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ClareR (5846 KP) rated Soldier Sailor in Books

Jun 26, 2024  
Soldier Sailor
Soldier Sailor
Claire Kilroy | 2023 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
This WILL be on my books of the year list. It’s raw, moving, and reminded me of the slog of parenting babies and small children. And I was/ am one of the weirdos that enjoyed it. My mantra during that “4th trimester” with 2 premature babies (2 1/2 years apart) was “This will pass, I’ll look back on this as a memory”, though. It was tough. And my eldest son is disabled, so we had that (the disability!) to work with, too.

I think that’s what this book grasped so well - the sheer overwhelm of new parenting. It is like sleep-deprived drowning. I was very lucky to have an extremely useful/ thoughtful co-parent, unlike Soldier, who was left largely on her own to negotiate parenting a baby and later, a toddler. And I have very low housework expectations (still. Should I admit that?!).

The last 40 or so pages contains some of the best writing I’ve read in a while. I had to shut myself away to read it, while I sobbed and tried to carry on reading through my tears.

Utterly beautiful, and I urge you to read it.
  
40x40

Kristy H (1252 KP) rated The Second Sister in Books

Feb 13, 2018  
TS
The Second Sister
Marie Bostwick | 2015
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Lucy Toomey is busy working on a Presidential campaign. Her days and nights are consumed by work and punctuated only by late night calls from her sister, Alice, who still lives in Lucy's hometown of Nilson's Bay, Wisconsin. We learn that Alice suffered an accident at 18, which left her mentally disabled, and for which Lucy still feels guilty, many years later. However, not even her guilt can convince her to return to Nilson's Bay. Until she receives a call that Alice has passed away.

As the campaign winds down, Lucy finds herself once again in her hometown, settling Alice's affairs, living in her old home, and trying to figure out her life.

Overall, this is a fairly easy read, though I found the beginning a bit slow. Lucy is not the most likeable of characters, though she did grow on me as she herself grows. The plot is rather predictable, though you don't find yourself fighting the ending much. Once I got through about the first third, the book went quickly and was a pleasant read, but nothing amazing. (It did make me want to visit Door County, Wisconsin, however! Well-done on that front.)

Note: I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in return for an unbiased review.
  
    Knock, knock, knock!

    Knock, knock, knock!

    Book and Entertainment

    (0 Ratings) Rate It

    App

    The book Knock, knock, knock! by Anna-Clara Tidholm has been a children's favorite for twenty years...