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ondbookshelf's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
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? Yes
4.0
susanp's review against another edition
4.0
Accidentals—migratory birds found outside of their normal geographic range—are the rarest of rarities, according to “A Field Guide to the Birds.” The book “The Accidentals” covers 60 years in the lives of two sisters whose lives are irreparably marred by the shocking death of their mother. While I love Minrose Gwin’s captivating writing style and was fascinated by this book, I thought she was too ambitious in trying to cover almost every heavy topic possible—backwoods abortion, grief, homosexuality, teen pregnancy, racism, cancer, Alzheimer’s, felons’ voting rights, and on and on. Some of the topics seemed unnecessary to the overall storyline. I felt like a teacher telling students, “Your topic is too broad!”
kdurham2's review against another edition
4.0
Check out the full review at Kritters Ramblings
June and Grace are sisters and their lives change when their mother makes a decision that sends both of their lives down a different path. Without a mother at a young age, both girls make life choices that could have been different had their mother stayed in their lives til they were older. Grace gets pregnant at a young age and has to deal with those consequences and June is caught up in Grace's drama and has some of her own!
June and Grace are sisters and their lives change when their mother makes a decision that sends both of their lives down a different path. Without a mother at a young age, both girls make life choices that could have been different had their mother stayed in their lives til they were older. Grace gets pregnant at a young age and has to deal with those consequences and June is caught up in Grace's drama and has some of her own!
machadofam8's review against another edition
4.0
This was very good - better than I expected. Loved the bird imagery especially.
byashleylamar's review against another edition
2.0
There was so much about The Accidentals that didn't work for me. I don't even know where to start. It sounded like such a great story and I am a sucker for a good tragedy. Unfortunately, this fell so flat for me.
The author writes about some pretty heavy topics in this book - backwoods abortions, loss of a spouse/parent, grief, teen pregnancy, adoption, kidnapping, prison, unhappy partnerships, and redemption. It felt ambitious but I was looking forward to it. It ended up being a vague mess.
I know there is a golden rule in creative writing to "show don't tell" the reader what's happening but in The Accidentals it felt like that led to vague descriptions and a ton of missing details. I frequently found myself having to assume what was happening and wondering if I was correct. Situations or behavior would eventually be confirmed but not until a chapter or two later when more vague information was offered. It made me so frustrated. It felt like the author wanted to address tough subjects but then didn't really want to get into the meat of them which leads to the next point - the pacing was terrible.
The chapters alternate the character POV (which is fine) but huge chunks of time sometimes passed and there wasn't anything that ever fully explained how much time had passed. Months? A year? 2 years? 10 years? I could guesstimate and follow the story but there wasn't any actual confirmation. This got much worse in the second half of the book because it suddenly rushed through the final decades. The whole first half of the book spans maybe 4 - 8 years but the second half seems to fly through about 20 years. Again, I'm not really sure because details are missing.
I may be especially annoyed because the final chapter was such a letdown. The characters find themselves moving around a bit (Louisiana, Mississippi, Illinois, etc) but somehow end up in the same little town at the end which is just super convenient. Characters that had never met and lived in different cities are suddenly neighbors. The appearance of Josie at the end was cringe-worthy and so out of place. She felt shoehorned in to the story so everything could wrap up with a neat little bow. We hadn't seen her for half a book and when she reappears she's annoying and self-righteous. I'd have been happier if she didn't come back and we were just left with her story open-ended to imagine her life. Plus, Josie taking Ed Mae to vote for Barack Obama felt so forced and semi-racist. There was no point to that at all. I found the whole character depiction of Ed Mae to be a caricature stereotype of black women and to end with her voting for Obama was just a total cringe. It didn't fit the story at all and felt so awkward and weird although I guess it does finally confirm a timeline so there's that.
This book could have been really good and I admit there were chapters and occasional moments I really enjoyed but overall it was disappointing.
The author writes about some pretty heavy topics in this book - backwoods abortions, loss of a spouse/parent, grief, teen pregnancy, adoption, kidnapping, prison, unhappy partnerships, and redemption. It felt ambitious but I was looking forward to it. It ended up being a vague mess.
I know there is a golden rule in creative writing to "show don't tell" the reader what's happening but in The Accidentals it felt like that led to vague descriptions and a ton of missing details. I frequently found myself having to assume what was happening and wondering if I was correct. Situations or behavior would eventually be confirmed but not until a chapter or two later when more vague information was offered. It made me so frustrated. It felt like the author wanted to address tough subjects but then didn't really want to get into the meat of them which leads to the next point - the pacing was terrible.
The chapters alternate the character POV (which is fine) but huge chunks of time sometimes passed and there wasn't anything that ever fully explained how much time had passed. Months? A year? 2 years? 10 years? I could guesstimate and follow the story but there wasn't any actual confirmation. This got much worse in the second half of the book because it suddenly rushed through the final decades. The whole first half of the book spans maybe 4 - 8 years but the second half seems to fly through about 20 years. Again, I'm not really sure because details are missing.
I may be especially annoyed because the final chapter was such a letdown. The characters find themselves moving around a bit (Louisiana, Mississippi, Illinois, etc) but somehow end up in the same little town at the end which is just super convenient. Characters that had never met and lived in different cities are suddenly neighbors. The appearance of Josie at the end was cringe-worthy and so out of place. She felt shoehorned in to the story so everything could wrap up with a neat little bow. We hadn't seen her for half a book and when she reappears she's annoying and self-righteous. I'd have been happier if she didn't come back and we were just left with her story open-ended to imagine her life. Plus, Josie taking Ed Mae to vote for Barack Obama felt so forced and semi-racist. There was no point to that at all. I found the whole character depiction of Ed Mae to be a caricature stereotype of black women and to end with her voting for Obama was just a total cringe. It didn't fit the story at all and felt so awkward and weird although I guess it does finally confirm a timeline so there's that.
This book could have been really good and I admit there were chapters and occasional moments I really enjoyed but overall it was disappointing.
kbranfield's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars.
The Accidentals by Minrose Gwin is a family saga that spans several decades.
In 1957, Olivia McAlister lives in a small Mississippi town with her husband Holly and their daughters June and Grace. Olivia wants nothing more than to move back to New Orleans and return to work, but Holly cannot find a job that pays as much as his current position. When she discovers she is pregnant again, Olivia makes an ill-fated decision that changes the course of her family's lives for years to come.
In the aftermath, Holly is devastated and with the threat of nuclear war a real possibility, he begins preparing to build a bomb shelter. He is also drinking too much and ignoring June and Olivia. The girls are left to fend for themselves until Olivia's unmarried sister Frances swoops in to help them. But her attention is short-lived and the girls are again neglected after their aunt returns to New Orleans.
Fast forward a few years and Grace is happily involved in an unusual romance. After a shocking discovery, she begins making plans that will hopefully provide her with the chance for happiness. But once June becomes involved, Grace has no choice over what happens next. This unfortunate series of events leaves Grace unable to forgive June and their once close relationship remains fractured over their lifetime. June also makes decisions that take her life down an unhappy path that she might not have necessarily chosen under different circumstances.
Perhaps the most tragic person whose life is touched by the McAlister family is African American care worker Ed Mae Johnson. A situation out of her control and a moment of inattention on her part culminate with devastating consequences.
Although the storyline is interesting, the pacing is slow and a bit disjointed. Some of the passages are a little vague which makes it difficult to understand what exactly is going on. Several paragraphs are long and rambling and do not add much to the unfolding story. The storyline covers several decades but readers must decipher the time period from vague mentions of cultural events. The chapters alternate between several characters' points of view but these transitions are clearly marked.
The Accidentals is an intriguing novel that is quite thought-provoking. The characters are interesting but not always easy to like. Minrose Gwin deftly handles difficult subject matter with sensitivity. While the majority of the novel is overshadowed by sadness, the conclusion is surprisingly uplifting and wraps up all of the various story arcs.
The Accidentals by Minrose Gwin is a family saga that spans several decades.
In 1957, Olivia McAlister lives in a small Mississippi town with her husband Holly and their daughters June and Grace. Olivia wants nothing more than to move back to New Orleans and return to work, but Holly cannot find a job that pays as much as his current position. When she discovers she is pregnant again, Olivia makes an ill-fated decision that changes the course of her family's lives for years to come.
In the aftermath, Holly is devastated and with the threat of nuclear war a real possibility, he begins preparing to build a bomb shelter. He is also drinking too much and ignoring June and Olivia. The girls are left to fend for themselves until Olivia's unmarried sister Frances swoops in to help them. But her attention is short-lived and the girls are again neglected after their aunt returns to New Orleans.
Fast forward a few years and Grace is happily involved in an unusual romance. After a shocking discovery, she begins making plans that will hopefully provide her with the chance for happiness. But once June becomes involved, Grace has no choice over what happens next. This unfortunate series of events leaves Grace unable to forgive June and their once close relationship remains fractured over their lifetime. June also makes decisions that take her life down an unhappy path that she might not have necessarily chosen under different circumstances.
Perhaps the most tragic person whose life is touched by the McAlister family is African American care worker Ed Mae Johnson. A situation out of her control and a moment of inattention on her part culminate with devastating consequences.
Although the storyline is interesting, the pacing is slow and a bit disjointed. Some of the passages are a little vague which makes it difficult to understand what exactly is going on. Several paragraphs are long and rambling and do not add much to the unfolding story. The storyline covers several decades but readers must decipher the time period from vague mentions of cultural events. The chapters alternate between several characters' points of view but these transitions are clearly marked.
The Accidentals is an intriguing novel that is quite thought-provoking. The characters are interesting but not always easy to like. Minrose Gwin deftly handles difficult subject matter with sensitivity. While the majority of the novel is overshadowed by sadness, the conclusion is surprisingly uplifting and wraps up all of the various story arcs.
bobcatgold's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Abortion, and Death of parent
tbsims's review against another edition
2.0
90% of the characters were irritating or unlikable.
If you mom died from an abortion...would you consider one?
If your sister got pregnant at 16, would you not take precautions against an unwanted pregnancy?
One interesting part, as I think back on the book was the role of birds -either actual birds or bird feathers in a hat or a person dressed gaily as a bird.
If you mom died from an abortion...would you consider one?
If your sister got pregnant at 16, would you not take precautions against an unwanted pregnancy?
One interesting part, as I think back on the book was the role of birds -either actual birds or bird feathers in a hat or a person dressed gaily as a bird.
jennifferoc's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0