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A review by thrifty_librarian
The Lost Mother by Mary McGarry Morris
3.0
I liked this book, but I hate when reviewers make it harder to enjoy a book by writing impossibly lofty comments. Like, oversell much? This is surely not the only case (if I hear how [a:Christopher Moore|16218|Christopher Moore|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1200095788p2/16218.jpg] is like [a:Kurt Vonnegut|2778055|Kurt Vonnegut|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1357661500p2/2778055.jpg] one more time I'm going to...um...rant about it all by myself like I'm doing now). Sorry to be snooty, but comparing Morris to [a:John Steinbeck|585|John Steinbeck|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1182118389p2/585.jpg] is like comparing Katy Perry to Aretha Franklin. Sure, Perry is entertaining - tell me you haven't had "Dark Horse" in your had lately and I'll tell you YOU LIE :-). And Perry and Franklin have even sung about some of the same things. But each woman's level of depth and quality and importance to the evolution of music is just...different.
Anyway, this book was entertaining. It's a sad story of two children whose mother abandons them and their father during the Great Depression. The children endure miserable living conditions with their father while being fought for by a creepy rich lady (the wife of the father's landlord and enemy) and tended to by a kind woman who "should've" married their father back in the day.
There's a lot of depth to the story and many twists. I found the resolution (pre-epilogue) sappy, but liked the ultimate ending.
I tend to find Morris's writing style at turns childlike and soothing. Sometimes I feel a bit like I'm being written down to - this is probably the closest I get to reading "chick lit" (which is a condescending name, even, don't you think?). The fact is, though, that Morris writes good stories with believable characters. She did an excellent job with character development here, too, as there were many characters but I knew enough about each to understand him.
Recommend for folks who like weird coming of age stories or tales about runaway moms.
Anyway, this book was entertaining. It's a sad story of two children whose mother abandons them and their father during the Great Depression. The children endure miserable living conditions with their father while being fought for by a creepy rich lady (the wife of the father's landlord and enemy) and tended to by a kind woman who "should've" married their father back in the day.
There's a lot of depth to the story and many twists. I found the resolution (pre-epilogue) sappy, but liked the ultimate ending.
I tend to find Morris's writing style at turns childlike and soothing. Sometimes I feel a bit like I'm being written down to - this is probably the closest I get to reading "chick lit" (which is a condescending name, even, don't you think?). The fact is, though, that Morris writes good stories with believable characters. She did an excellent job with character development here, too, as there were many characters but I knew enough about each to understand him.
Recommend for folks who like weird coming of age stories or tales about runaway moms.