Failed Expectations
What a disappointment! Being an enthusiastic, voracious, and eclectic reader, I have rarely experienced such failed expectations. Given the rich backdrop of our history (WWII through the Civil Rights era with a nod toward the coming feminist movement), I found he lack of character development disappointing and somewhat astonishing. With that kind of tapestry, what I encountered were poorly-rendered sketches of characters rather than the rich portraiture I felt could have been - and the characters never moved off the canvas for me. Some of the sentences are lovely, and I happen to enjoy the "switchback" chronology the author employs, both in books and film, but I continued reading on awaiting a sense of satisfaction/recognition/empathy which never came. I was left in the final pages with an overwhelming sense of "Is that all there is?" I felt the original story line was terrific, and I frankly expected to receive a heavy tome in the mail - so perhaps it is a case of taking on too much. At any rate, given the potential, I have to rate this one a "2", which I've not done before.
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by Sandra E. (Bend, OR)
