is so flawlessly done. Every time Ginny is agonizing over the care given to her daughter, or what state her body is in, I felt it. Such amazing description and detail by Greenwood. At one point she wrote that the pains of afterbirth felt like someone had bashed her tailbone in, and I read that thinking “wow, yes, that’s actually the best way to describe it!”
The second half of the book was less about the relationships Ginny had with her kids, and more about her relationships with her husband and sister. This was still compelling, but not as much as the first half. (Spoilers if you continue!) At one point, a situation surrounding a possible abortion is described as “the gift of choice.” The way this was said was so careless and blasé, as if they hadn’t just spent the last 200 pages trying to save the life of a little girl! It very much struck me as the author trying to interject 2019 conversation and standards into 1971. This fictional conversation would have taken place before Roe v Wade, and women during this time period would have been much more likely to say “make sure you really think this through” or “are you sure?” than to just casually be like “oh what a great gift of choice!” It just did not feel genuine to the time period for me, or genuine to the story.
This book will give you other mommas out there something to get teary- eyed over for sure. The way Greenwood describes Ginny becoming a mother, thinking about her daughter who is not with her, etc. is so flawlessly done. Every time Ginny is agonizing over the care given to her daughter, or what state her body is in, I felt it. Such amazing description and detail by Greenwood. At one point she wrote that the pains of afterbirth felt like someone had bashed her tailbone in, and I read that thinking “wow, yes, that’s actually the best way to describe it!”
The second half of the book was less about the relationships Ginny had with her kids, and more about her relationships with her husband and sister. This was still compelling, but not as much as the first half. (Spoilers if you continue!) At one point, a situation surrounding a possible abortion is described as “the gift of choice.” The way this was said was so careless and blasé, as if they hadn’t just spent the last 200 pages trying to save the life of a little girl! It very much struck me as the author trying to interject 2019 conversation and standards into 1971. This fictional conversation would have taken place before Roe v Wade, and women during this time period would have been much more likely to say “make sure you really think this through” or “are you sure?” than to just casually be like “oh what a great gift of choice!” It just did not feel genuine to the time period for me, or genuine to the story.
Overall I think the story missed the mark in terms of using the opportunity to shed more light on Down Syndrome. It almost felt that was in the background rather than the forefront of a story revolving about it.
3.5 stars for Greenwood's story of betrayal, love and forgiveness.
It's 1969 and Ginny Richardson's daughter, Lucy, is born with Down Syndrome. This is a time where institutionalizing children with Down Syndrome was common and the genetic disorder was stigmatized and widely misunderstood. Lucy is taken from her mother at birth and left at Willowridge School where unbeknownst to her mother she and all the other children are living in horrific conditions, being mistreated and ill cared for. When the horrors of Willowridge are exposed two years later, Ginny finally goes to see her daughter and knows she can't leave her there another minute. Soon Ginny finds herself on the run with her son, best friend and Lucy in tow.
While I was instantly enamored with Lucy and wanted the best for her, I never completely identified with Ginny. How could she let 2 years go by without ever seeing her daughter? I simply could not fathom ever accepting something like as a mom myself.
I expected more to be shared about Willowridge and would have really liked to see that explored fully. It could have been such an emotional yet amazing story if explored from that angle. Google articles and photos of Willowbrook State School in Staten Island, NY where Greenwood got her inspiration for this story. They will break your heart and haunt your dreams! Sadly, this story left me wanting more.
Thank you to T. Greenwood, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an arc of this book.
It's 1969 and Ginny Richardson's daughter, Lucy, is born with Down Syndrome. This is a time where institutionalizing children with Down Syndrome was common and the genetic disorder was stigmatized and widely misunderstood. Lucy is taken from her mother at birth and left at Willowridge School where unbeknownst to her mother she and all the other children are living in horrific conditions, being mistreated and ill cared for. When the horrors of Willowridge are exposed two years later, Ginny finally goes to see her daughter and knows she can't leave her there another minute. Soon Ginny finds herself on the run with her son, best friend and Lucy in tow.
While I was instantly enamored with Lucy and wanted the best for her, I never completely identified with Ginny. How could she let 2 years go by without ever seeing her daughter? I simply could not fathom ever accepting something like as a mom myself.
I expected more to be shared about Willowridge and would have really liked to see that explored fully. It could have been such an emotional yet amazing story if explored from that angle. Google articles and photos of Willowbrook State School in Staten Island, NY where Greenwood got her inspiration for this story. They will break your heart and haunt your dreams! Sadly, this story left me wanting more.
Thank you to T. Greenwood, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an arc of this book.
I received an ARC of this book with thanks to St. Martin's Press via NetGalley
Told between two narratives by our protagonist Ginny; present day 1971 and Ginny of the mid-late 60's. We are taken along as Ginny gives birth to her second child Lucy born with Down Syndrome, the choice made by her husband Ab to sign their daughter over to the state and send her off to an institution all before Ginny had recovered from childbirth and without any knowledge of Ab's life changing decision. We are also taken back to when Ginny met Ab, how startling different their plans had been in comparison to what their life slowly became and how Ginny's life changed before her very eyes. We watch as Ginny regains her sense of self and becomes tenacious as she fights to regain custody of her daughter despite the disapproval of her Father-in-Law.
This was a wonderfully riveting book; I raced through it! Whilst the writing was simplistic, the basis of the story was captivating and I felt compelled to keep reading. A heartbreaking but also heartwarming story about the infinite love a mother has for her child.
Told between two narratives by our protagonist Ginny; present day 1971 and Ginny of the mid-late 60's. We are taken along as Ginny gives birth to her second child Lucy born with Down Syndrome, the choice made by her husband Ab to sign their daughter over to the state and send her off to an institution all before Ginny had recovered from childbirth and without any knowledge of Ab's life changing decision. We are also taken back to when Ginny met Ab, how startling different their plans had been in comparison to what their life slowly became and how Ginny's life changed before her very eyes. We watch as Ginny regains her sense of self and becomes tenacious as she fights to regain custody of her daughter despite the disapproval of her Father-in-Law.
This was a wonderfully riveting book; I raced through it! Whilst the writing was simplistic, the basis of the story was captivating and I felt compelled to keep reading. A heartbreaking but also heartwarming story about the infinite love a mother has for her child.