What readers think of The Memory Keeper's Daughter, plus links to write your own review.

This author describes how the premise of the story was given her by someone she respected. I really wanted this story to be credible because of encounters with stories that I have had myself.
There are tangents (Rosemary, Michelle, art shows and curators, Frederic, Bree) that add nothing and even trivialize the powerful theme of the rejection of a disabled child. There is perfectionism eating away at every character except Phoebe and I cannot help but think that the author projected this trait of our current culture on people of a different time.

I firmly believe that there are some people who lean more toward reading for "plot" than they do for the characters. I am a character person. I like to read and develop a relationship with the characters in the book. I want to get to know them...to understand them.

Kim Edwards did make a few mistakes in the novel; however, if you are someone who reads for character development, I think she did an excellent job. You may not like where she takes the characters at times but you will find yourself up late at night waiting to find out.

I give this book a "B" and suggest you add it to your reading list : )

The premise of the novel seemed a little shaky from the outset. There was no birth certificate or death certificate issued. Yet there seemed to be no problem registering the child for school or for any other service she needed . At the moment of birth, the father (doctor) makes an split second incredible decision to put the child away, although he could not have known just how severly or mildly the child was affected. It seemed a bit unrealistic to say the least. The characters appeared very wooden. And of course, when the nurse takes the child, she immediately meets the big hearted truck driver. Enough said!

The book should have been powerful! A great story, but the characters were emotionless. I gave it a B-. The correct spelling of the disease, the highlight of the book, is Down Syndrome, not Down's Syndrome. A hearty disappointment.