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amandasbookreview 's review for:
The Book of Lost Friends
by Lisa Wingate
Thank you, Lisa Wingate, Ballantine Books, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book!
I immediately snagged The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate because I loved her previous book Before We Were Yours. This book follows two timelines. The first is post-Civil War Louisiana where three women embark on a journey to Texas. The first is Lavinia is the heir to a plantation that is facing financial difficulty. The second is Juneau Jane who Lavinia’s illegitimate half-sister. Then finally, Hannie. Hannie is Lavinia’s former slave. Lavinia and Juneau Jane are looking to find information regarding their inheritance. Hannie is just looking for family that she was separated from when she was sold into slavery. The second timeline takes place in Louisiana in 1987. Benny Silva is a teacher at a local school and is desperate for them to become interested in literature. After finding a local treasure trove of books from a local plantation that contains local history, she may have just found a way to get to these kids.
I absolutely loved Before We Were Yours. It still haunts me and I read it years ago. I wanted to love this book just as much. I enjoyed this book, but I didn’t love it. There are so many parts of the story that are so slow that it is almost hard to follow. The switching of timelines didn’t come together cohesively and was a bit jarring. Although, the storylines are quite beautiful individually. Hannie discovering letters and her desperation to find her family moved me to tears more than once. Reading the real letters throughout the book broke me. But it is a part of history that is so important to learn about and puts things into perspective.
I did absolutely adore Benny and her determination to ignite passion in her students. I know so many teachers that have this same drive and I love how the author really depicts Benny fighting for her students. I love her creativity with her students. Honestly, it would be a dream to stumble on a treasure trove of old books filled with history. This made me almost giddy while reading the book.
Overall, I liked it but I wanted to love it. So I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars.
I immediately snagged The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate because I loved her previous book Before We Were Yours. This book follows two timelines. The first is post-Civil War Louisiana where three women embark on a journey to Texas. The first is Lavinia is the heir to a plantation that is facing financial difficulty. The second is Juneau Jane who Lavinia’s illegitimate half-sister. Then finally, Hannie. Hannie is Lavinia’s former slave. Lavinia and Juneau Jane are looking to find information regarding their inheritance. Hannie is just looking for family that she was separated from when she was sold into slavery. The second timeline takes place in Louisiana in 1987. Benny Silva is a teacher at a local school and is desperate for them to become interested in literature. After finding a local treasure trove of books from a local plantation that contains local history, she may have just found a way to get to these kids.
I absolutely loved Before We Were Yours. It still haunts me and I read it years ago. I wanted to love this book just as much. I enjoyed this book, but I didn’t love it. There are so many parts of the story that are so slow that it is almost hard to follow. The switching of timelines didn’t come together cohesively and was a bit jarring. Although, the storylines are quite beautiful individually. Hannie discovering letters and her desperation to find her family moved me to tears more than once. Reading the real letters throughout the book broke me. But it is a part of history that is so important to learn about and puts things into perspective.
I did absolutely adore Benny and her determination to ignite passion in her students. I know so many teachers that have this same drive and I love how the author really depicts Benny fighting for her students. I love her creativity with her students. Honestly, it would be a dream to stumble on a treasure trove of old books filled with history. This made me almost giddy while reading the book.
Overall, I liked it but I wanted to love it. So I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars.