Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4.5 stars
Jodi Picoult is a sure bet for a good read and this did not disappoint. I have continued to think about this book long after completing it, months ago. There are two heart wrenching story lines, both intricately connected, with finely balanced humor, science, and mystery that will definitely keep you turning pages until the twist ending that I didn't see coming. Although there is an explanation in the book about what "Leaving Time" means, when you get to the end, it takes on a whole new meaning. Her characters are wonderful and lovable and she skillfully handles first person voice for each of them. Her research on elephants is thorough and I learned much.
I want this to be a movie!!! Do yourself a favor & also listen to the audio version - SO beautiful!
For a very good complete review see https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


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Life After Life by Kate Atkinson
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

One star?? My goodreads friend, Elisa, commented on my rating, writing: "That bad? I tried a few times but could not get through the first few pages.... Maybe it's time to quit!" My response to her query follows:
For me, yes. I, too, struggled with it from the start but hung in there because several friends gave it 4-5 star ratings and it had been nominated for several awards, & even won a few. The "Ground Hog Day" multi-life premise was good, and often the prose was excellent but the multiple repetitious lives were tedious & boring. The main character never learns anything...her lives vary between better or worse, not based on insight acquired from her previous lives nor upon her conscious choices, but based primarily upon coincidences. I would put the 572 page book down and later have to force myself to pick it up again, hoping to find what all the critics' hype was about. I read this several months ago but was so tired of the thing & resentful of my time wasted that I just gave it 1 star at the time because I couldn't make myself waste another moment writing a review. Thanks Elisa, for your comment. Now I am posting my response as my review.


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