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3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
Was I excited to go back to Whistle Stop? Yep. Was I disappointed? Yep. I mean come on. It’s 2020 and I still feel like we’re being forced to read between the lines. Harumph. And nothing really happened. Can we have more Idgie and Ruth please?
ARC provided by Netgalley
ARC provided by Netgalley
What can one say to find after so many years of thinking about and missing the characters I loved from 'Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe' to find them once again in Fannie Flagg's new book. It was such a light and fun read, nothing heavy or deep, no worries or anxiety; just a walk with old friends down a familiar path that we all will or have tread. It was the perfect book to start off 2021.
Fans of Fannie Flagg will remember Bud Threadgoode as the child of Ruth in the movie (and book) Fried Green Tomatoes (at the Whistle Stop Cafe). While the movie version of Bud never really ages, this book, the Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop, answers questions many readers may have had about the little boy.
Bud grows up in the bosom of the town, practically it's mascot. However, the town started to die and when he finally left, he thinks about it less and less. When his daughter Ruthie starts asking questions, the Wonder boy starts off on a journey of his own--to his past and his unanswered questions.
Bud grows up in the bosom of the town, practically it's mascot. However, the town started to die and when he finally left, he thinks about it less and less. When his daughter Ruthie starts asking questions, the Wonder boy starts off on a journey of his own--to his past and his unanswered questions.
Absolutely loved this book, despite not having been to Whistle Stop since I was a teen reader, except through rewatches of the movie. But it felt like no time at all had passed, and it made me long to jump through the pages and help Bud find his hometown, help Ruthie and Evelyn rebuild, and eat some fried green tomatoes.
I do like Fannie Flagg and was excited to see another book from her. I will admit I don’t remember much from Fries Green Tomatoes so I was a little nervous it would affect my experience with this one but luckily it did not.
This story takes us back and forth in time, present day with flashbacks to memories from as early as the 30s. I am a sucker for historical fiction books and I love going back in time imaging how people lived in previous decades. The simplicity of small town Whistle Stop and the friendships that came from there is just the sweetest most nostalgic thing.
Things did get a little slow for me for a while and felt a little random but the wrap up during the last 50 pages brought everything together in such a great way. It’s a little cheesy but that’s ok with me!
This story takes us back and forth in time, present day with flashbacks to memories from as early as the 30s. I am a sucker for historical fiction books and I love going back in time imaging how people lived in previous decades. The simplicity of small town Whistle Stop and the friendships that came from there is just the sweetest most nostalgic thing.
Things did get a little slow for me for a while and felt a little random but the wrap up during the last 50 pages brought everything together in such a great way. It’s a little cheesy but that’s ok with me!
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Reading this book is like going to an awkward high school reunion where everyone is lying a little bit and you know you can't say anything about it lest someone say something about your deceptions. Also some people are conspicuously missing and some people you're not sure ever showed up to school are there. It's nice to see everyone again, though?
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe did not need or even want a sequel, so it's hard to judge this addition, which sometimes feels like a fun and lighthearted feel-good fanfiction about getting the gang back together and wrapping things up with a neat bow. That's not a knock against it; people like fanfiction for a reason. But I certainly have no idea how else to approach a sequel in a satisfactory way, other than to not approach a sequel at all. I'm not upset I read it, but I also would have been fine without it. In the event that I reread Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe one day, I doubt I'll follow it up with The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop.
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe did not need or even want a sequel, so it's hard to judge this addition, which sometimes feels like a fun and lighthearted feel-good fanfiction about getting the gang back together and wrapping things up with a neat bow. That's not a knock against it; people like fanfiction for a reason. But I certainly have no idea how else to approach a sequel in a satisfactory way, other than to not approach a sequel at all. I'm not upset I read it, but I also would have been fine without it. In the event that I reread Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe one day, I doubt I'll follow it up with The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop.
This book has the same feel of Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe. We get to catch up with a lot of our friends from the first book...Bud, Idgie, Dot Weems and many more. It is such a feel good book that you cannot put down!!!
emotional
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Like all of Fannie Flagg's novels, The WonderBoy of Whistle Stop is a delightful read. It is a celebration of the simple things in life, which are, in fact, the most important - family, friendship, love and loyalty. I really enjoyed the wonderful characters and the positive attitude with which even difficult situations are overcome. If you need an enjoyable, uplifting read then this is the book for you. Highly recommended. Thanks to NetGalley, Random House and Fannie Flagg for the ARC.
Oh man, this was a big cup of hearty tomato basil soup on a cold day chatting with your best friends. It's cozy. It isn't trying too hard, it isn't wrapping up what you might think are loose ends, it isn't evolved or providing closure (not really), it just is what it is and it's done so well.
I did get a bit of whiplash at the beginning. Stepping back into Whistle Stop was what I mentioned before. It was wrapping yourself in a warm blanket. And then, just when you're getting comfortable, somebody presses fast forward. I wanted to know why we didn't linger. But as the book progressed I understood why. And we did of course get to go back and enjoy it at our leisure, just in a different way.
Sometimes there are some very cringe-y lines, but they come across as character flaws rather than author flaws. That might absolutely be a way for me to not paint Flagg with the same brush as Rowling.
And ultimately, the reveal that was completely unnecessary and perfectly understated.
Pg. 40ish: Bud was "raised by my mother and her best friend." C'mon now.
Pg. 60ish: Idgie "never had another special friend - not like your grandmother." Okay, a little better.
Pg. 165: "Ruth was more than a best friend." There we go.
I can completely understand that this will not be enough for some people. But honestly, it didn't even need that little bit. We knew.
There were some happy endings, which I'm usually... not opposed to exactly, but generally wary of because they tend to leave me unsatisfied, but here I was contented. Happy for the characters, happy to have seen them again, happy to let them be.
I did get a bit of whiplash at the beginning. Stepping back into Whistle Stop was what I mentioned before. It was wrapping yourself in a warm blanket. And then, just when you're getting comfortable, somebody presses fast forward. I wanted to know why we didn't linger. But as the book progressed I understood why. And we did of course get to go back and enjoy it at our leisure, just in a different way.
Sometimes there are some very cringe-y lines, but they come across as character flaws rather than author flaws. That might absolutely be a way for me to not paint Flagg with the same brush as Rowling.
And ultimately, the reveal that was completely unnecessary and perfectly understated.
Pg. 40ish: Bud was "raised by my mother and her best friend." C'mon now.
Pg. 60ish: Idgie "never had another special friend - not like your grandmother." Okay, a little better.
Pg. 165: "Ruth was more than a best friend." There we go.
I can completely understand that this will not be enough for some people. But honestly, it didn't even need that little bit. We knew.
There were some happy endings, which I'm usually... not opposed to exactly, but generally wary of because they tend to leave me unsatisfied, but here I was contented. Happy for the characters, happy to have seen them again, happy to let them be.