You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.53 AVERAGE
3.53 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I only read this book because my name is in the title. It was strange reading it over and over, too. Dava Shastri and Dava Stewart aren’t alike at all
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I enjoyed reading about all of the family drama as well as all of topics that arise with the intersection between race, wealth, ambition, and the desire to do good. However, I think that the present day storyline could have been given more time so that each family member's issues could have been more fleshed out. Alternatively, there could have been fewer characters in order to allow for each of their arcs to feel complete and satisfactory. I liked following the story of Dava's life, but there was one section (hearing about her affair with Tom ) that went on too long that it bothered me and made me feel impatient for it to be over. I liked Dava's conversations with her children and grandchildren in the present as well as the things they chose to discuss. The ending was satisfying, hearing about the result of each character.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Terminal illness
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cancer, Racism, Sexism, Suicide
Ultimately glad I read this, even though it totally wasn't my type of thing. Spoiled people groaning about their wealthy mother not being loving enough sounds not only like first world problems, but not something I would spend all my time doing if my mum only had 24 hours left on the planet. That said, if you can ignore the kids and focus on Dava, this is an interesting meditation on women balancing motherhood and work, taking risks, supportive spouses and what we leave behind as a legacy. Tailor made for bookclubs.
i would give this book 3.5 stars if i could.
it was extremely heartfelt and made me think about family, legacy, regrets, the motivations behind and purposes of philanthropy, and most of all mortality (especially reading about children mourning a parent, one of my worst yet most inevitable fears).
it got difficult to navigate the book's changes between narrators, past vs present, etc., and i wish the writing style had been more consistent. the book also paints dava as a sympathetic billionaire without acknowledging the issues that come with being a billionaire in the world; while dava's character does use her money and influence for good, criticism of billionaires is only levied once and is treated as somewhat of a joke.
it was extremely heartfelt and made me think about family, legacy, regrets, the motivations behind and purposes of philanthropy, and most of all mortality (especially reading about children mourning a parent, one of my worst yet most inevitable fears).
it got difficult to navigate the book's changes between narrators, past vs present, etc., and i wish the writing style had been more consistent. the book also paints dava as a sympathetic billionaire without acknowledging the issues that come with being a billionaire in the world; while dava's character does use her money and influence for good, criticism of billionaires is only levied once and is treated as somewhat of a joke.
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
this story is sweet and the plot is unique.
despite the large cast of characters, the only person the reader truly gets to know is Dava.
while the kids and grandkids all learned of Dava’s terminal illness at the beginning of the the 3 day timeline of the book, Dava knew about her condition for much longer and i wish there was more reflection and learnings she shared with her kids (vs only sharing with the reader through flashbacks and in her thoughts).
overall the book was interesting, but not engrossing.
despite the large cast of characters, the only person the reader truly gets to know is Dava.
while the kids and grandkids all learned of Dava’s terminal illness at the beginning of the the 3 day timeline of the book, Dava knew about her condition for much longer and i wish there was more reflection and learnings she shared with her kids (vs only sharing with the reader through flashbacks and in her thoughts).
overall the book was interesting, but not engrossing.
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes