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The Land of Decoration

The Land of Decoration
A Novel
by Grace McCleen
Published in USA Mar 2012,
320 pages.

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Page 2 of 4 There are currently 21 reviews
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Rated 4 of 5 of 5 by Maggie R. (Canoga Park, CA)
Finally child I can care about
just a small rant about the run of hyperintellegent children/teens who populate current fiction. Sorry, but they annoy me. (Won't name names.) This is not one of them! Judith is a likeable thoughtful child who constructs an alternate world and falls into a moral quandary when her emerging ego confronts a situation her strictly religious upbringing has not prepared her for. The outcome is always in doubt and the reader's attachment to Judith makes it hard to stop reading.

Rated 3 of 5 of 5 by Aprile G. (Florence, MA)
Suspending disbelief
I really wanted to like The Land of Decoration, but in the end, I felt that it really required too much faith on the part of the reader for the story to hold together.

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Lisa B. (Denton, TX)
Creating your own World
I had a hard time reading this book at first because, as a ten year old, I was bullied like Judith McPherson in the Land of Decoration (but in a much less severe way, thank goodness). I was also exposed to some frightening stories about the book of Revelations and the end times that gave me horrible nightmares. Once I got past that I thought the writing and story were wonderful and perfectly captured the life of a lonely 10 year old girl. I also could have imagined when I was ten building my own world out of junk in my bedroom, just like she did. I am not sure the ending was totally believable, but I liked the rest so much that I am willing to overlook that.

Rated 4 of 5 of 5 by Barbara C. (Riverside, CA)
Not a book to read on Sunday!
Although I rated this book as good, because it was riveting and kept me reading non-stop until I finished it, I found the premise depressing and sad. No one really saw Judith’s distress. God was portrayed as capricious and more than strange. I guess the redeeming feature was this young lady’s “pluckiness” and faith. The story was well-written and captivating but I struggled with the truths of our young protagonist's life.

Rated 4 of 5 of 5 by Lori L. (La Porte, IN)
Faith and Imagination
Debut author Grace McCleen has written a beautiful, thought-provoking book that will appeal to many book clubs, particularly those who enjoy discussions of the nature of faith. Judith is a young girl whose strong faith in God makes her and her father outsiders in their community, but is also the source of her ability to do miracles. Or is it? Discussions regarding faith, imagination, coincidence, and the power of love will surely ensue.

Rated 4 of 5 of 5 by Angela J. (highlands ranch, co)
The Land of Decoration
This is a well written novel told from the perspective of a 10 year old girl who believes she can perform miracles when she is tormented by her classmates. It has great descriptive detail, and will appeal to readers who enjoy inner monologues.
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