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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
inspiring
reflective
slow-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
I do love a well-crafted sentence and the author will give you plenty, but otherwise this is just an OK book. I used to live in Maine and Maine-themed books appeal to me, but this was more small town themed than Maine-themed. All through the book, the characters are portrayed in sadly stereotypical (but also sadly true) ways...small minded and gossipy. They all find their consciences in the last few chapters and suddenly begin behaving according to the better angels on their shoulders. I guess this is supposed to be a redemptive book, but falls flat for me because the premise of community redemption is not plausible for me. Individuals, yes, small towns, no. Perhaps I've lived in a small town too long to believe in the redemptive nature of small town people. The book is set in the 1950s and in 2023 not much about small-minded, gossipy, judgemental people has changed. I honestly didn't like any of the characters in this book, not the minister, not his wife, not his mother, not anyone save for Carol Meadows and the Tyler's children. I felt sorry for the characters, but I did not like them. Kudos to the talented writing of the author. She shines there, but this story was not for me.
See my review here:
https://whatmeread.wordpress.com/2019/06/11/review-1360-abide-with-me/
https://whatmeread.wordpress.com/2019/06/11/review-1360-abide-with-me/
This is a very intimate book. Stroud lets us hear the private thoughts of this widowed minister, his family, and the people of this small New England town. Stroud’s excellent writing and character development lets you feel sympathy even for those you did not want to like.
It has been one year since his young wife died and Tyler Caskey is struggling. He quotes often from his hero, Bonhoeffer, who died a martyr for resisting Hitler and the Nazis during WWII. But what he will learn is that the very act of living with all of life’s sorrows, disappointments and demons can also be heroic.
It has been one year since his young wife died and Tyler Caskey is struggling. He quotes often from his hero, Bonhoeffer, who died a martyr for resisting Hitler and the Nazis during WWII. But what he will learn is that the very act of living with all of life’s sorrows, disappointments and demons can also be heroic.
Abide Wtih Me by Elizabeth Strout
Tyler Castkee is a minister and has lost his wife. He has a 5 year old girl who he doesn't communicate much with. He has many other community problems besides his own:
How can love best be served, a married woman approached him and is beatten by her husband, his mother always on his case, school teacher threatening to toss the girl out of school,
The story also follows Charlie and his wife Doris and their kids. He's been to the city and had a sexual fling and it is on his mind a lot, when he should be thinking of other things..
The book also talks of Tyler's wife before she had passed away. He wants both of his girls to live with him, not just Katherine.
Murders and missing things add to many mysteries...
Tyler Castkee is a minister and has lost his wife. He has a 5 year old girl who he doesn't communicate much with. He has many other community problems besides his own:
How can love best be served, a married woman approached him and is beatten by her husband, his mother always on his case, school teacher threatening to toss the girl out of school,
The story also follows Charlie and his wife Doris and their kids. He's been to the city and had a sexual fling and it is on his mind a lot, when he should be thinking of other things..
The book also talks of Tyler's wife before she had passed away. He wants both of his girls to live with him, not just Katherine.
Murders and missing things add to many mysteries...
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It's one of those small, quiet books that resonates long after you finish reading it.
I seem to really enjoy books about family's having to deal with hardship such as loss of a loved one, just as in this book. So it shouldn't have surprised me that I enjoyed the book a lot.