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By: AUCK 335
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2024-05-07 18:39:35 |
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We thought the book was interesting and we learned some more about the history of the American South.Overall however we thought it rather depressing and sometimes confusing as the focus changed from one character to another. No-one would recommend it. |
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By: TAIH 002
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2024-03-14 13:34:56 |
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Most of our group enjoyed this book - and it created a good discussion about the lives of women in past generations. At times it was sad and haunting, and at times, inspiring! |
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By: AUCK 037
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2024-02-29 10:32:35 |
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We all agreed it was a good read and we had lots to discuss. The issue of why Annie didn’t know was one topic and “you only see what you want to see” was one suggestion and another her fierce misplaced loyalty to her husband so she turned her back on her daughters. We thought the characters were well drawn. However, the story lines were a little conveniently tied up at the end. |
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By: CHCH 336
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2024-02-26 09:57:23 |
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Well-written for a first novel, we were able to visualise the story and setting. |
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By: ROTO 012
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2024-02-21 14:59:41 |
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Our book club felt this book provided an interesting insight into American history pertaining to the South, both post-slavery and pre-Depression. Although, at times, it was a harrowing and disturbing read, fortunately not a lot of detail was given. |
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By: CHCH 136
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2024-02-14 09:39:57 |
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Everyone loved this book. Extremely moving and thought provoking. |
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By: POKE 001
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2024-01-10 11:46:32 |
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We loved this book. Easy to read with so much depth. |
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By: MATUA 001
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2023-11-15 14:19:02 |
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Really good book. The strong female characters and their individual 'voices' stay in your head. Powerful read. |
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By: AUCK 153
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2023-10-16 10:03:41 |
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Everybody though this was an excellent novel, especially for a first novel. Very well-written and lots of interesting historical information about the southern states of America just before the Depression. |
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By: WHITBY 002
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2023-10-10 11:59:41 |
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We all loved this book, one of the better ones this year. So much in the book, as well as great character development, there was culture, relationships, class, race, womens' place in society and food. A lengthy discussion followed! |
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By: PUKEKO 001
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2023-10-02 11:26:50 |
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We all enjoyed this book very much. We thought it was very well-written. The characters were well drawn and the plot developed really nicely. We felt the story highlighted the commonality of women, irrespective of race or class. The author's ability to evoke the situation and create a tense situation was excellent. |
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By: ASHB 016
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2023-09-18 09:37:13 |
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We all really enjoyed this book. It created a lot of discussion and it was interesting how we would've done things differently, but also realised how lucky we were to live in the times that we do now - it's easy to sit back and say that now. Quite a discussion about the camps because we didn't know anything about them and that they still exist. Great story. |
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By: HAMIL 062
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2023-08-07 12:17:55 |
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We all felt this was a well researched and well-written book which described a time of extreme hardships. The strength of the three central women characters and how they dealt with guilt, deceit and the struggles of their time, was inspiring. We had a good discussion about the keeping of secrets within a family. |
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By: BLENH 026
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2023-08-03 11:32:11 |
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Great first book, especially for a group of midwives. Lots of discussion around motherhood, womanhood and female strength. |
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By: METH 001
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2023-07-13 12:26:48 |
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All of the group loved this read and would thoroughly recommend. |
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By: MOTUE 005
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2023-07-05 10:04:29 |
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Good discussion from the group, we thought this was a well-written book on a difficult topic. Some odd gaps in the storyline but we read to the end! A few in the group chose this, and it didn't disappoint. |
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By: DUNED 080
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2023-06-22 13:38:14 |
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This was a great book. One of our best reads this year. |
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By: RICH 007
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2023-06-22 12:25:34 |
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An interesting story set in Carolina in 1924, with well drawn characters. It emphasized the powerlessness of women in that era, but also the strength when they banded together to face adversity. |
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By: TEPUK 006
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2023-06-21 12:14:46 |
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A polarising book. Reactions ranged from loved it and couldn't put it down, to struggled and gave up. The bleakness got to some, whereas others liked how the 3 women often cleverly fought against the different types of patriarchal suppression they experienced. |
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By: WHITIAN 001
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2023-05-17 14:51:28 |
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Mixed views on this book. A good portrayal of the racial situation at the time. |
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By: AUCK 412
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2023-05-15 13:32:49 |
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A wide range of ratings - from some loving it down to others feeling it had no plot. Some didn't like the writing style of switching characters with each chapter. All agreed it was an insight into a world we didn't know much about. |
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By: WANAK 021
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2023-05-08 11:18:18 |
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A great read, all enjoyed the book, particularly the strong women characters. |
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By: PAIHIA 003
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2023-05-04 12:29:10 |
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An enjoyable easy read. Plenty of discussion about the conditions and attitudes of the times. |
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By: WHAKA 017
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2023-05-03 14:50:30 |
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Nearly everyone really enjoyed this book. They felt it was really well researched and covered a lot of strands which were woven together very well. We liked the strong characters of the women. It opened our minds to a lot of aspects of pre depression days. All the characters became very real and we could feel the emotion. It created a lot of very good discussion. Recommended. |
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By: MORRI 001
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2023-04-26 14:50:57 |
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Everybody loved this book. A great story of three strong women in difficult times in 1920s Southern U.S.A. Covered big themes of poverty, patriarchal society, relationships, trauma and race. We think it will make a great movie. |
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By: LOWER 022
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2023-04-01 20:27:30 |
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Our group had a great discussion with this book even though members had mixed feelings about it. Some fell straight into it whereas others found the narrative style annoying. We all liked the world that Deb Spera created and felt we got a good sense of what life was like in the south during the 1920s. At times this was very confronting. We thought the theme of friendship was explored well. |
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By: HAMIL 071
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2023-03-23 14:53:33 |
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Overall the group enjoyed this book. Well-written. |
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By: BLENH 024
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2023-03-23 12:43:32 |
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Majority of readers loved this book, but all agreed it was a bit slow getting into it. Great first book to start our book club. |
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By: WAIKA 001
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2023-03-16 13:42:45 |
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Everyone enjoyed reading this book. There was plenty of discussion as many topics were brought up in the book. The history mentioned of that part of America and the customs of small town living were most interesting, and prompted some to do more research about slavery etc. and the "camp". |
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By: TAKA 001
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2023-03-14 15:35:08 |
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Overall, a very much-loved book; great description of characters, the country etc. The author's background in movies etc. showed in her ability to create pictures with words. She also cleverly narrated each character in her own language. A very good book for a first publication. There was interesting discussion about the three different women, and their motivations. |
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By: DUNED 118
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2023-02-27 12:06:42 |
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This book created some thoughtful discussion about women's roles in the 1920s in Southern USA. It was quite confronting around poverty, race and abuse, and for some the narration of each character was a little annoying. But the novel portrayed the role of women, their lives and the challenges they faced within their families and the wider community in an extremely difficult time. Each of the characters were wives and had daughters and those daughters and those relationships were interwoven into the story as well as to each other. An emotional read. Most of our group would recommend this book . |
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By: GISB 012
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2023-01-09 11:29:15 |
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We all enjoyed this book. One of our group read it twice! |
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By: NEWP 014
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2022-12-21 12:21:56 |
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Universally popular due to the great characters, engaging storyline, and slice of 1920s American life. |
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By: CHCH 539
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2022-11-17 14:28:53 |
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Popular read for all although definitely portrayed some confronting themes and life changing moments. It gave a very real picture of the life and challenges of that era, and particularly for women and their place in relationships and society.. Our discussion focused mostly on the lives of the women, their strengths, but also their vulnerabilities and need for survival. Discussion about the title and who exactly was called home posed interesting thoughts. Provoking warm story. |
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By: AUCK 216
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2022-10-03 11:33:48 |
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The whole group really enjoyed this interesting book which is unusual! |
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By: AUCK 353
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2022-09-30 11:31:20 |
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We all enjoyed the book; found it thought-provoking and the setting interesting. |
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By: ROTO 003
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2022-09-30 10:15:02 |
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We all enjoyed this book. |
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By: HAVE 005
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2022-09-28 11:34:38 |
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Enjoyable read. |
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By: PALMN 010
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2022-07-18 12:01:40 |
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We loved this book. It was well-written and one we couldn't put down. A brilliant first novel. |
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By: AUCK 272
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2022-06-27 14:57:06 |
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Excellent book. |
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