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radiojen's review against another edition
5.0
This book will stay with me a very long time. I love the way it is organized. We get to hear the story told in the voice of each character. It's set during World War II, and this extended family is living under the same roof. There's the house's owner, Mamie, her seven daughters, two sons-in-law, a granddaughter and a bed-ridden brother. In addition, there are two black housekeepers, one of which has a few chapters of her own in the book.
Imagine sitting around a campfire and having this cast of characters telling you what their lives were like. They all get a turn to tell you the story the way they see it, from their own point of view. That's how the story is told. Sometimes we hear different stories; sometimes they overlap a little and you get to hear the same story told from someone else's perspective.
This is not for the lighthearted, that's for sure! One of the characters in the book is a dirty old man who kind of reminds me of Si Robertson from Duck Dynasty. There's another guy in the book who is just a downright pervert. You may not agree with or even like the things they say, but they really do add to the story and give it a good bit of depth.
Because there are so many characters, it can be a little tough to keep track of them all, particularly if you set the book down for too long. That wasn't a problem for me, though, because I couldn't wait to pick it up and keep reading.
There's so much going on that it really is just like listening to a family talk about their day-to-day lives. Sex and romance, political turmoil, racism, beauty, child rearing, job hunting...you won't get bored!
Imagine sitting around a campfire and having this cast of characters telling you what their lives were like. They all get a turn to tell you the story the way they see it, from their own point of view. That's how the story is told. Sometimes we hear different stories; sometimes they overlap a little and you get to hear the same story told from someone else's perspective.
This is not for the lighthearted, that's for sure! One of the characters in the book is a dirty old man who kind of reminds me of Si Robertson from Duck Dynasty. There's another guy in the book who is just a downright pervert. You may not agree with or even like the things they say, but they really do add to the story and give it a good bit of depth.
Because there are so many characters, it can be a little tough to keep track of them all, particularly if you set the book down for too long. That wasn't a problem for me, though, because I couldn't wait to pick it up and keep reading.
There's so much going on that it really is just like listening to a family talk about their day-to-day lives. Sex and romance, political turmoil, racism, beauty, child rearing, job hunting...you won't get bored!
mamalemma's review against another edition
3.0
This may be the most dysfunctional family ever -- and they never figure out how to get themselves out of it. There really are no resolutions to any of the plot lines. It's not a terrible book, and I hate tidy endings, but I did leave the book feeling a little wanting. I guess the good news is that I don't care that much about any of the characters, so I'm not angry, just puzzled.
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