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ashleylm 's review for:
The Great Gilly Hopkins
by Katherine Paterson
Oh, what a whirlwind. I didn't like it, then I did, then I did quite a lot, then I was disappointed, so ultimately I'll stick to the middle and give it 3 stars. I run hot and cold with this author's work, she isn't a sure thing for me at all.
In this case I was expecting something (that I didn't want), then it looked like I wouldn't get it (which was good), then the plot turned in another direction (that I didn't like), then ended abruptly. Ultimately I felt "who on earth would want to read this?" I mean, isn't the goal of every book to have its reader finish and think "wow, that book was awesome, I loved it, I'm going to tell everyone I know to read it and I can't wait to read it again" ? I know, most books don't achieve that, but I have to think they're aiming for it. It's hard to imagine anyone (the author, her editors, her agent, her publisher) thinking this book was going to rock anyone's world.
And yet ... it was a Newberry Medal Honor book and a National Book Award Winner (and scooped up lots of other prizes). Maybe it's just dated—maybe at the time people were all amazed that someone would write about a foster child, or a blind black man (almost a cliché now), etc. etc., but all I can see is the first half of novel sets up a plot expectation that doesn't happen, there's a disappointing twist that doesn't resolve to anyone's satisfaction, and then it ends so abruptly it's as if the power was cut-off and she couldn't type any more on her IBM selectric.
Note: I have written a novel (not yet published), so now I will suffer pangs of guilt every time I offer less than five stars. In my subjective opinion, the stars suggest:
(5* = one of my all-time favourites, 4* = really enjoyed it, 3* = readable but not thrilling, 2* = actually disappointing, and 1* = hated it. As a statistician I know most books are 3s, but I am biased in my selection and end up mostly with 4s, thank goodness.)
In this case I was expecting something (that I didn't want), then it looked like I wouldn't get it (which was good), then the plot turned in another direction (that I didn't like), then ended abruptly. Ultimately I felt "who on earth would want to read this?" I mean, isn't the goal of every book to have its reader finish and think "wow, that book was awesome, I loved it, I'm going to tell everyone I know to read it and I can't wait to read it again" ? I know, most books don't achieve that, but I have to think they're aiming for it. It's hard to imagine anyone (the author, her editors, her agent, her publisher) thinking this book was going to rock anyone's world.
And yet ... it was a Newberry Medal Honor book and a National Book Award Winner (and scooped up lots of other prizes). Maybe it's just dated—maybe at the time people were all amazed that someone would write about a foster child, or a blind black man (almost a cliché now), etc. etc., but all I can see is the first half of novel sets up a plot expectation that doesn't happen, there's a disappointing twist that doesn't resolve to anyone's satisfaction, and then it ends so abruptly it's as if the power was cut-off and she couldn't type any more on her IBM selectric.
Note: I have written a novel (not yet published), so now I will suffer pangs of guilt every time I offer less than five stars. In my subjective opinion, the stars suggest:
(5* = one of my all-time favourites, 4* = really enjoyed it, 3* = readable but not thrilling, 2* = actually disappointing, and 1* = hated it. As a statistician I know most books are 3s, but I am biased in my selection and end up mostly with 4s, thank goodness.)