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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
Books from a child's perspective are interesting reads (as they are written by an adult) this one was no less interesting, but I found the chapters in the adult voices to interrupt the flow of the book and the story. I had an aha moment at the end when it all came together, but it took a little too long for that to happen.
4.5 stars
ended up being way more about religion than i expected. ALTHOUGH i should've expected it going by the title. i just didn't expect jesus to have as big a presence as he did.
this reminded me of when god was a rabbit and to kill a mockingbird and a little bit of a little friend. despite all these comparisons, it felt original.
i love books about communities set in a heat wave. that's all i need for me to enjoy it.
sort of anti-climatic towards the end, though.
ended up being way more about religion than i expected. ALTHOUGH i should've expected it going by the title. i just didn't expect jesus to have as big a presence as he did.
this reminded me of when god was a rabbit and to kill a mockingbird and a little bit of a little friend. despite all these comparisons, it felt original.
i love books about communities set in a heat wave. that's all i need for me to enjoy it.
sort of anti-climatic towards the end, though.
I expected this to be a lot more interesting but it didn't grip me. For many parts of the book I was bored: we are introduced to the characters very slowly, with descriptions of their houses, and being told by a 10 year old girl I expected it to be funnier and show that innocent point of view only children can manage. But apart from some witty observations, the younger characters actually seem to say wiser things than most of the grown-ups and they take very savvy conclusions from their conversations and investigations. Overall, the characters were not distinct enough so it took me most of the book to finally associate them with their names. As the girls' investigation regarding the disappearance of Mrs. Creasy drags on and on like the endless heatwave, the end comes suddenly with the rainclouds. The mystery of Mrs. Creasy didn't feel very believable to me and the other enigmas of the story are also very quickly (but murkily) "resolved", leaving me dissatisfied. Oh and don't get me started on the insertion of the Indian family, the Kapoors: I'm sure the author meant to portray the discomfort of the rural inhabitants towards their new neighbours but the number of clichés they throw at them and even the way the Kapoors deal with the racism felt really caricaturistic.
This was very readable and had a fascinating interwoven story line. I was very disappointed in the ending though - as there were too many loose ends for my liking.
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:
Complicated
Really good book. The characters of Grace & Tilly were great, and you can really FEEL the heat of this hot, hot summer. There are almost 2 different voices -- much of the narrative seems too adult to come from Grace, but then her own distinctive voice comes through in the dialog. The interactions of the people on the street and the gradual revealing of the roles they've played -- how tiny slights, little lies or omissions have piled up to become huge influences, is fantastically done. If anything, leaves you wanting another chapter or two at the end!
The title of this book, the premise, and the writing were all intriguing, interesting, and well done. The story line, though, which had such promise and was so creative, falls short.
The characters live on a cul-de-sac and throughout the story the reader gets to know each character, their personality, quirks, and for some, their secrets.
Beyond that there are a lot of layers to this book. There is a fire, there is a baby that went missing, even though (for much of the book) you don’t know who the baby is, only that
Mr. Bishop (also on the cul-de-sac) is believed to be responsible for the unnamed missing baby. Then there is the missing woman, Ms. Creasy. These layers, in my mind, are skimmed, but never developed.
Two of the main characters are two little girls named Grace and Tilly. It is easy to like them and fun to read about them. They are interesting and unique and the reader gets to look at the world through Grace’s eyes. At one point, after hearing the Vicar say God is everywhere the girls go on their own mission to locate God. The girls go from neighbor-to-neighbor in what turns out to be part investigation and part pilgrimage. As part of their investigation for locating God, the girls also ask questions about out what happened to Ms. Creasy.
In the search for God, Tilly finds a grease stain on the side of a building which Tilly sees as being Jesus. She tells Grace and the rest of the neighborhood and which creates the stain as becoming a sort of spectacle of the neighborhood inducing folks to establish deck chairs and keeping watch over the Jesus grease stain.
There were so many times I almost gave up on this book. It went on and on about the minutia without really digging into the various story lines. There was a lot of good writing, but for me, it left me frustrated. I wanted to know the answers – what happened to Ms. Creasy? Who is the baby and what is that about (ultimately you get some answers to this)? What is the story with Mr. Bishop? What is the deal with the fire and how does that fit in? Why the side story on the new Indian neighbors? It seems random and does seem to be connected to anything else.
The reader’s reward for sticking with it is to find out who the baby is and how she went missing, but not until the very end of the book. And even though you get that answered, there is a lot left undone. The neighbors find out (SPOILER) that Ms. Creasy is coming home and they all wait for her. And that’s it.
All the potential for this fun story die in the end. I am pretty sure my mouth dropped open when I got to the end – are you kidding me? This is it?
I see a lot of reviews where people loved this book and I thought, did I miss something? But then I read others (one in particular) where the reviewer threw the book across the room. I could totally understand why.
I honestly hope this author writes another books, gets to the point faster, has a point, and expands on her ideas into an actual ending, because I loved her writing style and she seems to have interesting and creative ideas.
The characters live on a cul-de-sac and throughout the story the reader gets to know each character, their personality, quirks, and for some, their secrets.
Beyond that there are a lot of layers to this book. There is a fire, there is a baby that went missing, even though (for much of the book) you don’t know who the baby is, only that
Mr. Bishop (also on the cul-de-sac) is believed to be responsible for the unnamed missing baby. Then there is the missing woman, Ms. Creasy. These layers, in my mind, are skimmed, but never developed.
Two of the main characters are two little girls named Grace and Tilly. It is easy to like them and fun to read about them. They are interesting and unique and the reader gets to look at the world through Grace’s eyes. At one point, after hearing the Vicar say God is everywhere the girls go on their own mission to locate God. The girls go from neighbor-to-neighbor in what turns out to be part investigation and part pilgrimage. As part of their investigation for locating God, the girls also ask questions about out what happened to Ms. Creasy.
In the search for God, Tilly finds a grease stain on the side of a building which Tilly sees as being Jesus. She tells Grace and the rest of the neighborhood and which creates the stain as becoming a sort of spectacle of the neighborhood inducing folks to establish deck chairs and keeping watch over the Jesus grease stain.
There were so many times I almost gave up on this book. It went on and on about the minutia without really digging into the various story lines. There was a lot of good writing, but for me, it left me frustrated. I wanted to know the answers – what happened to Ms. Creasy? Who is the baby and what is that about (ultimately you get some answers to this)? What is the story with Mr. Bishop? What is the deal with the fire and how does that fit in? Why the side story on the new Indian neighbors? It seems random and does seem to be connected to anything else.
The reader’s reward for sticking with it is to find out who the baby is and how she went missing, but not until the very end of the book. And even though you get that answered, there is a lot left undone. The neighbors find out (SPOILER) that Ms. Creasy is coming home and they all wait for her. And that’s it.
All the potential for this fun story die in the end. I am pretty sure my mouth dropped open when I got to the end – are you kidding me? This is it?
I see a lot of reviews where people loved this book and I thought, did I miss something? But then I read others (one in particular) where the reviewer threw the book across the room. I could totally understand why.
I honestly hope this author writes another books, gets to the point faster, has a point, and expands on her ideas into an actual ending, because I loved her writing style and she seems to have interesting and creative ideas.
A gift book: an author and title both completely new to me which made for an interesting adventure in reading. Not bad. Quite compelling, in fact, by the time all the parts and pieces got tied up at the end. And a first class tour of Britain's East Midlands in the 1970's! (Characters munch on Quavers, Bourbon Biscuits, Hobnobs, Garibaldi's, Turkish Delights, fig rolls and Angel Delight -- you'll have to read it to find out what they are.). I liked this strange little excursion to a small English town where children work at navigating the rocky shoals of friendship and adults could use some serious instruction in how to be adults. If you try to read it as a mystery you might be frustrated -- but as a series of character studies it is fascinating! (Americans aren't the only ones who are insular and blinkered. Upon meeting the Kapoor family one character asks "So, where are you from?" "Birmingham." "Yes, but where are you really from?" "Edgbaston" [evidently a wealthy suburb of Birmingham]). My UU minister would love the 10 year old narrator's eventual conclusions about goats and sheep in the Bible.
If I had known that there would be a Jem and Scout-like innocence and a Boo Radley character in this, I'd have read this sooner.
This little gem of a mystery sees two kids search for Jesus in the hope of finding their missing neighbour. The secrets of the street are uncovered, as the girls Discover that their seemingly normal neighbours are covering up a heinous crime. Set in the sweltering summer of 1976, this is a touching but troubling tale of predudice and victimisation.