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Dave Eggers is a terrifically talented writer; don't hold his cleverness against him. What to make of a book called A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius: Based on a True Story? For starters, there's a good bit of staggering genius before you even get to the true story, including a preface, a list of "Rules and Suggestions for Enjoyment of This Book," and a 20-page acknowledgements section complete with special mail-in offer, flow chart of the book's themes, and a lovely pen-and-ink drawing of a stapler (helpfully labeled "Here is a drawing of a stapler:").
But on to the true story. At the age of 22, Eggers became both an orphan and a "single mother" when his parents died within five months of one another of unrelated cancers. In the ensuing sibling division of labor, Dave is appointed unofficial guardian of his 8-year-old brother, Christopher. The two live together in semi-squalor, decaying food and sports equipment scattered about, while Eggers worries obsessively about child-welfare authorities, molesting babysitters, and his own health. His child-rearing strategy swings between making his brother's upbringing manically fun and performing bizarre developmental experiments on him. (Case in point: his idea of suitable bedtime reading is John Hersey's Hiroshima.)
The book is also, perhaps less successfully, about being young and hip and out to conquer the world (in an ironic, media-savvy, Gen-X way, naturally). In the early '90s, Eggers was one of the founders of the very funny Might Magazine, and he spends a fair amount of time here on Might, the hipster culture of San Francisco's South Park, and his own efforts to get on to MTV's Real World. This sort of thing doesn't age very well--but then, Eggers knows that. There's no criticism you can come up with that he hasn't put into A.H.W.O.S.G. already. "The book thereafter is kind of uneven," he tells us regarding the contents after page 109, and while that's true, it's still uneven in a way that is funny and heartfelt and interesting.
All this self-consciousness could have become unbearably arch. It's a testament to Eggers's skill as a writer--and to the heartbreaking particulars of his story--that it doesn't. Currently the editor of the footnote-and-marginalia-intensive journal McSweeney's (the last issue featured an entire story by David Foster Wallace printed tinily on its spine), Eggers comes from the most media-saturated generation in history--so much so that he can't feel an emotion without the sense that it's already been felt for him. What may seem like postmodern noodling is really just Eggers writing about pain in the only honest way available to him. Oddly enough, the effect is one of complete sincerity, and--especially in its concluding pages--this memoir as metafiction is affecting beyond all rational explanation. --Mary Park
Book Description
The literary sensation of the year, a book that redefines both family and narrative for the twenty-first century.
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius is the moving memoir of a college senior who, in the space of five weeks, loses both of his parents to cancer and inherits his eight-year-old brother. Here is an exhilarating debut that manages to be simultaneously hilarious and wildly inventive as well as a deeply heartfelt story of the love that holds a family together.
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius is an instant classic that will be read in paperback for decades to come. The Vintage edition includes a new appendix by the author.
Customer Reviews:
Amazing!.......2007-10-10
Dave Eggers has said he wouldn't recommend starting a writing career with a memoir as open and honest as this one but I beg to differ. His open honesty about his life is what made me an everlasting fan. To use your own life to show others they are not alone in this insane world is the greatest gift a writer can give.
If you haven't read this book yet, you are missing something great in your life.
a heartbreaking work of staggering genius.......2007-09-30
My high school book club wanted to read this book. It's a Catholic school and 2 students loved the book. I foraged through the whole thing looking for topics that would work with my students. Maybe I'm a prude but with so many expletives and other objectionable topics in this junker, I thought I could be hauled off to the "big house" if we read this book.
Yes, Dave Eggers has done a truthful account of his life and I did feel for him at times, but the ending really made me feel ripped off and used.
I tried to get my money back.......2007-09-18
I suggested this book to my book club without having read it first. Big mistake! All of us hated this book so much, that we wrote a letter to the publisher asking for our money back. Perhaps we don't understand Gen-Xers, but it seemed to all of us to be a book about NOTHING. At least Seinfeld made us laugh!
We now have a rule that no book is to be recommended to the club without having first read it yourself!
Wonderful, one of the best books I've read all year.......2007-08-24
Absolutely wonderful. This is without a doubt one of the best books I've read all year. Eggers' self-referential humor and heartbreaking asides weave a tapestry worthy of praise. I highly recommend this book to almost any audience. Audacious and thought provoking. An affirmation of living life and a meditation on mortality. It is probably the best example of what it is like to be a single twenty-something living in the U.S. in the modern era. Definitely worth the time.
Please read this book!.......2007-08-21
What an incredible account of the author's pain, hope, love, fears, hatred. It's the menoir of author, Dave Eggers, showing his life as guardian of his young brother after the death of their parents.
I don't think I have ever read anything so honest and stark in its emotional content. Particularily being a first-hand personal account of the events, the story shows the jumbles mess of emotions coming with such responsibility and stress.
Please do yourself a favor and read the book!
Book Description
When T.J. Wray lost her 43-year-old brother, her grief was deep and enduring and, she soon discovered, not fully acknowledged. Despite the longevity of adult sibling relationships, surviving siblings are often made to feel as if their grief is somehow unwarranted. After all, when an adult sibling dies, he or she often leaves behind parents, a spouse, and even children—all of whom suffer a more socially recognized type of loss.
Based on the author's own experiences, as well as those of many others,
Surviving the Death of a Sibling helps adults who have lost a brother or sister to realize that they are not alone in their struggle. Just as important, it teaches them to understand the unique stages of their grieving process, offering practical and prescriptive advice for dealing with each stage.
In
Surviving the Death of a Sibling, T.J. Wray discusses:
• Searching for and finding meaning in your sibling's passing
• Using a grief journal to record your emotions
• Choosing a grief partner to help you through tough times
• Dealing with insensitive remarks made by others
Warm and personal, and a rich source of useful insights and coping strategies,
Surviving the Death of a Sibling is a unique addition to the literature of bereavement.
Customer Reviews:
Surviving The Death of a Sibling.......2007-09-21
This is very well written and I am amazed at how much I can relate to the author. I am very happy with this purchase.
surviving the death of a sibling.......2007-08-31
This book really helped me to understand the emotions I was going through. It also helped me to understand what the future holds with this grief. I lost my only sibling and am now responsible for my 91 year old mother. I will keep this book with me forever and recoomend it to anyone who loses a sibling.
Surviving the Death of a Sibling: Living Through Grief When an Adult Brother or Sister Dies.......2007-03-22
Well written. Not everything applied to my situation, but at the same time, there were many small things that I had shrugged off thinking it was just me, when in fact, they were related to the death of my younger sister. A must read if you have lost a sibling.
From a Mother's Heart............2007-01-16
After losing my daughter in a tragic accident on Feb. 5, 2006, I was reading everything I could find. A copy of this book was given to me by the Victims' Advocate tht worked with the Colorado Highway Patrol. Realizing that my other children had tried to take care of me in the days and weeks that followed our loss and had put their own loss aside, I felt I needed to know what to do to help them. In reading this book I found as much help for my own heart as I did for my other children. They have all read this book and have found it very helpful. I read and reread many passages and highlighted some that I needed to refer to quickly when I am in need of a helping hand. The information in each chapter that is titled what doesn't help has been especially helpful. I have given these books to others this past year to help them on their grief journey.
A Tribute to our Brothers and Sisters...A Book to TREASURE in our time of sorrow.......2005-11-05
When I first read this book my own brother and only sibling had been dead for many years. During the course of those years I had read every grief book I could find, yet not one spoke directly to me or my situation like Dr. Wray's book. As I read her book I was amazed at how her feelings following the death of her brother so paralleled my own feelings following the death of my brother. Losing a sibling is one of life's greatest, and often, unrecognized losses. Although nothing can take away the sadness and the sense of unfairness that we feel when our brother or sister dies, Dr. Wray's words help us to understand that we are not alone in our sorrow. Comfort comes from the knowledge that others share our pain, and as the book conveys, we, as surviving siblings are forever connected. Dr. Wray truly captures the essence of sibling loss and provides a framework for the stages of grief that a bereaved person typically goes through after the death of a loved one. I was captivated by the experiences of other surviving siblings whose stories are so beautifully woven by Dr. Wray throughout the book. Each chapter ends with a "What Helps" section containing many straightforward and practical suggestions for coping with grief. There is an excellent resource list at the end of the book. In addition to recommending the book to other bereaved siblings, I have also recommended it to anyone who has experienced the loss of a loved one. This book will be a treasure to all those who are suffering through grief!
Average customer rating:
- Great Commute
- Three Weeks with my Brother
- Excellent
- Very Emotional
- Three Weeks With My Brother (CD edition)
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Three Weeks With My Brother
Micah Sparks
Manufacturer: Hachette Audio
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ASIN: 1586216430 |
Customer Reviews:
Great Commute.......2007-05-25
I commute 4x a week to work, which is roughly 130 miles round trip (but very worth every mile), and I am always looking for books on CD to listen to on the ride. This story was wonderful to listen to; it made the drive fly by. I found myself excited to get in my car for my trip back and forth, just to hear the next chapter and adventure. The stories of Nicholas Sparks' childhood were my favorite part.
Three Weeks with my Brother.......2006-11-10
Excellent memoir. Kept my attention the entire book and you really felt for the characters. I love all of Nicholas Sparks' fiction books, but this one, you got to know Nicholas Sparks' and read about his interesting life. My husband loved it, too. Very, very good read. Highly recommend!
Excellent.......2006-01-19
As i was traveling with my boyfriend to Florida to visit with my family i acciedntly bought this book. i meant to buy something else by Nicholas Sparks but it just so happens that is was Three weeks with my brother. I dont not have any brothers and up until this point i didnt think that the realastionships between brothers and sisters could be so close. I loved how this book tied in the relationship that the two brothers had as well as the relationship with the whole family. I myself have not done too much traveling around the world and loved the insight that the book gave me. I actually have looked into a trip to see some of the locations that the two brothers went to.
This book was very inspirational. It allowed me to want to connect more with my family as well as my surroundings. I loved it......
Very Emotional.......2005-08-30
It took me a while to get into the autobiography of Nicholas Sparks, but if you can get past the beginning, it is a very emotional story. I listened to it while I was driving and I was tearing up a few times, which isn't too good while driving, LOL. I think this would actually make a good movie.
Three Weeks With My Brother (CD edition).......2004-12-19
This is one of the most wonderful, inspirational, and moving books that I have read. At first, I didn't realize that the authors were Nicholas Sparks, author of The Notebook and Message In A Bottle, among other best selling books, and his brother. I hope this doesn't give anything away except that I am kinda dumb when it comes to remembering authors and titles. The book is really an autobiography covering Nick and his entire family. He covers their many trials and tribulations and still manages to see the good that came out of what for me and others, I suppose, would be absolutely devastating and horrible things to happen. The descriptions of his family members, especially his wife, are outstanding and again food for thought and inspiration. We see how ordinary people can be extraordinary when you know them better.
I listened to this book on CD while driving alone to and from Florida and in a pretty deep depression not being helped much by medications. The CD was really selected because of the travel theme. I love individual travelogues that have a literary and philosophical point of view and have visions of writing something similar myself.
While Three Weeks With My Brother could easily be depressing to some, especially like me, suffering from severe depression and still grieving for a loved one, I found it to be both sad and uplifting as Nick and his brother talked out their life, including the ups and downs. They spoke from the vantage point of both being on what anyone would say is a material up, but they carried with them memories of severe tragedies in their lives, mostly brought about through their unusually strong family ties and love.
I feel the CD edition might be better than the print version since the narrator is so good and the book is both interior thoughts of the author and many conversations. I wondered if they were recorded or all taken from notes, but they were certainly believable.
Anyone facing tough times in their personal life should read this book or listen to the audio. You will be inspired, I feel, if you go to the end. You might be inspired, as I have been, to try once again to take a long trip to think over and contemplate my life. Now I do this in the dead of night at home, making my neighbors think I am either a recluse or some type of secret agent.
Average customer rating:
- Travels with the ugly Americans
- A built-in fan club
- Nicholas Sparks best book so far!!!!
- A good read
- Three Weeks with My Brother
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Three Weeks with My Brother
Nicholas Sparks , and
Micah Sparks
Manufacturer: Grand Central Publishing
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Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0446500100 |
Book Description
In January 2003, Nicholas Sparks and his brother Micah set off on a three-week trip around the world. It was to mark a milestone in their lives, for at 37 and 38 respectively, they were now the only surviving members of their family. As Nicholas and Micah travel the globe, the intimate story of their family unfolds in the details of the untimely deaths of their parents and only sister. Against the backdrop of the wonders of the world, the Sparks brothers band together to heal, to remember, and to learn to live life to the fullest.
Customer Reviews:
Travels with the ugly Americans.......2007-09-25
This is for the book on CD and I just couldn't get through it. From his loud brother yelling at the airport raising his arms up -- the overgrown frat boy -- to the same brother lying down on a Mayan temple and wondering why it's sacred and being offended that he couldn't get his picture taken on it. Of course, Nicholas doesn't call is brother out on this. What would Micah think if someone laid across a U.S. flag and wanted their photo on it?
They mock other cultures, laugh at pottery, are bored with much of the trip ... and the knuckleheads on the trip with them (I can't believe these people are college graduates) don't understand why Spanish is being spoken over the Super Bowl commentary in Peru. "What is he saying," they ask. You don't know what Spanish sounds like and you're stunned it's broadcast on Peruvian TV? Again, Nicholas has no comment on just how clueless these people are. The author without an opinion.
I continued to get offended by the rich frat-kid type brothers as much as Nicholas' boring, dry, uneventful prose. Also, some of the stuff they did as kids was more than just rambunctious, it was violent. (I.E. rolling people up in carpet and then jumping on them.) Of course, Nicholas -- ever the spectator without an opinion -- does nothing. Clearly the immature children barely grew up.
This is a frustrating read on the trip around the world by two arrogant elitists. Count me out.
A built-in fan club.......2007-09-03
It's apparent to me from reading all the hymns to Sparks' book that the legions of fans of his overwrought, over-emotional novels have flooded the reviews portion of this book, too. While I can't completely condemn the book, primarily because I learned something from some of the histories of the places the brothers visited, I would much have preferred more about the places themselves--NOT the brothers' reactions to them. Other reviewers have commented on the "Ugly American" aspects of their behavior, so there is no need for me to do it, suffice it to say that I agree with those reviewers.
I was touched by their grief over the losses of their parents, but since the children were adults by this time, I also wanted to say, "Get over it," people die and we move on. Sister Dana's death affected me much more, since her lingering death was faced with such strength.
This book has less of the tear-jerker writing style of Sparks' novels, but he still likes to stick in the "kicker line" at times, particularly after a death: "Dana was thirty-three years old" and "It was just the two of us now. Brothers." (The latter word on a line by itself.) Sparks may laugh all the way to the bank at those of us who criticize his writing style, but such obvious appeal to emotions has always struck me as unsubtle and contrived.
Nicholas Sparks best book so far!!!!.......2007-08-21
This is a memoir, unlike his other books, but it is by far the best he's ever written!!!
Nicholas finds a trip on line for 3 weeks around the world. He decides to take his brother Micah and it becomes a trip down memory lane. The sadness, excitement, and joy of their life stories are unremarkable! It seems unreal that someone can have this much grief.
You will LOVE this book!!!!
A good read.......2007-08-19
I've read quite a few memoirs, and this one was quite enjoyable. You know the gist of it from the description/s above: Sparks recounts his childhood while on a trip with his brother. While some parts of the trip were a little dull (that's okay, they were also bored with some of their trip!), it has everything you could want in a good read -- honesty, humor, sadness, triumph, etc.
If you like memoirs -- and even if you don't -- I think you will like this one! I recommend it.
Three Weeks with My Brother.......2007-08-15
I just started reading the book i am enjoying it si far. I really like it because it is a real story. I love all of his books and i Thank you i will be getting more i only need 3 more and i will have all of them and i cant wait untill Sept.25
Book Description
A renowned German novelist's memoir of his brother, who joined the SS and was killed at the Russian front.
Uwe Timm was only two years old when in 1942 his older brother, Karl Heinz, announced to his family he had volunteered for service with an elite squadron of the German army, the SS Totenkopf Division, also known as Death's Heads. Little more than a year later Karl Heinz was injured in battle at the Russian front, his legs amputated, and a few weeks after that he died in a military hospital. To their father, Karl Heinz's death only served to immortalize him as the courageous one, the obedient one, the one who upheld the family honor. His childhood was marked by the mythology of his brother's lost life; his absence-the hole he left in the family-just as palpable as if he were still alive. His mother's sadness and his father's rage over the loss of Karl Heinz ultimately defined Uwe's relationship with his parents. But while they eulogized the boy, Uwe wondered: who really had his brother been?
The life and death of his older brother has haunted Uwe Timm for more than sixty years. His parents' silence was one of the most painful aspects of his family history. Not even after the war ended, and details of unspeakable horrors emerged, did his parents ever acknowledge Germany's guilt and Karl Heinz's role in it. They simply said: We didn't know. After the deaths of his parents and older sister Timm set out in search of answers. Using military reports, letters, family photos and cryptic entries from a diary his brother kept during the war, he began to piece together the picture, discovering his brother's story is not just that of one man, but the tragedy of an entire generation. In the Shadow of My Brother is a meditation on German history and guilt, one that is both nuanced and measured.
Customer Reviews:
Don't let the title fool you.......2006-08-13
This book is by far not about, as the title suggests life in his brothers shadow,as much as it is about life in his fathers shadow, or the shadow of a defeated Germany!
Herr Timm seems to be searching for his personal share of Germanys collective guilt. The writings of his brother might at most contribute 1 full page to this book! Herr Timm seems to be full of self-pity calling himself over and over again "the afterthought" where I would think his father instead planned him to be his brothers replacement. My father grew up in this same Germany and I have good insight into his thinking. I would suggest because of Herr Timms fathers position he knew a war would happen, and most likely consume his oldest son, that is what brought Uwe into being, not some accident or afterthought.Also his insistance that the 3rd. SS was an elite unit that the camp guards were drawn from is also a factual error. The 3rd SS began as the "Totenkopfverbande" they were the camp guards before the war! After the Polish and French campaigns they were re-organised into the Totenkopf division. The original members and leaders of the organisation Todt were all involved in the German camp system, not as Herr Timm suggests "elite soldiers from which guards were drawn" but rather camp guards that were formed into a front-line fighting unit!Herr Timm also wants to take small obscure entries in his brothers diaries and contort them into some evil or sinister act! A louse hunt is a louse hunt plain and simple, fodder for my MG is just an expression of the daily exposure to the horrors of front-line service. Herr Timm is searching so hard, it seems also hoping to find some act of brutality or inhumanity that he might link to his brother as to justify the feeling he has inside of himself! This book is a waste of time if you are seeking 1st hand accounts of the war, but if you want to read of the guilt placed on the German people and the effects of defeat on a family and country, it might be of some helpful insight.
history, memory, guilt.......2006-01-09
This is less an account of Uwe Timm's brother's life and death in the SS -- though it is that -- than it is a reflection on memory and history, specifically on what they mean in postwar Germany. Timm's brother's diary, kept against regulations ("it ought not to exist," Timm writes), is brief and ambiguous. And in those ambiguities lie the greatest turmoil and conflict, with no real answers. What did the brother mean when he referred to a "big louse hunt"? Clearly, he was involved in criminal activities ("plenty of loot!"), and clearly, he was coarsened by the war ("fodder for my MG"). But was he involved in atrocities? Did he murder civilians? Those are the questions that Timm can't answer with any certainty. They point to the doubt and guilt of an entire people, a people who still struggle to come to terms with the war. Sixty years: still no answers, still no resolution.
great book.......2005-10-27
I was born and raised in Germany. Even though my parents were born after the war and both my grandfathers were dead by the time I started asking questions I can still relate very well to the unease when it comes to talking about WWII.
Where I grew up we had a neighbour whom I only knew as a mild mannered older guy, who loved us kids, would give us sweets and let us play in the big old trees in his garden. At one point I discovered that he was a member of the SS in WWII and had fought somewhere in Russia. He had no family. When he was in his eighties, he started opening up to a few people in the neighbourhood, among them my family. He would talk about the war, his comrades and generally the hard life they lived. He would always start crying. He would never mention fighting, killing civilians and all the other things he most likely saw and did. We all knew about those things, but we also felt sorry for the old guy and nobody pressed questions. He was a neighbour, not close family after all.
Timm's book perfectly captures the conflict of the - very normal - desire to love and admire a brother (father, uncle, grandfather, neighbour) while at the same time knowing that that person must have consciously participated in something unspeakably atrocious.
Obviously there is no easy solution and that conflict is one that generations of Germans had to deal with after the war. It is impossible to excuse what happened, but it is equally impossible to condemn all these people around you who all might have participated to various degrees, and be it just by keeping silent.
Average customer rating:
- Well Written, but not a Classic
- Great read - stayed with me for a long time
- Typical Literary Pap/ Kitsch
- Don't you have anything better to read?!
- See, kids? Even emo existed in the '70s.
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Ordinary People
Judith Guest
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0140065172 |
Customer Reviews:
Well Written, but not a Classic.......2007-01-18
ORDINARY PEOPLE is a novel about the Jarretts, a wealthy suburban family that has to deal with the suicide attempt of their son. This novel is well written, but I found it a bit slow going in parts. Ms. Guest changes the point of view a lot in this book, and writes in a stylistic stream-of-consciousness style that makes it hard to strongly relate to any of the main characters.
I also found the title of this book rather odd, since the story deals with a privileged, highly neurotic family that is hardly representative of the population at large. Most people don't have the option to jet off to Europe in response to a family crisis, for example. I understand that rich people aren't necessarily happy, but that doesn't mean that I have to feel sorry for them.
Many of the issues in ORDINARY PEOPLE were probably cutting edge in 1978, but we now live in a more modern age of self-evaluation, so I'm guessing that most Americans are now very familiar with the themes presented in this book. Still, Guest is a fine writer, and there are many moments in this book that are emotionally honest and touching.
I would therefore recommend this novel for people who are interested in a good family drama. This novel is a good one, but I wouldn't compare it to such masterpieces such as CATCHER IN THE RYE or A SEPARATE PEACE.
Great read - stayed with me for a long time.......2006-12-17
This was one of my favourite books as a teen (ie about 15 years ago)! It's about grief and death and a family falling apart. I kept my battered copy for years when I lived in the UK and brought it home to Jamaica with me. I really identified with it at the time and felt that it crossed gender, racial, and cultural barriers in dealing with the topics. I am not white, upper middle class American and yet I felt it could be my family or anyone's that this happened to. I can't believe some readers thought this was shallow. And believe it or not, not every psychiatrist medicates you and sends you home. Read it!
Typical Literary Pap/ Kitsch.......2006-06-11
Ease of reading: It was fairly light read and can be finished in a afternoon or two. There are a few too many characters to keep straight easily, and the author's habit of starting a scene right in the middle of someone's stream of consciousness doesn't make the prose any easier to follow.
Resemblance to reality: This is very low. The visits to the psychiatrist are what put this more firmly in the category of fiction than any other thing. I happen to know for a fact that psychiatrists don't sit and listen to patients' existential meanderings for several visits. That is the job of COUNSELORS. Psychiatrists want you in, medicated, and out the door as soon as possible. Most visits last 15 minutes, tops.
Ability to create interest: Not all that high. So this is a family of people who have problems. Who doesn't? One really wonders when reading this book: If these characters had a little less disposable income, would these problems be as "serious" as they were? Or would these people have been about the business of living every day life and therefore putting emotional crises on the back burner?
Save your money.
Don't you have anything better to read?!.......2006-04-18
Although this book is supposedly a classic of modern fiction, I personally do not really like it. I find it to be overdone and melodramatic. The writing oozes with poetic descriptions of everything, from a beer to the colors on walls. While conveying the thought processes of neurosis, this made it a tedious and ambiguous read. The author repeatedly flies into the pure abstraction of subjective emotions, and the characters wax philosophical about the fleeting impermanance of modern life. Nor did I find the subject matter of the breakup of the family very interesting because it has been expounded upon (and proselytized) ad infinitum by social critics and so the points the book made weren't exactly revolutionary. The key psychological analyses that it made have been better covered in Catcher in the Rye. However, it is still arguably an important book to read simply because of its cultural relevance and the somewhat distinctive style in which it was written, which seems to have endeared it to many readers.
See, kids? Even emo existed in the '70s........2006-03-03
Ordinary People is an atrocious book. The subject matter is morbid, the flashbacks of the boating accident are incomprehensible, the dialogue will put you to sleep, and there's even a pre-marital sex scene between our emo protagonist, Conrad, and that skank, Jeaninne. Conrad's parents have to be the worst in the world. The mother is a recluse who bottles up her feelings around her son and his supportive father is a borderline alcoholic. I was forced to read this book in high school and it just made me feel depressed and disgusted. Please, stay as far away from this book as possible.
Average customer rating:
- Unforgettable Sadness
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- An Unfogetable Story
- An Unforgetable Story
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Angels in Pink: Holly's Story (Angels in Pink)
Lurlene Mcdaniel
Manufacturer: Laurel Leaf
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Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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Angels in Pink: Raina's Story (Angels in Pink)
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Letting Go of Lisa
ASIN: 0440238676
Release Date: 2007-04-10 |
Book Description
Pink Angels and best friends Holly, Raina, and Kathleen have been through a lot over the past year. The summer before their senior year promises to be busy but fun, as Holly and Raina return to their full-time volunteer jobs at the hospital and Kathleen, who needs the money, works at the hospital gift shop. Of course, Raina and Kathleen will be spending as much time as possible with their boyfriends, Hunter and Carson.
Holly is happy for her friends, but she can't help feeling a little left out when hanging out with the two couples. She does finally have a boy interested in her, but the e-mails from her secret admirer, Shy Boy, have recently stopped coming. What has she done wrong? Will she ever meet her mystery guy in person? But Holly's world is forever changed when tragedy strikes close to home. It's not fair that the most loving and giving person she knows is the victim of a random crime. She, Raina, and Kathleen will need each other now more than ever.
Customer Reviews:
Unforgettable Sadness.......2007-05-03
Holly's book is the greatest of all us girls. Three girls are pink angels and best friends but then some one dies and they all fall apart (me to). Then holly falls in love with Chad but he is sick but he won't go away in till she says scram. I cound't but this book down and I'll have to read the other ones. I'm sure if you grab this death and romance book you will never put it down.
good book.......2007-01-15
Typical Lurlene McDaniel book. Full of hope and drama and heartbreak. If you've read the other two "Angels in Pink" books, read this one because it provides closure for the other two.
book worm reivew .......2006-11-23
this book was one of her best. I have read a lot of her books and this is One of her best (and she has a lot)i wish They weren't as sad, but that is what makes them SOOOOOOOOO GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
An Unfogetable Story.......2006-07-06
The book Angels in Pink "Holly's Story" by Lurene McDaniel has a lot of drama, fun times and a lot about REAL life. THis book shows you that life goes on whatever might happen. It also shows you you that you must never blame God for what happened a death or anything you must always believe in him. This book also shows you that there will be hard times that you will have to go through in life but yet there will be a lot of positive things too. Like in the book Holly had LOst her Brother Hunter but yet she feels like they have been closer tahn ever. I really liked this book a lot it was a book that I can relate to and understnd what my dad is going through.His mom died on April 17th but he took it strong just like Holly's dad did but there are times that i can see that there are times that he jsut want to cry. MS.McDaniel has wrote the book with such descriptive detail. I rate this book 5 stars. I recomend this book to young readers who have experienced death in the family this would show them that there aren't the only one that are experiencing the same situation.
An Unforgetable Story .......2006-07-06
The book Angles in Pink " Holly's Story" by Luclrene McDaniel has lot of drama, fun times with friends, Sturgles with times of your friendship and a lot about REAL life. This book shows you how life goes on whatever might happen. It also shows you that you must never blame God for what happened. A death or anything it may beyou must always believe in him. This book also shows you that there will be a lot of hard times in your life that you will have to go through in life but yet there will be a lot of positive things that would go with them too. Like in the book Holly has lost her brother Hunter but she found Chad a really nice boy and to her it seems like Hunter and her had never been closer than ever. I really liked this book because it was a book that I can relate to. My dad's mom just died on April 17th so I now how he feels through this book. Although my dad acted like Holly's dad he still had times that he wanted to cry. Ms. McDaniel wrote the book with such descriptive detail that in every word you read out of the book you can picture it on your mind. I would give this book five stars. I would also recommend it to young readers who have experienced death in the family before. This will show that you aren't the only one going through these things.
Average customer rating:
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Fathers Aren't Supposed to Die: Five Brothers Reunite To Say Good-bye
T.M. Shine
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
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Binding: Hardcover
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Timeline Month In The Life Of A Guy Who Refuses
ASIN: 0684863510 |
Book Description
It begins with a phone call. It could have been his best friend, or the phone company trying to get him to make one more switch. Instead, it's the older brother he hasn't seen in years informing Terry Shine that their father is lying in a hospital bed unable to speak, bleeding in the brain. Terry and his four brothers rush to the hospital and prepare for the end, but nothing could have prepared them for what is to come.
"Old people are supposed to die," Terry acknowledges in a whisper of resignation. "Yeah, but fathers aren't," his brother Bill responds. Suddenly, five estranged siblings are plunged together into a bewildering world of medical choices and living wills -- of hours sitting by their father's bed, begging him simply to blink, to squeeze a hand, to nod. With no formal guidelines to follow, Terry and his brothers fumble along while their helplessness makes them focus on absurdities: What kind of car does each doctor drive? Which vending machine has the best Danish? They bring in a boom box and some of their father's CDs, trying everything in their power to drive the life back into him. They keep trying until sheer exhaustion leads them to the brink of acceptance. But, as the Shine family discovers, there is nothing that trains us to navigate death's terrain, and nothing we can do to come out of the experience unscathed: death slams us in ways we can never possibly have fathomed.
At once heart-wrenching, insightful, and piercingly witty, Fathers Aren't Supposed to Die masterfully captures the devastating experience of trying to come to terms with a parent's death.
Book Description
“P. Gill White, PhD has done an outstanding job of writing on a much-needed subject within the bereavement community, sibling grief. As siblings sadly are often the “forgotten” grievers when the death of their brother or sister occurs, a book such as this is greatly needed. Dr. White's insights and experiences as both a bereaved sibling herself and as a sibling grief counselor are sure to be a great help to all who read her book. Bereaved Parents of the USA will definitely be recommending her book as a resource to both our siblings and their parents. -Patricia L. Moser, President Bereaved Parents of the USA www.bereavedparentsusa.org
Author P. Gill White, PhD, was only fifteen when her sister Linda made her swear not to tell anyone about the pain Linda had in her side, because she thought it would spoil an upcoming family vacation. Linda died four months later from a rare form of cancer called rhabdomyosarcoma. White and her family never talked about the loss until decades later when memories began to haunt her.
Sibling Grief is White's validation of the emotional significance of sibling loss. She draws on clinical experience, research, and wisdom from hundreds of bereaved siblings to explain the five healing tasks specific to sibling grief.
White identifies the effects of this profound loss on daily actions and emotions and describes the dream patterns of bereaved siblings, showing how healing is reflected in the dream state. Throughout, she illustrates the long-lasting connection between siblings—a connection that death itself cannot sever. Sibling Grief is a powerful mix of information, personal reflections, and poetry—just what you need to begin your own healing journey.
Customer Reviews:
Eye-opening.......2007-05-30
As a surviving sibling I found this book contained a lot of information about how we respond to a brother or sister's death. I recognised some clear patterns of behaviour that definitely applied to me. It contains information on how siblings of all ages respond and while I would have liked more detail on the section that particularly applied to myself, I found reading the other sections very interesting too as they gave me some insight into how my other siblings may have been affected.
Outstanding Book.......2006-06-30
Gill White does an outstanding job in this much needed book about sibling loss. This book has been my savior. It is in essence years of councling in one book. The author explores every avenue of sibling loss at any age and it's profound effects on the surivors lives. She also explores the ignorance in society on this topic. Excelent reading material.
Not forgotten anymore.......2006-05-30
If siblings are called the forgotten mourners, here is one place where they are remembered. P. Gill White, director of the Sibling Connection, writes about the issues that we deal with on a daily basis and offers hope for healing. The book is a mixture of material--research based information, wisdom from other bereaved siblings, the author's own story, material from survivors who have been helped in therapy, legends, poetry.
I loved the legend of the tear jar and the legend of the loneliness birds--these and the poetry greatly enriched the book.
I particularly liked the section on dreams and I can foresee others wanting to study this section with a view to their own healing or even further research. The book made me feel understood and I wanted to give it to my friends.
Average customer rating:
- A sad, but very good lesson learned.
- The bike accident
- The BEST book EVER
- Mick Harte Was Here
- Mick Harte Was Here
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Mick Harte Was Here
Barbara Park
Manufacturer: Yearling
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ASIN: 0679882030
Release Date: 1996-08-27 |
Book Description
How could someone like Phoebe’s brother die? Mick Harte was one of the coolest kids you’d ever want to meet. Mick was also the kid who would still be alive now—if he’d only worn his bicycle helmet. . . .
Customer Reviews:
A sad, but very good lesson learned........2007-08-06
A helmet,... that's all it would have took to prevent the death of Mick Harte. Phoebe was at soccer practice when she first heard the ambulance sirens. Automatically she knew that something was wrong. Mick Harte Was Here, is about a boy named Mick Harte and how, his death had such an effect on his family and community. In this book, it really sets in on how important it is to wear a helmet when riding your bike. Even if you think you are too cool to do so. Mick, thought that a helmet would make him look like dork. One day when riding to a friends house, from school, Mick accidentally hit's a rock on the sidewalk causing his bike to get just close enough to the street for... well, disaster.
In this book, the authors largest and most important message, was to always wear a helmet while riding your bike. An author's note backs up her message at the end of the book where she gives actual percentages about bicycle accidents. If I were to rate this book, I would give it 5 stars defiantly! It is a fantastic book for families everywhere to read, due to its very important lesson. Another book that I read, and think you will like if this book sounds good to you is Freak The Mighty, which is also a bit sad at the end, but has a good plot and excellent characters.
The bike accident .......2007-06-22
I am a 6th gader, and I have never been a great reader. I have always been below grade average in reading so this summer when my brother asked to go into the local book store I sighed. When we got to the bookstore my mother learned of the summer reading porgam from the lady working there. When my mother asked if anyone wanted to do the summer reading program both of my siblings rasied their hands, but not me. Anyway my mom yelled at me and there you have it. I was now doing the summer reading program. About a year ago one of my teachers told me to read this book. Of course I never got to it, but i am so glad i finally read it. This book shows the true perspective of Pheobe Harte and the suffering over her bothers bicycle accident. I think I read this book faster than any others, and I would love to have more people read it and see what they think.
The BEST book EVER.......2007-05-24
I'm a 5th grader and I have read Mick Harte Was Here a least 5 times this is my
6th time and I LOOOOOOVE Mick Harte Was Here. I think that they need to
make a movie about it I recomend you read it. I just had a bike accidend and I hit my head but now I've now realized that Barbra Park's message really means alot!!!
Mick Harte Was Here.......2006-12-21
Mick Harte is the protagonist's brother, who died from a bike accident. Phoebe was the sister of Mick Harte, which is the protagonist. Phoebe and Mick got into fights all the time. They fought over a tattoo of pirates from a cereal box one day. Mick made up a story because Phoebe and Mick wrote F-A-R-T in a wet cemented driveway. Mick said a monkey wrote it and he already chased it back to Africa.
Then a terrible thing happened when Phoebe was at soccer practice. She was running and she heard sirens coming her way. She doesn't like sirens at all, they mean bad things happened. Instead she stops running and looks up at the ambulance. The ambulance pulls into the school road and Mick's bike was on the ground and Phoebe realized that Mick probably got hurt. She was hoping it was one of Mick's friends. Then later she found out it was Mick and he died from a head injury. If you like Funny but sad books, here is a great book for those emotions.
Mick Harte Was Here.......2006-12-21
Mick Harte Was Here was a good book. It was very interesting book and very sad book. It makes people think twice about wearing a helmet. It also relates to somebody who has had a recent lost in their family. It had good tragedy and down falls in this book.
I would not recommend this book to anybody. It was a very sad book; it might make younger kids feel bad. It might make people feel upset about their losses. It might not be suitable for some people. That is why I don't recommend this book.
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