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sorceress_j 's review for:
White Oleander
by Janet Fitch
I really wish there were half-star ratings on here, because I'm of two minds about this and would actually give this more of a 3.5 than a 4. For me, where this book truly excels (and why my rating is at a 4) is in the prose and the plotting. The prose is some of the most beautiful I've read in a book recently, and it's so easy to get caught up in it, especially with those descriptions of California. It was just so rich, with every home environment that Astrid is in being described in such a way that it was a reflection of whichever foster parent(s) she was living with at that point in the story. As for plot, it's a very subtle story in that for every foster system-related experience she goes through, for every person she meets, it's clear that Astrid is becoming her own person instead of just an object in relation to her imprisoned sociopathic mother.
Where this does lose me, unfortunately, is much of the characterization. I didn't feel like all characters (i.e. Claire) wound up this way, but much of them either feel like caricatures or so otherworldly to the point they're unrelatable. And in some ways, Astrid very much falls into the latter category for me. She's hardened from her experiences, sure, but she becomes so cold and detached that I think some of this first-person narration suffers as a result. And I did lose some emotional investment as well--for example, it got to the point that whenever she'd even mention Europe, I'd have the urge to roll my eyes. This simply doesn't feel like a character who you would see/interact with in the real world. Some heart was missing, for sure, even though the brain (or pleasing to the brain, like that vocab.!) is there.
I'll admit, I ran into the movie long before even knowing about the book, and with that said, I'd still recommend the movie. They did take some liberties with the source material, but I feel like many of those changes were for the better and accomplished a lot in making the audience relate to Astrid and genuinely pull for her. So, I almost can't extrapolate my intensely positive feelings for the movie from how I feel about the novel and what it could have done for me to make me fall for it as much as I did the movie.
As it is, I did quite enjoy the novel, it was a satisfying read for the most part, but I definitely have my issues with it. If I'm being honest, I was also left feeling kind of cold.
Where this does lose me, unfortunately, is much of the characterization. I didn't feel like all characters (i.e. Claire) wound up this way, but much of them either feel like caricatures or so otherworldly to the point they're unrelatable. And in some ways, Astrid very much falls into the latter category for me. She's hardened from her experiences, sure, but she becomes so cold and detached that I think some of this first-person narration suffers as a result. And I did lose some emotional investment as well--for example, it got to the point that whenever she'd even mention Europe, I'd have the urge to roll my eyes. This simply doesn't feel like a character who you would see/interact with in the real world. Some heart was missing, for sure, even though the brain (or pleasing to the brain, like that vocab.!) is there.
I'll admit, I ran into the movie long before even knowing about the book, and with that said, I'd still recommend the movie. They did take some liberties with the source material, but I feel like many of those changes were for the better and accomplished a lot in making the audience relate to Astrid and genuinely pull for her. So, I almost can't extrapolate my intensely positive feelings for the movie from how I feel about the novel and what it could have done for me to make me fall for it as much as I did the movie.
As it is, I did quite enjoy the novel, it was a satisfying read for the most part, but I definitely have my issues with it. If I'm being honest, I was also left feeling kind of cold.