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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
I read a review of this book that said "ugh, nothing happened." But it was precisely because nothing happened that made this an interesting and true-to-life book. Our heroine, Frankie Addams aka F. Jasmine Addams, is 12 years old. It's one of those endless summers when you are young and absolutely nothing happens, though you wait and wait and hope and hope. Near the end of the summer, Frankie's brother announces he's getting married, and Frankie constructs an elaborate fantasy in which she's going to leave with the bride and groom after the wedding. If you can remember the plans you made when you were 12, you may like this book, even though you'll relive some of the pain of that age. It was well-written enough to bring me back to the time when it seemed nothing was possible but also everything was possible.
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I truly need more of this story. What ambience. What truth and rawness. What an understanding of the female experience b situations where it's limited by the confines of what it means to be a girl.
You'll like this book if you:
- grew up as a tomboy
- don't fit in in your town or family
- enjoy children's perspectives
- enjoy (period) dramas
- enjoy lyrical prose
- want a quick read
The only thing I disliked here was the shortness of the story and the lack of delving into secondary characters' lives.
You'll like this book if you:
- grew up as a tomboy
- don't fit in in your town or family
- enjoy children's perspectives
- enjoy (period) dramas
- enjoy lyrical prose
- want a quick read
The only thing I disliked here was the shortness of the story and the lack of delving into secondary characters' lives.
I didn't actually like this book even though I rate it highly. I found it disturbing and anxiety making.
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
slow-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
nope. nope. nope. On the positive, Susan Sarandon can narrate. I've always liked her husky & sweet natural voice but (in a surprise to me) she can deliver on the accents and different voices of other characters too. I was impressed by her performance. The story, however, wasn't impressive. I know this is a beloved book but I found it so boring and sad. Not that the story itself is sad, mostly that the girl in the story is so pathetic. I had a lot of luck with audible daily deals last year. Many were 5-stars for me but this one... the entire time I thought "no wonder you were in the bargain bin."
To be entirely honest, I didn't finish. I tried to start three separate times and after forcing myself through several hours I finally decided I had too many other books I wanted to read.
If you prefer older publications that are contemporary for their time period, and 'coming-of-age' stories and/or southern era/charm, you might enjoy this.
To be entirely honest, I didn't finish. I tried to start three separate times and after forcing myself through several hours I finally decided I had too many other books I wanted to read.
If you prefer older publications that are contemporary for their time period, and 'coming-of-age' stories and/or southern era/charm, you might enjoy this.
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a very good coming of age story. McCullers did a fantastic job at capturing the very particular delusional mindset only a child on the cusp of adulthood can embody.
Frankie, F. Jasmine, and Francis (all the same 12 year old girl, trying on different identities) yearns for something she can't hardly name even as it gnaws at her. Every page encapsulated the growing pains of adolescence, torn between silly, childish, beloved things and the mysterious, troubling, half-glimpsed world of adults. McCullers articulates sensations so well through the diction of a 12 year old--that cold, calm stillness when something is wrong, the 'we of me', etc.