With the sure hand of a seasoned writer, Aryn Kyle has crafted a brilliant debut with her novel, The God of Animals. Alice Winston, living on the family horse ranch, a marginal enterprise in Desert Valley, Colorado, is a 12-year-old girl with more than she can handle and no one to help her cope. Polly, a classmate of hers, drowned in the nearby canal and was carried out by Alice's father, Joe, a member of the volunteer posse. Her older sister, 16-year-old Nona, eloped with a rodeo cowboy. Her mother never leaves her bedroom, a case of clinical depression. "My mother had spent nearly my whole life in her bedroom... Nona said that one day, while I was still a baby, our mother had handed me to her, said she was tired, and gone upstairs to rest. She never came back down."
Joe has little time for Alice, other than counting on her to muck out the stalls and be polite to the paying customers. He doesn't even notice that she has outgrown her clothes. What Kyle does with this scenario is never predictable or clichéd. She writes beautifully of landscapes, interior and exterior, ravaged by extremes: the hottest summer in years, followed by a deluge; a lonely, isolated girl reaching out to a teacher, Mr. Delmar, equally alienated.
Alice starts telling lies, weaving bits and pieces of other people's lives into the tales she tells the teacher. What we eventually find out about her family is more poignant and tragic than anything she can make up. Horse lore is a large part of what explains each of the people in the novel: separating mares from their foals, the way a stud is treated, breaking a horse, ordinary everyday contact. This bond is explored in depth and each person: Alice, Nona, Joe, Joe's father, Alice's mother, is affected by this closeness in a different, unique way, revelatory of each individual's character. Much more than a coming-of-age tale, Kyle told a story of compromises and dreams that will never come true. --Valerie Ryan
Book Description
From an award-winning and talented young novelist comes one of the most exciting fiction debuts in years: a breathtaking and beautiful novel set on a horse ranch in small-town Colorado.
When her older sister runs away to marry a rodeo cowboy, Alice Winston is left to bear the brunt of her family's troubles -- a depressed, bedridden mother; a reticent, overworked father; and a run-down horse ranch. As the hottest summer in fifteen years unfolds and bills pile up, Alice is torn between dreams of escaping the loneliness of her duty-filled life and a longing to help her father mend their family and the ranch.
To make ends meet, the Winstons board the pampered horses of rich neighbors, and for the first time Alice confronts the power and security that class and wealth provide. As her family and their well-being become intertwined with the lives of their clients, Alice is drawn into an adult world of secrets and hard truths, and soon discovers that people -- including herself -- can be cruel, can lie and cheat, and every once in a while, can do something heartbreaking and selfless. Ultimately, Alice and her family must weather a devastating betrayal and a shocking, violent series of events that will test their love and prove the power of forgiveness.
A wise and astonishing novel about the different guises of love and the often steep tolls on the road to adulthood, The God of Animals is a haunting, unforgettable debut.
Customer Reviews:
Ok, maybe the horse issues are off..........2007-10-01
but as someone from a city who knows nothing about horses, I cannot think of a single detractor in this book. The language stays with you like lines from poetry, and the disappointments and harsh developments aren't over the top - they happen rapidly and without pause as they sometimes do in life. I would recommend this book to anyone, except maybe those so familiar with horse raising/training that the story and the beautifully human characters wouldn't be the focus.
Relationships 101.......2007-09-30
This is a fascinating novel. What is not covered in the other reviews is Alice's understanding of what motivates people, what looks good at the start and then turns sour, what is worth it. Love both dissapoints and endures in this novel, and this lesson is delivered beautifully. Do the animals endure fates better or worse than our own messes? I look forward to her next novel.
The God of Animals.......2007-09-19
While Aryn Kyle's writing skills are superb, she's no better than James Frey in writing incorrect or exaggerated information as FACT. She writes of raising horses. I've been raising horses for 15 years and what she writes is just plain NONSENSE. Folks, it's not true. It doesn't happen. She made it up for dramatic effect, I suppose, but I became so disgusted with the absurd scenes that I stopped reading the book.
Good writing, okay plot.......2007-09-12
Clearly a talented writer, Aryn Kyle gives a vivid portrait of a 12 year old growing up in an alienated/alienating environment. I'm not a fan of horses, but I'm a Westerner, believed in the world of this ranch and appreciated the author's obvious knowledge of the setting. But I've seen this type of coming-of-age story so often before, and the "tragic" moments other reviewers mention struck me not as shocking, but as a dramatic way to solve narrative problems. I didn't feel much sympathy for Alice by the end, just weariness that the story was dissolving under its own weight. Wait for the paperback.
Coming of Age.......2007-09-02
Aryn Kyle---for a first write you have outdone some of the best. I happen to be horse savvy and found the descriptive nature of your novel to catch my breath and take it away..The descriptions of the foaling, weaning, breeding and breaking of a colt...oh so real...And then we get to Alice who will forever stay in my heart...her life on a horse ranch in Colorado and how she deals with her lonliness... Alice is so complex and really has no one her age on her level with whom to communicate. She makes up stories to feel important and gain attention wherever she is at the moment and because of the lack of parental stability turns to a once a night phone call to a teacher who also lacks guidance...This write opens a lot of doors that could have been taken and had me guessing of the real outcome of Polly...even questioning the teacher...This book puts it all out there for one to take in, digest and read on in interest...If this is your first write...I am anxiously awaiting your next write as you had me to the very last page. Well, done!
Book Description
Now a classic! The hilarious novel of the healing arts that reveals everything your doctor never wanted you to know. Six eager interns -- they saw themselves as modern saviors-to-be. They came from the top of their medical school class to the bottom of the hospital staff to serve a year in the time-honored tradition, racing to answer the flash of on-duty call lights and nubile nurses. But only the Fat Man --the Clam, all-knowing resident -- could sustain them in their struggle to survive, to stay sane, to love-and even to be doctors when their harrowing year was done.
From the Paperback edition.
Customer Reviews:
Exaggerated, but true, particularly a few years ago.......2007-08-20
I did my residency in the 1990s and I can assure you that it wasn't all that different than that depicted in Shem's book. The unbelievable workload, chronic lack of sleep, exposure to illness and death, all mixed with the constant pressure to be brilliant, hardworking, and efficient to impress pompous and seemingly callous superiors is a recipe for warping a person into an automaton. I just counted down the days until it was over. But the experience leaves you changed, hopefully not scarred, and now as an attending in a large BMS, I am glad that the schedules are more humane for our residents and interns, yet I somehow feel that they are soft and coddled because they can't work more than 80 hours/wk. Anyway, this experience is depicted well in HOG, and I think it would be hard for someone who hasn't experienced this to appreciate this book. If a layperson finds it horrifying, then maybe they will experience a little of what it was like for those of us who had to live it. The dark humor is extremely real, the sexual escapades were enjoyed by some, but not all of us, in the trenches. "Buff" and "turf" are terms I hear on a regular basis. I didn't care for the ending of the book; Roy's career choice seemed unlikely, but I'm guessing that's what happened to the author. Overall, the book brings to light some of the horrors of medical training, but sensationalizes it to a degree. The humor is at times adolescent, but still I had to laugh out loud at some parts. I'm sure I wouldn't give the book five stars if I hadn't gone through a fairly grueling internship myself though.
I couldn't put it down.......2007-08-14
This book deserves praise. The characters and events in the book are just amazing. 1984 used to be my absolute favorite book. I'm glad to say the torch has been passed (sorry George). The sexuality of the first chapter will captivate, the stories throughout will horrify, Jo will piss you off, you will love The Fat Man. Anyone looking for a great read will not be disappointed.
Now more than ever.......2007-08-09
As a current internal medicine resident, I can say with a good deal of certainty that this book contains nothing but the truth. Some aspects, notably the vividly exaggerated sexual escapades, are of course dated, but really not much at all has changed since the time this book was written. While anybody who has been through a residency can probably relate, this book is best appreciated by those in internal medicine.
There may not be any easy answers, especially as so many people are now aging in the developed world. However, many other nations, with national insurance, government price controls on pharmaceuticals, etc., have a much more balanced approach to healthcare, and the statistics speak for themselves. Here, we let people get deathly sick, throw them from an ER into a hospital at the mercy of trainees, then pat ourselves on the back when we increase the pain for everybody involved. It's absurd, perhaps even disgusting, but it's true.
Remember, one day it will be your family member, and the next time, it will be you. Your wallet, psyche, and ultimately your life will not escape the hospital.
Second read.......2007-08-02
I first picked up this book in 1982; I read it for a second time this week. There is little character development as the book evolves through this one resident's personal experience. Aside from the drum beat style the author uses to describe residency training, the reader gets a sense of cynicism toward medical education, the health care system, and the human condition. All of which are sadly real. I feel badly for residents. They are abused. It's true the endless stream of patients with their various needs & agendas can wear literally one out, but within the text, I looked for a sense of purpose in the main character's decision to become a doctor in the first place; I never found it. The main character would have been more interesting given a sense of direction after residency. With all due respect, I found the book superficial; I will likely not read it again. Thank you.
Interesting look inside medicine..........2007-07-19
A fascinating look inside a doctor's year as an intern. This semi-autobiographical tale does come off as a bit dated at times, but it's influence can be felt whenever you watch an episode of St. Elsewhere, Scrubs, or even Grey's Anatomy. An interesting read that I highly recomend to anyone doing any kind of internship.
Book Description
What if a fascinating stranger knew you better than you know yourself?
When her husband comes home with a farfetched story about eating dinner with someone he believes to be Jesus, Mattie Cominsky thinks this may signal the end of her shaky marriage. Convinced that Nick is, at best, turning into a religious nut, the self-described agnostic hopes that a quick business trip will give her time to think things through.
On board the plane, Mattie strikes up a conversation with a fellow passenger. When she discovers their shared scorn for religion, she confides her frustration over her husband’s recent conversion. The stranger suggests that perhaps her husband isn’t seeking religion but true spiritual connection, an idea that prompts her to reflect on her own search for fulfillment.
As their conversation turns to issues of spiritual longing and deeper questions about the nature of God, Mattie finds herself increasingly drawn to this insightful stranger. But when the discussion unexpectedly turns personal, touching on things she’s never told anyone, Mattie is startled and disturbed. Who is this man who seems to peer straight into her soul?
Customer Reviews:
Great Book.......2007-09-17
This book is the sequel to "Dinner with a Perfect Stranger." Whereas the first book involves Jesus speaking with a man, this one is Jesus' witnessing to the man's wife. Like him, she's not a Christian. Jesus slowly leads her where he wants her to go, always dealing with her in love. Jesus meets the woman on an airplane, where he also entertains the child ahead of him by making faces. Yes, I think Jesus would do that! Another wonderful book that shows witnessing done God's way. It's a book you'll want to keep.
Excellent follow-up.......2007-09-10
I thought this book was an excellent follow-up/sequel to Dinner with a Perfect Stranger. As in the original...it is easy to read, thought-provoking, not bogged down or time consuming. Really, if you've read the first one...THIS is a MUST read as well!
A good book.......2007-07-14
I enjoyed this book but not as much as Dinner With a Perfect Stranger. I wished God would have revealed Himself sooner.
They're both books I will suggest to others.
God at work in every way.......2007-05-24
My wife and I read this after reading _Dinner with a Perfect stranger_ and they both compliment each other. These books give some terrific insight into life's 'workings' and provide another viewpoint about love, life, religion that can be intimately identified with for each of us, although in a different manner for each.
It was a thouroughy enjoyable read.
Day With a Perfect Stranger.......2007-05-13
I found this book to be so very awesome in it's presentation, purpose and perspective. I got lost in the book and when I was finished it I felt a sense of loss; I would not have this literary "friend" to read each night before retiring.
David Gregory presented some very thought provoking ideas.
I passed it on to a friend who also gives this book a rave review.
Average customer rating:
- The unusual usual
- Terrible waste of time
- So,so.
- A road trip story with the gods
- It's Just that Nothing Happens
|
American Gods: A Novel
Neil Gaiman
Manufacturer: William Morrow
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 United States | Horror | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Gaiman, Neil | ( G ) | Authors, A-Z | Horror | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books | 18th Century | 19th Century | 20th Century | African American | Asian American | Classics | Collections & Readers | Drama | General | Hispanic | History & Criticism | Humor | Jewish American | Letters & Correspondence | Native American | Poetry | Short Stories | Women Writers
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Gaiman, Neil | ( G ) | Authors, A-Z | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
Contemporary | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0380973650 |
Amazon.com's Best of 2001
American Gods is Neil Gaiman's best and most ambitious novel yet, a scary, strange, and hallucinogenic road-trip story wrapped around a deep examination of the American spirit. Gaiman tackles everything from the onslaught of the information age to the meaning of death, but he doesn't sacrifice the razor-sharp plotting and narrative style he's been delivering since his Sandman days.
Shadow gets out of prison early when his wife is killed in a car crash. At a loss, he takes up with a mysterious character called Wednesday, who is much more than he appears. In fact, Wednesday is an old god, once known as Odin the All-father, who is roaming America rounding up his forgotten fellows in preparation for an epic battle against the upstart deities of the Internet, credit cards, television, and all that is wired. Shadow agrees to help Wednesday, and they whirl through a psycho-spiritual storm that becomes all too real in its manifestations. For instance, Shadow's dead wife Laura keeps showing up, and not just as a ghost--the difficulty of their continuing relationship is by turns grim and darkly funny, just like the rest of the book.
Armed only with some coin tricks and a sense of purpose, Shadow travels through, around, and underneath the visible surface of things, digging up all the powerful myths Americans brought with them in their journeys to this land as well as the ones that were already here. Shadow's road story is the heart of the novel, and it's here that Gaiman offers up the details that make this such a cinematic book--the distinctly American foods and diversions, the bizarre roadside attractions, the decrepit gods reduced to shell games and prostitution. "This is a bad land for Gods," says Shadow.
More than a tourist in America, but not a native, Neil Gaiman offers an outside-in and inside-out perspective on the soul and spirituality of the country--our obsessions with money and power, our jumbled religious heritage and its societal outcomes, and the millennial decisions we face about what's real and what's not. --Therese Littleton
Book Description
The storm was coming....
Shadow spent three years in prison, keeping his head down, doing his time. All he wanted was to get back to the loving arms of his wife and to stay out of trouble for the rest of his life. But days before his scheduled release, he learns that his wife has been killed in an accident, and his world becomes a colder place.
On the plane ride home to the funeral, Shadow meets a grizzled man who calls himself Mr. Wednesday. A self-styled grifter and rogue, Wednesday offers Shadow a job. And Shadow, a man with nothing to lose, accepts.
But working for the enigmatic Wednesday is not without its price, and Shadow soon learns that his role in Wednesday's schemes will be far more dangerous than he ever could have imagined. Entangled in a world of secrets, he embarks on a wild road trip and encounters, among others, the murderous Czernobog, the impish Mr. Nancy, and the beautiful Easter -- all of whom seem to know more about Shadow than he himself does.
Shadow will learn that the past does not die, that everyone, including his late wife, had secrets, and that the stakes are higher than anyone could have imagined.
All around them a storm of epic proportions threatens to break. Soon Shadow and Wednesday will be swept up into a conflict as old as humanity itself. For beneath the placid surface of everyday life a war is being fought -- and the prize is the very soul of America.
As unsettling as it is exhilarating, American Gods is a dark and kaleidoscopic journey deep into myth and across an America at once eerily familiar and utterly alien. Magnificently told, this work of literary magic will haunt the reader far beyond the final page.
Download Description
"Special Feature: This PerfectBound e-book contains ""On the Road to American Gods: Selected Passages from Neil Gaiman's Online Journal"". The storm was coming..Shadow spent three years in prison, keeping his head down, doing his time. All he wanted was to get back to the loving arms of his wife and to stay out of trouble for the rest of his life. But days before his scheduled release, he learns that his wife has been killed in an accident, and his world becomes a colder place. On the plane ride home to the funeral, Shadow meets a grizzled man who calls himself Mr. Wednesday. A self-styled grifter and rogue, Wednesday offers Shadow a job. And Shadow, a man with nothing to lose accepts. But working for the enigmatic Wednesday is not without its price, and Shadow soon learns that his role in Wednesday's schemes will be far more dangerous than he ever could have imagined. Entangled in a world of secrets, he embarks on a wild road trip and encounters, among others, the murderous Czernobog, the impish Mr. Nancy, and the beautiful Easter-all of whom seem to know more about Shadow than he himself does. Shadow will learn that the past does not die, that everyone, including his late wife, had secrets, and that the stakes are higher than anyone could have imagined. All around them a storm of epic proportions threatens to break. Soon Shadow and Wednesday will be swept up into a conflict as old as humanity itself. For beneath the placid surface of everyday life a war is being fought-and the prize is the very soul of America. As unsettling as it is exhilarating, American Gods is a dark and kaleidoscopic journey deep into myth and across an America at once eerily familiar and utterly alien. Magnificently told, this work of literary magic will haunt the reader far beyond the final page. "
Customer Reviews:
The unusual usual.......2007-10-05
I liked this book. Gaiman has a way of making the unusual seem usual. It bothered me a bit because I know people who believe in gods exactly as Gaiman describes them. And after reading the book I'm guessing a lot of that came from Gaiman. I've spent much of my time rejecting the notion of the supernatural lately and so even though the book is written as fiction, it still bothered me a bit. But I was able to overlook that dissatisfaction enough to enjoy the book.
The book centers on Shadow, a man who's life is changed when he is released from prison early after his wife is killed in an accident. As he's dealing with his grief, a man offers him a job. Shadow doesn't want to do anything more than put his wife to rest, but instead he's caught up in a story and a world that he never imagined existed.
Parts of the book are just fantastic. The description and the characters in Lakeside, a town Shadow hides out in later in the book, made this book for me. I could see Lakeside in my mind and it was a place that I wanted to visit. It was that perfect small-town where things really aren't perfect, but it's still beautiful and moving, even in the midst of tragedy. If I could imagine a perfect place to live (minus the murders), it would be there.
I also loved the bit with Anubis, Bast, and (I'm drawing a blank on the other god, Osiris?) in Memphis, Michigan (I think?) running the funeral parlor.
Overall the story was great. It took me a little bit longer to get into, but under normal circumstances I don't think it would have been as difficult. And once it captured me towards the last 100-150 pages I couldn't put it down.
Terrible waste of time.......2007-09-30
I was suckered in by virtue of reading all Nebula and Hugo winning and nominated books each year. But folks, the committees were "out to lunch" on this one. The premise was great, the execution terrible. The plot was lost in blathering vignettes of minute, if any, consequence. At 3/4 through the book, after page flipping through the second hundred pages looking for plot, after exclaiming to my wife: Where's the beef? a number of times, I just gave up. I tore the book into pieces and threw it forcefully into the trash can so nobody could repeat my exact mistake. I do this once every 3 or 5 years. That's how disappointed I was.
So,so........2007-09-24
Well, although I know this book has been very popular, it was not very interesting to me, and I stopped reading in the middle. The places, and the characters in the book are in my opnion not very Neil-geiman, and less creative compared to his other publications.
A road trip story with the gods .......2007-09-23
_American Gods_ is a road trip story of sorts, though one that visits places that are "behind the scenes" in this great country. It is also an epic quest, a story of destiny, prophecy, and a story of conflict between old and new. Also, much in the book is not as it appears.
The protagonist is a person by the name of Shadow, released from prison a few days before the completion of his sentence due to the death of his wife in a car accident. His best friend was unfortunately (for several reasons) was with his wife Laura, and as his friend had a job lined up for Shadow when he got out, our hero is at loose ends.
Or is he? On the plane ride home he encounters a strange older gentleman by the name of Wednesday. Knowing far more about Shadow than anyone could really know, he offers Shadow employment. Shadow tries to ditch him, getting off the plane at a layover and going across country in a rental car. Wednesday however finds him in an out of the way diner.
It seems Shadow cannot escape this Wednesday and his offer to be an assistant, so he accepts. Is also seems that Wednesday is a god. Odin to be specific, head of the Norse pantheon; though Shadow at first of course disbelieves this, it soon becomes clear that Shadow - and all of humanity - was unaware of what occurred behind the scenes in the mortal world.
Wednesday is not the only divinity living and working as a human (or sometimes animal) in the United States. Not only is the country a nation of immigrant mortals and the cultures they came from, but it is also a nation of immigrant gods and goddesses (and other beings) from every land and culture, including some very old cultures.
Wednesday gravely informs Shadow that a war is coming between the deities, one with the older, fading powers on one side - such as the Norse and Russian deities among many others - and the new, rising, American-grown powers on the other side. The beliefs, passions, and interests of people in the United States have unknowingly given rise to a new crop of arrogant, powerful, and rising gods of the internet, news media, automobiles, and credit cards, feeding off the power and unknowing sacrifices of millions of Americans. Apparently not content to become more powerful than the old gods, Wednesday says these new, American gods intend to hunt down and destroy the old deities.
What follows is a cross country trip by Wednesday and Shadow, trying to bring into the fold the scattered older gods, attempting to put up some united front against the much more powerful and better connected new gods. The two meet many interesting and vividly described characters along the way.
There are many good things about this novel. Even some of the most apparently minor secondary characters are well-drawn and vivid. Much of the quest took the two to small towns throughout the country (with Shadow hiding in one for an extended period of time) and Gaiman did a very good job of giving the feel of small town life to the reader. The book took place in winter and without overwhelming the reader Gaiman never let him or her forget the season either. The gloomy, snowy, wintry conditions really suited the storyline.
I liked the many gods, goddesses, and mythological monsters encountered by Shadow in his travels, some hiding in plain sight as normal humans and animals, others visible only by those who can see things behind the scenes. There were several vignettes, some quite good, early in the book describing how various deities and mythical beings made it over to this country, how the faerie of the British Isles or the gods of Africa for instance made it to these shores and thus remain in this country to this day, carried over by the actions of immigrants, residing in their hearts and minds. The variety of beings described is quite diverse and included some surprising inclusions.
The book had a great twist ending and much of the book was not as it appeared, that I also liked.
Laura, for reasons apparent to the reader later in the book, becomes a surprisingly important character, she was interesting.
As for the bad, well, there were several very graphic sex scenes early on in the novel, including one that was quite bizarre, even horrific (not gory, but definitely of a supernatural nature). Wednesday disappears for large segments of the book, leaving Shadow to his own devices. Though what Shadow does during his employer's absences is quite interesting and ultimately largely relevant to the greater plot, it does give the reader a feeling that much is being missed at times as to the nature of events in the book.
All in all a very good modern fantasy story.
It's Just that Nothing Happens.......2007-09-19
After hearing so much about this book, I thought it would be only fair to read it a few years after it has been out. But as another reviewer already wrote, this book is "numbingly SEDENTARY". It's painful to read as there are sentences that don't belong. There are too many "gods" who disappear and really have no significance. Basically, it's about a bunch of people (who are gods), that sit around, drink coffee, smoke, and bull. Really.
I can't believe I paid for this crap.
I'm giving it 2 stars because the Gods idea is cool.
Average customer rating:
- Not much to say
- Ruined a good thing
- Don't Trust Everyone
- An engaging read...at least to begin with...
- Terrible compared to the two prequel novels
|
God Don't Play
Mary Monroe
Manufacturer: Dafina
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General | African American | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
General | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
British | Short Stories | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Suspense | Thrillers | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0758203462 |
Book Description
From Mary Monroe, beloved author of God Don't Like Ugly and God Still Don't Like Ugly, comes the entwined stories of two lifelong friends, their secrets and lies, and a new challenge that could destroy their relationship once and for all...
With a handsome husband, a beautiful daughter, and a lovely house to come home to every night, forty-five-year-old Annette Goode finally has it all. Heaven knows she paid her dues--from a childhood filled with abuse to a rocky start as an adult. Annette's friend Rhoda knows too, for Rhoda has been both her savior and her greatest fear. Their erratic relationship has survived some serious bumps in the road. But now that things are good, someone apparently thinks they're a little too good...
When Annette receives an anonymous--and menacing--birthday gift, it's just the beginning of a slew of hostile letters, vicious phone calls, and vile packages from a female who is obviously disguising her voice. Gaining comfort from the support of Rhoda and Rhoda's teenage daughter, Jade, Annette hopes that somehow the problem will go away. But when the threats extend to her little daughter, Annette realizes the situation is dire. And she's right, for soon her tormentor reveals exactly what she wants--and how it could destroy everything Annette has built...
Customer Reviews:
Not much to say.......2007-09-14
This book had a slow start but if you be patient it is worth it. I just couldn't believe that Annette allowed herself to be tricked by her. She allowed herself to be manipulated and deceived by one of what is supposed to be her closest friends. One thing I really disagree with is why did she allow half the stuff that happened with Jade happen. Why didn't she put that girl n her place a long time ago? Jade is a mess and Annette did nothing to help the girl at all. Maybe if she would have said something to the girl things wouldn't have gone as far as they did.
Ruined a good thing.......2007-09-08
This has to be the worst Mary Monroe book I have ever read. The first two books in this series were sad, funny, heartwarming and more importantly interesting. This book took three steps back and was just plain dumb. The whole premise for the book seemed like a weak attempt to keep Annette dsyfunctional.
What I couldn't believe is that any author would make her leading character so weak and pathetic. Between Jade's unbelievable attitude and Annette's blind eye to her behavior, I wished I could slap the both of them. Also, what women in her right mind would be so hateful to her husband after the man obviously didn't give her any signs that he was unfaithful. Especially, with the type of history those two had. Annette was so crazed and over the top it didn't care if she found out the truth or not.
With that being said, there were so funny parts as usual, which perhaps would make me check out another book in this series, but Ms. Monroe needs to really sit up to the plate if she excepts to continue to series.
Don't Trust Everyone.......2007-09-02
For some reason I knew that it was Rhonda's daughter, I don't know how I just did.
An engaging read...at least to begin with..........2007-08-27
I really enjoyed getting into this novel, at first, having not read any of Mary Monroe's work before. The narrator Annette is very engaging, until I got sick of how easily and persistently she is walked over by her so-called friends. I am giving this book 2 stars because although it was well-written the plot-line was as thin as Annette's hair! It was sooooooooo obvious that Jade was behind the campaign of harassment and when I got to the end and had this confirmed I just felt disgusted and let-down. And on the one hand we hear over and over again how marvellous Annette's marriage is, but she only confided in her husband at the very end, and it took very little for her to accuse him of infidelity. I just found this relationship dynamic implausible. In the end it put me off reading any more of Ms Monroe's work.
Terrible compared to the two prequel novels.......2007-08-17
Of the two prequel novels, this was by far the worst. The story line was too predictible and even a small child could figure out who the black mailer was long before it was revealed. Although i found this book to be awful, it is a must have if you read the previous two books and became hooked on Annete, Rhoda and the rest of the crew. The redeeming qulaity is that you get to see how their lives turned out and that you really do reap what you sow.
Average customer rating:
- One for the Ages
- A Novel Reviewed by an author
- Their Eyes Were Watching God
- Their Eyes Were Watching God
- Good Read
|
Their Eyes Were Watching God: A Novel
Zora Neale Hurston
Manufacturer: Harper Perennial
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Hurston, Zora Neale | African American | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0060916508 |
Amazon.com
At the height of the Harlem Renaissance during the 1930s, Zora Neale Hurston was the preeminent black woman writer in the United States. She was a sometime-collaborator with Langston Hughes and a fierce rival of Richard Wright. Her stories appeared in major magazines, she consulted on Hollywood screenplays, and she penned four novels, an autobiography, countless essays, and two books on black mythology. Yet by the late 1950s, Hurston was living in obscurity, working as a maid in a Florida hotel. She died in 1960 in a Welfare home, was buried in an unmarked grave, and quickly faded from literary consciousness until 1975 when Alice Walker almost single-handedly revived interest in her work.
Of Hurston's fiction, Their Eyes Were Watching God is arguably the best-known and perhaps the most controversial. The novel follows the fortunes of Janie Crawford, a woman living in the black town of Eaton, Florida. Hurston sets up her characters and her locale in the first chapter, which, along with the last, acts as a framing device for the story of Janie's life. Unlike Wright and Ralph Ellison, Hurston does not write explicitly about black people in the context of a white world--a fact that earned her scathing criticism from the social realists--but she doesn't ignore the impact of black-white relations either:
It was the time for sitting on porches beside the road. It was the time to hear things and talk. These sitters had been tongueless, earless, eyeless conveniences all day long. Mules and other brutes had occupied their skins. But now, the sun and the bossman were gone, so the skins felt powerful and human. They became lords of sounds and lesser things. They passed nations through their mouths. They sat in judgment.
One person the citizens of Eaton are inclined to judge is Janie Crawford, who has married three men and been tried for the murder of one of them. Janie feels no compulsion to justify herself to the town, but she does explain herself to her friend, Phoeby, with the implicit understanding that Phoeby can "tell 'em what Ah say if you wants to. Dat's just de same as me 'cause mah tongue is in mah friend's mouf."
Hurston's use of dialect enraged other African American writers such as Wright, who accused her of pandering to white readers by giving them the black stereotypes they expected. Decades later, however, outrage has been replaced by admiration for her depictions of black life, and especially the lives of black women. In Their Eyes Were Watching God Zora Neale Hurston breathes humanity into both her men and women, and allows them to speak in their own voices. --Alix Wilber
Book Description
"Belongs in the category ... of enduring American literature." Saturday Review Fair and long-legged, independent and articulate, Janie Crawford sets out to be her own person no mean feat for a black woman in the '30s. Janie's quest for identity takes her through three marriages and into a journey back to her roots.
Download Description
"E-BOOK EXTRA: Janie's Great Journey: A Reading Group Guide; PLUS: The Comphrehensive Edition: This special e-book is the only edition to include all three essays by Edwidge Danticat, Mary Helen Washington, and Henry Louis Gates.
Fair and long-legged, independent and articulate, Janie Crawford sets out to be her own person -- no mean feat for a Black woman in the '30s. Zora Neale Hurston's classic 1937 novel follows Janie's quest for identity -- a journey during which she learns what love is, experiences life's joys and sorrows, and comes home to herself in peace. "There is no book more important to me than this one." --Alice Walker "Their Eyes belongs in the same category with [the works of] William Faulkner, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Ernest Hemingway, that of enduring American literature." --Saturday Review
Fair and long-legged, independent and articulate, Janie Crawford sets out to be her own person -- no mean feat for a black woman in the '30s. Janie's quest for identity takes her through three marriages and into a journey back to her roots."
Customer Reviews:
One for the Ages.......2007-10-07
Zora Neale Hurston's novel "Their Eyes Were Watching God" has been analyzed, criticized, and lionized over the brief span of its existence. Lately, praise has predominated though with continued carping on issues which she made clear she considered secondary to her purpose.
Hurston's mastery of language places this work in the top tier of Anglophone literature, and the broadness of her comprehension defies spatial, temporal, social, or political confines. Her novel is powerful because it is humane and universal in scope. The story enchants because the voice relating it is unfailingly compassionate.
This lyrical voice was owned by no one but Zora Neale Hurston herself. Throughout her professional life, she remained true to her vision regardless of praise or criticism.
Ultimately, Hurston's literary worth, and that of her detractors, critics, and rivals, will be judged by generations to come. I'm confident that her stature will endure and her insistence on self-definition will be vindicated.
A Novel Reviewed by an author.......2007-09-30
Three stars due to the consensus that it is a classic.
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston September 2007 Amazon
Janie Crawford, an attractive, confident, middle-aged black woman, returns to Eatonville, Florida, after a long absence. The black townspeople gossip about her and speculate about where she has been and what has happened to her young husband, Tea Cake. They take her confidence as aloofness, but Janie's friend Pheoby Watson sticks up for her. Pheoby visits her to find out what has happened. Their conversation frames the story that Janie relates. Janie explains that her grandmother raised her after her mother ran off. Nanny loves her granddaughter and is dedicated to her, but her life as a slave and experience with her own daughter, Janie's mother, has warped her worldview. Her primary desire is to marry Janie as soon as possible to a husband who can provide security and social status for her. She finds a much older farmer named Logan Killicks and insists that Janie marry him. After moving in with Logan, Janie is miserable. He is pragmatic and unromantic and treats her like a pack mule. Janie flirts with and marries in secret another man. After two decades of marriage, Janie asserts herself, Jody insults her appearance and after a savage domestic quarrel, it's over for them. Jody dies from illness and Janie is free. She rebuffs various suitors who come to court but when a man twelve years her junior enters her life there is mutual attraction. Only with her third and last lover, a roustabout called Tea Cake, does Janie at last bloom, as does the large pear tree that stands beside her grandmother's tiny log cabin. "She saw a dust bearing bee sink into the sanctum of a bloom; the thousand sister calyxes arch to meet the love embrace and the ecstatic shiver of the tree from root to tiniest branch creaming in every blossom and frothing with delight. So this was a marriage!" They move to the everglades for the final tragic conclusion of the book. Rife with dialect, some may find the book time consuming. The title has nothing to do with the story, but it is a beautiful thought. The book has been made into a written-for-television movie starring Halle Berry.
Trish New, author of The Thrill of Hope, South State Street Journal, and Memory Flatlined.
Their Eyes Were Watching God.......2007-09-10
My son needed this book for school and we received in time for school. Great service!
Their Eyes Were Watching God.......2007-09-04
This book has been an extremely enjoyable read for me. It had a certain easy flow to it that made you want to keep reading it. This book didn't hook me right away, but I still gave it a chance. I am glad that I gave it a chance because it turned out to be one of my favorite books. If you enjoy hearing a good story, i recommend this book to you. Actually, I recommend this book to anybody and everybody! When i was asked to rate this book on a scale from 1 to 10, I replied by saying an eleven because i thought that this book was that good.
Good Read.......2007-08-21
This book is an easy read but it contains underling themes and plot structures that can be discussed in a class room setting. This is a good book and provides an interesting insight in young black woman's life who is trying to find her perfect mate.
Average customer rating:
- Loved It
- Just Okay!
- Monroe, honey you are wonderful!
- LET'S SEE....
- Where is Book 3????
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God Still Don't Like Ugly
Mary Monroe
Manufacturer: Kensington
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0758203438 |
Customer Reviews:
Loved It.......2006-11-08
I absolutely loved this book. The characters are so funny that I catch myself cracking up. I feel like I know each one of them personally. I can't wait to read God Don't Play.
Just Okay!.......2006-05-26
"God Still Don't Like Ugly" by Mary Monroe, I felt was a okay book, I didn't read the first novel God Don't Like Ugly, so this book started off really slow, it took me a week to get into this book, but once I started understanding who the characters were and what part they played in this book and the first one, then I was able follow the book, and it was okay reading...
Maybe I should have read the first novel, then this one...
Monroe, honey you are wonderful!.......2006-05-18
I liked "God Don't Like Ugly" and I also liked this sequel, "God Still Don't Like Ugly". The two books told an incredible story of endurance and forgiveness. Though this book was truly an enjoyable read, it revisits the first one too much.
In this half of the tale, Annette and Rhoda are both adults and still face their share of trials. Annette comes into contact with her long lost father and her siblings. She also finds herself a fiancee by the name of Jerome Cunningham. At first, they are happy together, but when one of his family members find out that she is a former prostitute, he calls their entire relationship off. So, she finds love in her childhood friend Pee Wee. Rhoda resurfaces and has a family of her own. But, by the end of the story, she endures a bad turn of events.
I enjoyed this book. I read it in no time. This author has a gift and it is illustrated in her writing. I really like Mary Monroe! I know Mary, God don't like ugly...
LET'S SEE...........2006-04-21
NOT AS GOOD AS THE FIRST. I WANTED TO SLAP ANNETTE A FEW TIMES. AND HER FRIEND IS STILL CRAZY. WORTH A READ IF YOU RAN OUT OF ALL YOUR DRAMA FILLED BOOKS!
Where is Book 3????.......2006-03-25
The book does start off with some flashbacks, but it does get interesting. Annette is all grown up now and ready to do things at an adult level. As an adult she address the things that she held in bondage throughout her childhood. She begins to tell those secrets she swore never to tell.
It did end the same as book one: YOU JUST WANT MORE!!
Average customer rating:
- lousy
- Surprisingly addictive!
- Exciting
- couldnt put it down!
- telling it like it is:)
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God's Gift to Women: A Novel
Michael Baisden
Manufacturer: Touchstone
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Erotic | Horror | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0743249976 |
Book Description
A smooth talker. An even better listener. And handsome as heaven on earth. He is God's Gift to Women.
Julian Payne gets into bed with millions of women every night. As an after-hours radio talk-show host, Julian captivates his female audience with his deep voice and sensitive spirit. Women can't get enough: They call in, begging for his advice about love, lust, commitment, and betrayal. Julian provides his listeners with the blunt male perspective, and he always has the right thing to say. But when it comes to his own romantic life, or lack thereof, he's at a loss for words.
A widower and father to ten-year-old Samantha, Julian wants nothing more than to settle down again with the right woman. Just when he thinks he's found her in Dr. Terri Ross -- smart, stunning, and with her own counseling practice -- Julian is confronted by a ghost from the past: Olivia Brown, a woman with whom he had a one-night stand. Suddenly Julian finds himself in a situation with a woman who's determined to win him over...or make his life a living hell.
Michael Baisden's hottest offering yet, God's Gift to Women is a compelling tale about the consequences of sex with a stranger.
Customer Reviews:
lousy.......2007-10-01
I was very disappointed. The book read as if the author was speaking---which apparently wasn't at much higher than a high school level. To me it was offensive to african americans--just because one is of color, it doesn't mean they use the cliche black slang that this author chose to use.
Surprisingly addictive!.......2007-08-13
I must say this is the second Micheal Baisden book I have read, however this one kept me wanting more and left me haunted by thoughts of the deranged Olivia Brown for days after I had finished the book. I have already done so, but would recommend this to anyone who wants a quick read and thrilling ride. Hasn't everyone known someone as crazy as Olivia? I truly thought so, but this character shook me to the core. The thought that someone could be that obsessive was truly scarey!
Hey, why are we still waiting for another Baisden novel?
Exciting.......2007-03-26
I really enjoyed this book from the front cover to the back cover. It was a very exciting book. I was in suspense alot. I kept reading during interruptiions to visualize Olivia's crazy actions. By reading the book, you'll discover that Olivia was a crazy, sexy, freak. (she's a insane bi*tch. I would highly recommend this book to all my friends and family.
couldnt put it down!.......2006-12-13
i loved this book. i was skeptical at first to read a book from a new author, but once i started reading it, i enojoyed all of it. it captures you from beginning to end and he is a force to be reckoned with. he has a talent for writing and i highly recommend anyone to get this book.
telling it like it is:).......2006-10-13
i purchased this book and completed in two days.. "THANK U Michael. the suspense was better than fatel attraction. this book totally kept you wanting to read more and more, this was a well written book NEVER A DULL moment. and you kept it real, once again keeping writting those novels
Average customer rating:
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Zora Neale Hurston : Novels and Stories : Jonah's Gourd Vine / Their Eyes Were Watching God / Moses, Man of the Mountain / Seraph on the Suwanee / Selected Stories (Library of America)
Zora Neale Hurston
Manufacturer: Library of America
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General | African American | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Hurston, Zora Neale | African American | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0940450836 |
Book Description
When she died in obscurity in 1960, all her books were out of print. Now, Zora Neale Hurston is recognized as one of the most important and influential modern American writers. This volume, with its companion, "Zora Neale Hurston: Folklore, Memoirs, and Other Writings," brings together for the first time all of Hurston's best works in one authoritative set. It features the acclaimed 1937 novel "Their Eyes Were Watching God," a lyrical masterpiece about a woman's struggle for love and independence. "Jonah's Gourd Vine," based on the story of Hurston's parents, details the rise and fall of a preacher torn between spirit and flesh. "Moses, Man of the Mountain" is a high-spirited retelling of the Exodus story in black vernacular. "Seraph on the Suwanee" portrays the passionate clash between a poor southern "cracker" and her willful husband. A selection of short stories further displays Hurston's unique fusion of folk traditions and literary modernism--comic, ironic, and soaringly poetic.
Customer Reviews:
Inspired.......2006-02-20
If Ms Hurston finally gets the readers she deserves, she will take her place among America's finest writers of the 20th Century. She is a joy to read and repays second and third perusals. The oral narrative quality of her writing places her squarely in the company of the best of her Southern contemporaries. She shares their great gifts. By all means, don't deny yourself the pleasure of reading her work.
Average customer rating:
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Their Eyes Were Watching God (Cliffs Notes)
Megan E. Ash
Manufacturer: Cliffs Notes
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ASIN: 0764586610 |
Book Description
The original CliffsNotes study guides offer expert commentary on major themes, plots, characters, literary devices, and historical background. The latest generation of titles in this series also feature glossaries and visual elements that complement the classic, familiar format.
In CliffsNotes on Their Eyes Were Watching God, you discover the work of one of the 20th century's first African-American female authors – Zora Neale Hurston. In the novel, Janie Crawford returns to her hometown in
Florida and relates to her friend Pheoby the tragic story of her 40-year search for love and respect.
Chapter summaries and commentaries take you through Janie's journey, and critical essays give you insight into the novel's themes and structure, as well as Hurston's use of figurative language and dialect. Other features that help you study include
Classic literature or modern modern-day treasure — you'll understand it all with expert information and insight from CliffsNotes study guides.
Download Description
This is a deeply moving story of one woman's search for love in this world. Although narrated by Hurston, the first and last chapters are "framed" around two long-lost friends who meet on a back porch. The book is a journey through the South and a testament to the hunger and fulfillment that love provides for each of us.
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