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3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
*** I received an advanced e-copy from Net Galley in exchange for my honest review
One incident changed the lives of so many people. Charlotte, the mom, felt such guilt over not being with her children when her daughter Lily died, she felt like killing herself was the only way out. Lily's sister Ava carried with her the guilt that she hadn't stopped Lily from climbing the tree in the first place. Their father completely shut down after the deaths of his wife and daughter. Now, years later Ava is the mother of 2 grown children, and her husband has left her for another woman. She joins her best friend's book club as a way to get out and meet new people. The theme for that year is "The book that matters most to you". Each person got to pick out a book that had changed their life in some way and then the entire group read it. For Ava, that book was a children's book that she read right after her mother died. The book helped her have the closure she needed so desperately. I always enjoy reading books about libraries, bookstores, other books, etc. so this was right up my alley. The characters all seemed so real that you felt like you knew them, the story made me both laugh and cry, and I now have a much better understanding of all those books that I had to read for English class that never made sense to me. This book has pretty much something for everyone.
One incident changed the lives of so many people. Charlotte, the mom, felt such guilt over not being with her children when her daughter Lily died, she felt like killing herself was the only way out. Lily's sister Ava carried with her the guilt that she hadn't stopped Lily from climbing the tree in the first place. Their father completely shut down after the deaths of his wife and daughter. Now, years later Ava is the mother of 2 grown children, and her husband has left her for another woman. She joins her best friend's book club as a way to get out and meet new people. The theme for that year is "The book that matters most to you". Each person got to pick out a book that had changed their life in some way and then the entire group read it. For Ava, that book was a children's book that she read right after her mother died. The book helped her have the closure she needed so desperately. I always enjoy reading books about libraries, bookstores, other books, etc. so this was right up my alley. The characters all seemed so real that you felt like you knew them, the story made me both laugh and cry, and I now have a much better understanding of all those books that I had to read for English class that never made sense to me. This book has pretty much something for everyone.
I really loved this. Yes, I saw a few plot twists coming from miles away, and yes, it has a bit of a shamelessly sentimental movie-style ending, and had a few other minor flaws as well. BUT, it's also charming, engrossing, and well-written, so I forgave all of that, and just went with it.
Full review at: http://everydayiwritethebookblog.com/2017/06/book-matters-ann-hood/
Oh, this is a mess of a book.
Ann Hood’s The Book That Matters Most is about Ava, a middle-aged woman living in Providence who has a lot going on. Her husband has left her for another woman. Her troubled daughter is studying abroad in Italy, but she’s not answering Ava’s emails. She’s still dealing with residual sadness over the deaths of her younger sister and mother when she was young. And she has joined a new book club with some eligible, single men in it, two of whom seem to be interested in her.
I wish Hood’s editor had told her to pick just two plots and focus on those. Because there were simply too many stories to tell at once.
The chapters about Ava’s daughter Maggie – who it turns out is a drug addict – are harrowing. (Plus she’s a pretty hateful person.)
The chapters about the deaths of her mother and sister are sad, but that plot ends up with a twist that really makes no sense and is very unrealistic.
The chapters about the book club, whose participants each pick the book that has mattered most to them in life, had the most promise, but I hated that they all picked such predictable books (The Great Gatsby and Pride and Prejudice and Anna Karenina) and I found the book club discussions kind of hard to follow. (Also, it appeared that no one other than the person who had picked these books had ever read them before. ??)
The chapters about the men in Ava’s life were pretty ridiculous. I’ve basically read them before in other books and they didn’t really fit in here, and when her ex-husband drifted back into her life with regret about how it all ended, I was fed up. (Where did *that* come from?) Unsatisfying.
And there are a bunch of random coincidences that tried my patience.
In the end, The Book That Matters Most didn’t hang together well and was unsatisfying. Threads were dropped and relationships were left unresolved.
Oh, this is a mess of a book.
Ann Hood’s The Book That Matters Most is about Ava, a middle-aged woman living in Providence who has a lot going on. Her husband has left her for another woman. Her troubled daughter is studying abroad in Italy, but she’s not answering Ava’s emails. She’s still dealing with residual sadness over the deaths of her younger sister and mother when she was young. And she has joined a new book club with some eligible, single men in it, two of whom seem to be interested in her.
I wish Hood’s editor had told her to pick just two plots and focus on those. Because there were simply too many stories to tell at once.
The chapters about Ava’s daughter Maggie – who it turns out is a drug addict – are harrowing. (Plus she’s a pretty hateful person.)
The chapters about the deaths of her mother and sister are sad, but that plot ends up with a twist that really makes no sense and is very unrealistic.
The chapters about the book club, whose participants each pick the book that has mattered most to them in life, had the most promise, but I hated that they all picked such predictable books (The Great Gatsby and Pride and Prejudice and Anna Karenina) and I found the book club discussions kind of hard to follow. (Also, it appeared that no one other than the person who had picked these books had ever read them before. ??)
The chapters about the men in Ava’s life were pretty ridiculous. I’ve basically read them before in other books and they didn’t really fit in here, and when her ex-husband drifted back into her life with regret about how it all ended, I was fed up. (Where did *that* come from?) Unsatisfying.
And there are a bunch of random coincidences that tried my patience.
In the end, The Book That Matters Most didn’t hang together well and was unsatisfying. Threads were dropped and relationships were left unresolved.
Finally finished the book, oh how I loved it. Ava is such a well-developed character. I really did enjoy learning the messages in the story, the ending gave me goosebumps. There were some events that didn't seem to make sense, like Ava not heading to France to find Maggie sooner. But I really loved the message the book club understood from From Clare to Here, that we can choose the dark or the light. It's fitting in many situations, it's our choice. Enjoy it!
I thought the character development was quite good. It seemed to rush to a dramatic conclusion at the end. Was slightly predictable. But I enjoyed that it focused on a book club and some of the greatest books in literary history.
Love the concept of “the book that matters most” - but so many dead end stories were in here too.
3.5 Stars
This ended up being a little bit better than I expected it to be. The premise of the novel is that protaganist Ava joins a book club where each of the members selects "the book that has mattered most to them in their life" as a club selection. While there are many side stories also taking place, I was most curious to see how the author would explore the topic of these fictional characters choosing and discussing favorite books.
The book choices are largely cliched, which was a disappointment. To the extent that any book lover can really name a singular book that has mattered *most* to him or her, I doubt that a group of people gathered would choose the books that came from the syllabus from a high school English class (e.g. [b:Slaughterhouse-Five|4981|Slaughterhouse-Five|Kurt Vonnegut|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1493075177s/4981.jpg|1683562], [b:The Great Gatsby|4671|The Great Gatsby|F. Scott Fitzgerald|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1490528560s/4671.jpg|245494], [b:Anna Karenina|15823480|Anna Karenina|Leo Tolstoy|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1352422904s/15823480.jpg|2507928], etc.)
The whole idea that a singular book can matter *most* is aptly addressed by one of the book club characters: "I think it's impossible to pick [a book that matters most]. When you read a book, and who you are when you read it, make it matter or not. Like if you're unhappy and you read, I don't know, "On the Road" or "The Three Musketeers," and that book changes how you feel or how you think then it matters the most. At that time."
This ended up being a little bit better than I expected it to be. The premise of the novel is that protaganist Ava joins a book club where each of the members selects "the book that has mattered most to them in their life" as a club selection. While there are many side stories also taking place, I was most curious to see how the author would explore the topic of these fictional characters choosing and discussing favorite books.
The book choices are largely cliched, which was a disappointment. To the extent that any book lover can really name a singular book that has mattered *most* to him or her, I doubt that a group of people gathered would choose the books that came from the syllabus from a high school English class (e.g. [b:Slaughterhouse-Five|4981|Slaughterhouse-Five|Kurt Vonnegut|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1493075177s/4981.jpg|1683562], [b:The Great Gatsby|4671|The Great Gatsby|F. Scott Fitzgerald|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1490528560s/4671.jpg|245494], [b:Anna Karenina|15823480|Anna Karenina|Leo Tolstoy|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1352422904s/15823480.jpg|2507928], etc.)
The whole idea that a singular book can matter *most* is aptly addressed by one of the book club characters: "I think it's impossible to pick [a book that matters most]. When you read a book, and who you are when you read it, make it matter or not. Like if you're unhappy and you read, I don't know, "On the Road" or "The Three Musketeers," and that book changes how you feel or how you think then it matters the most. At that time."
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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
The Book That Mattered Most by Ann Hood: Ava is still mourning the failure of her 25-yr marriage. Already lonely after the divorce she realizes that she has also lost most of her human connections, becoming more and more isolated. She joins a Book Club led by her friend, Cate. This club is 10 people from widely different backgrounds and lifestyles. The club selects a theme for each year and each member chooses a book that is related in some way to the theme. At the first meeting Ava attends, the theme for the next year is announced as “The Book That Has Mattered to Me Most”. Each member leads a discussion on their book of choice including what makes the book most important to them. As each member presents circumstances, feelings, and what impact the book has had on their life. The relationships between the club members deepen and true friendships and liaisons between members flourish as book after book is explored.
Ava’s choice is titled “From Clare to Here”. It turns out to be out of print and no copies can be found. Ava does not want to change her selection since the book was so important to her when she is 11 and mourning the death of first her sister in an accident and then the suicide of her mother a year later. Ava goes into a frenzied search for information on the book and trying to track down the elusive author who Ava has promised will visit the meeting when the book is discussed.
There are several sub-plots that are good stories on their own. It started off very slowly and for the first quarter of the book I wasn’t sure that I cared much about what happened to these characters. I almost abandoned it but I stayed and it became a touching, compelling story. The book actually becomes a book about books as each character’s chosen book brings insights into personality, losses, and troubles. Each book seems to come up just in time to provide what each club member needs. The last few chapters bring resolution to issues and a satisfying ending. All in all the book is an excellent read, keeping the reader moving through the complex interwoven plot lines. I would rate it 3.75 and recommend it to readers who enjoy books on books and reading.
I love the way that it explores the way that books impact our lives. It wasn’t overly literary. It was very real and messy. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I would recommend this to a book lover for sure.