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mandaant1's review
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
I wasn’t too sure which way this story was going to lead but it was a lot. Rose experienced a lot: affair, grievance, and a stillborn. She felt that she was punished. Punished for her choices. She went back home to Parsons, GA and tried to start over her life without her daughter and husband. While it was difficult she found something to gain her life back. During the era is the 60s this was the time where blacks did not have to rights to vote. She became apart of a movement and was one of the first ones to get a voters card. She found her voice. Her confidence.
violetcat's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.25
shelbeymonae's review
emotional
informative
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
madamepot's review
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
heidipolkissa82's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
lorena_rose's review
emotional
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
readtheroomjess's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
booksteader's review
challenging
emotional
informative
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I had high hopes for this book and was frequently disappointed by the elementary level of writing, especially for a professional author and professor of Creative Writing. When I took Creative Writing courses in college, the number one rule that was drilled into our lessons was "Show, don't tell" and sadly Jackson-Brown does the exact opposite. The story told was powerful but the book was about 150 pages longer than it needed to be and the gravity of the times felt lost in the unnecessary plot flourishes, namely the scandalous affair and the romantic undercurrents. The main character is the least interesting of them all in this book, but that may have been intentional in order to reflect the other characters more clearly. However, that made many of the story's events superfluous. If you can get past the plot holes, inconsistencies, religiosity, and repetitiveness, there's an important historical fiction novel that illustrates a pivotal and painful time in recent American history that seems to be having a comeback. Perhaps this would have been better off as a novel published for a younger audience or maybe the author intended to reach the type of reader who needs everything spelled out in excruciatingly simple terms. This book could have been so much more than it was and I wish the editors had pushed for something stronger.
ahemily's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5