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Christmas Cookie Club #2
A Gift for My Sister
From the author of The Christmas Cookie Club , a touching novel about two sisters struggling to understand the meaning of family.
Ann Pearlman's The Christmas Cookie Club enthralled readers everywhere with a heartwarming and touching story about the power of female friendship.
Now, in A Gift for My Sister , she once again explores the depth of the human heart, and this time it’s through the eyes of two sisters. Tara and Sky share a mother, but aside from that they seem to differ in almost every way. When a series of tragedies strikes, they must somehow come together in the face of heartbreak, dashed hopes, and demons of the past. The journey they embark on forces each woman to take a walk in the other’s shoes and examine what sisterhood really means to them. It’s a long road to understanding, and everyone who knows them hopes these two sisters can find a way back to each other.
Ann Pearlman's The Christmas Cookie Club enthralled readers everywhere with a heartwarming and touching story about the power of female friendship.
Now, in A Gift for My Sister , she once again explores the depth of the human heart, and this time it’s through the eyes of two sisters. Tara and Sky share a mother, but aside from that they seem to differ in almost every way. When a series of tragedies strikes, they must somehow come together in the face of heartbreak, dashed hopes, and demons of the past. The journey they embark on forces each woman to take a walk in the other’s shoes and examine what sisterhood really means to them. It’s a long road to understanding, and everyone who knows them hopes these two sisters can find a way back to each other.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published November 10, 2011
15 people are currently reading
918 people want to read
About the author
Ann Pearlman
15 books139 followersAnn Pearlman was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award for INFIDELITY which was also made into a Lifetime movie. Her first novel, THE CHRISTMAS COOKIE CLUB has been translated into 6 languages and is a national and international bestseller. A GIFT FOR MY SISTER, following characters first introduced in The Christmas Cookie Club won a prize for best fiction. THE LOTTERY, the third in the series, was published in the fall of 2014.
Ann also writes non-fiction. INSIDE THE CRIPS is the story of a gang member from L.A. and KEEP THE HOME FIRES BURNING sent Ann on a national TV, (Oprah) radio and print tour. She wrote a cookbook with her friend, and hostess of her cookie club, Marybeth Bayer, THE CHRISTMAS COOKIE COOKBOOK. OTHER LIVES, ANGELS, and the STORY OF MR.BLUE are illustrated short stories.With HIS EYE IS ON THE SPARROW, Ann returned to memoir as part of Shebooks first launch in late 2013.
Ann studied writing at the University of Michigan, attended workshops at Sewanee and Squaw Valley Writers' Conferences
When she's not writing, Ann making art (in fact, her work has been in galleries throughout the US.) dancing, and hanging out with family and friends.
read more and see her art: www.annpearlman.net
Ann also writes non-fiction. INSIDE THE CRIPS is the story of a gang member from L.A. and KEEP THE HOME FIRES BURNING sent Ann on a national TV, (Oprah) radio and print tour. She wrote a cookbook with her friend, and hostess of her cookie club, Marybeth Bayer, THE CHRISTMAS COOKIE COOKBOOK. OTHER LIVES, ANGELS, and the STORY OF MR.BLUE are illustrated short stories.With HIS EYE IS ON THE SPARROW, Ann returned to memoir as part of Shebooks first launch in late 2013.
Ann studied writing at the University of Michigan, attended workshops at Sewanee and Squaw Valley Writers' Conferences
When she's not writing, Ann making art (in fact, her work has been in galleries throughout the US.) dancing, and hanging out with family and friends.
read more and see her art: www.annpearlman.net
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews
June 29, 2012
I received a copy of this book from the publisher for review.
My first impression of the book, even before cracking it open, was that it would be a gut-wrencher. The description mentions "Tara and Sky share a mother, but aside from that they seem to differ in almost every way. When a series of tragedies strikes, they must somehow come together in the face of heartbreak, dashed hopes, and demons of the past." which sounds right up my alley. I love a good tear-jerker - they can be so cathartic.
And then there's the cover. So gorgeous. I want to have it framed. I love it. I love the colors, the silhouettes, the way the figures are together, but distant, and we're prevented from truly seeing who they are. I love everything about it. Unfortunately, once I got the book, I did not love touching it. I don't know what it is, but the texture of the dust-jacket just does not feel nice. It's like... grimy, somehow. I don't know how else to describe it. I had to take it off the book while reading, because I just didn't like touching it. Such a shame, because it is really beautiful.
Regarding the story itself, I have mixed reactions. On one hand, I really enjoyed the concept and the story's format of alternating point of view chapters with parallel chapter titles, but there were quite a few things that just felt "off" to me.
The beginning of the story was fantastic. I was drawn into Sky's grief for the loss of her friend, drawn into her family life and her history, and I really felt for her. When she suffered yet another tragedy, I was completely heartbroken for her. Which is exactly what I would expect.
But things shifted after Sky went into her newer mourning cycle. I couldn't believe that she was the same person! I know that everyone grieves differently, but I couldn't help but be annoyed with the complete selfishness and narcissism that Sky displayed. It was just mind-boggling. I wanted to grieve and heal with her, but I just couldn't go with her to the level she was at, because not only could I not understand it, I couldn't justify it or condone it. I'm not trying to be heartless, but grief isn't an excuse to dredge up the most horrible things you can think to fling at someone. It's not a license to hurt others. People can be cruel, yes, but this was just beyond the pale, and I just couldn't go there with her.
Tara, Sky's younger half-sister, is there for Sky every step of the way. She went to lengths to rearrange her and her crew's tour schedule to help her sister decide what to do and help her get it done.
I identified with each sister differently, and at different stages of the story. But I will admit that I had trouble reading Tara's sections at times, because her dialogue was very uneven. At times she'd talk in a kind of valley-girl way, saying "like" all the time. At other times, it would be a kind of ghetto slang. Then others she'd use a sort of metaphor-heavy prose style, usually when talking about her family. And then when she wasn't "being" any of those other people, she was just herself and just talked.
Maybe this was intentional, though. Tara isn't sure who she is, so maybe the dialogue was a way to illustrate that point. But it didn't feel right to me and was a bit distracting. Also distracting was Tara's self-congratulatory musings. By this I mean that she'd often say something like "Do you see how I go out of my way for my sister?" I do see that, without you pointing it out, thanks.
Finally, the second half of the book got a bit bogged down in the "meaningful" stuff. It was full of Hallmark moments, people telling each other how much they loved them, appreciated them, how proud they were of them, or other deep, meaningful thoughts that just felt staged or forced. Meaningful moments are great, but they should be used sparingly or they begin to feel cloying and fake.
These complaints aside, I enjoyed the book quite a bit, and I really loved the crew. I liked that they helped Sky out as much as (if not more than) Tara herself. I kept turning the pages, and I wanted to know what would happen to these sisters and their families, and whether they'd make it or not. I would pick up another of Pearlman's books - even with the flaws I mentioned, it's one that will likely stick with me.
My first impression of the book, even before cracking it open, was that it would be a gut-wrencher. The description mentions "Tara and Sky share a mother, but aside from that they seem to differ in almost every way. When a series of tragedies strikes, they must somehow come together in the face of heartbreak, dashed hopes, and demons of the past." which sounds right up my alley. I love a good tear-jerker - they can be so cathartic.
And then there's the cover. So gorgeous. I want to have it framed. I love it. I love the colors, the silhouettes, the way the figures are together, but distant, and we're prevented from truly seeing who they are. I love everything about it. Unfortunately, once I got the book, I did not love touching it. I don't know what it is, but the texture of the dust-jacket just does not feel nice. It's like... grimy, somehow. I don't know how else to describe it. I had to take it off the book while reading, because I just didn't like touching it. Such a shame, because it is really beautiful.
Regarding the story itself, I have mixed reactions. On one hand, I really enjoyed the concept and the story's format of alternating point of view chapters with parallel chapter titles, but there were quite a few things that just felt "off" to me.
The beginning of the story was fantastic. I was drawn into Sky's grief for the loss of her friend, drawn into her family life and her history, and I really felt for her. When she suffered yet another tragedy, I was completely heartbroken for her. Which is exactly what I would expect.
But things shifted after Sky went into her newer mourning cycle. I couldn't believe that she was the same person! I know that everyone grieves differently, but I couldn't help but be annoyed with the complete selfishness and narcissism that Sky displayed. It was just mind-boggling. I wanted to grieve and heal with her, but I just couldn't go with her to the level she was at, because not only could I not understand it, I couldn't justify it or condone it. I'm not trying to be heartless, but grief isn't an excuse to dredge up the most horrible things you can think to fling at someone. It's not a license to hurt others. People can be cruel, yes, but this was just beyond the pale, and I just couldn't go there with her.
Tara, Sky's younger half-sister, is there for Sky every step of the way. She went to lengths to rearrange her and her crew's tour schedule to help her sister decide what to do and help her get it done.
I identified with each sister differently, and at different stages of the story. But I will admit that I had trouble reading Tara's sections at times, because her dialogue was very uneven. At times she'd talk in a kind of valley-girl way, saying "like" all the time. At other times, it would be a kind of ghetto slang. Then others she'd use a sort of metaphor-heavy prose style, usually when talking about her family. And then when she wasn't "being" any of those other people, she was just herself and just talked.
Maybe this was intentional, though. Tara isn't sure who she is, so maybe the dialogue was a way to illustrate that point. But it didn't feel right to me and was a bit distracting. Also distracting was Tara's self-congratulatory musings. By this I mean that she'd often say something like "Do you see how I go out of my way for my sister?" I do see that, without you pointing it out, thanks.
Finally, the second half of the book got a bit bogged down in the "meaningful" stuff. It was full of Hallmark moments, people telling each other how much they loved them, appreciated them, how proud they were of them, or other deep, meaningful thoughts that just felt staged or forced. Meaningful moments are great, but they should be used sparingly or they begin to feel cloying and fake.
These complaints aside, I enjoyed the book quite a bit, and I really loved the crew. I liked that they helped Sky out as much as (if not more than) Tara herself. I kept turning the pages, and I wanted to know what would happen to these sisters and their families, and whether they'd make it or not. I would pick up another of Pearlman's books - even with the flaws I mentioned, it's one that will likely stick with me.
December 4, 2012
This book was a tumultuous ride for me. The book starts out with Sky waking because she can’t sleep past a certain time due to the death of her best friend Mia. This awoke cords in me because I too wake at a certain time every morning due to deaths. I kept reading and my world just went topsy, turvy. Sky had lost 3 pregnancies, I too had lost 3 twin pregnancies in the span of one year and I knew the heart felt pain that losing those pregnancies cost me, so right away I was sucked kicking and screaming into Sky’s life. Then to make matters worse her husband has this boil on his back and winds up sick. My husband luckily only had the flu but I had to put the book down and go “oh no, this is so not happening.” Once my darling husband was well again and I lived thru the ridicule of him saying Chris it’s just a book it is NOT your life, I continued bravely on. Only to once again put the book down while practically in tears saying I wouldn’t want to live if this happened to me. So without going into more detail than that, because I truly don’t want to give the story away, I will say this READ THIS BOOK!
We have two sisters who are diametrically opposed on pretty much everything. Sky is the “perfect child” at least in Tara’s eyes. Tara meanwhile is the hellion, the one who needs no one. But BOTH girls have scars that run so deep inside them from their own childhood. Sky’s father passed away suddenly when she was just a child, her mother remarried (the wrong man), Tara was born and almost immediately Tara’s father was out of the picture, because he was a cheat. Tara winds up being the strong one in this book, the one who helps her sister deal with all the tragedies that have been thrown in her path. Tara helps her sister and in return Sky gets an inside look at Tara’s life and the daily prejudices she must deal with. The thing is this author has hit upon the very things that children deal with even as adults. Sky resented her sister because her sister still had a father, even an absentee father is still a father. Tara meanwhile envied her sister because she was allowed to go out, have sleep overs, wear make-up and all the other things younger siblings envy older ones. Tara also was jealous of the relationships Sky had with her husband. Something she herself cannot seem to do with her longtime boyfriend and “baby daddy”. Tara is ALWAYS looking over her shoulder for the woman who will steal her man away from her and she can’t fully open herself up to Aaron, even though he loves her fully.
Pearlman did a wonderful job reenacting what would happen should two such people be suddenly thrust together. Their forced time together leads to some very interesting and intense interactions, the anger comes out in odd times and this in turn leads to such strong acts of kindness and understanding and compassion that we the reader are literally in their lives.
I can say one thing about 60% into the book I was doing some serious yelling at the books Author in my head and saying if you kill off one person so help me god I’m going to scream! I truly did have a unique bond with Sky due to my own personal life and tragedies. And I have also a keen understanding of where they live since I lived in Flint Michigan for many, many years. I can understand the bigotry and racism that Tara and Aaron must deal with and the fears they have for their son Levy.
I have to say one thing I truly enjoyed her thoughts that you should love regardless, not to the destruction of yourself, but in spite of yourself. I will say I felt the story had far too much death in it for my own personal tastes, but that could once again be due to my own life and the pure number of deaths that have happened in our family in the last 2 years.
I also can say truthfully that while I didn’t “enjoy” this read I did enjoy the ending and I did enjoy the fact that it wasn’t a true story. I also can say I did enjoy the way the author looked at the exact same space in time through BOTH sisters’ eyes by breaking it into separate chapters unique to each sister. So while you had read something just seconds before it took on a whole new depth when you saw how the other sister saw the same situation. This is indeed what I always believed that BOTH sides of a story must be told for a person to know what honestly happened, because somewhere in the middle is where the truth of the situation lies.
This book was a fabulous mix of past and present and told in such a manner that you never wondered. The sisters travel along their paths merging and separating until these paths finally merge to show just how close a bond there is with sisters, and that family is there for you when you need it.
Pearlman did a fabulous job on character creation and you feel as if the characters are actual family members or friends. The emotions this author can pull from you is amazing and the love that the sisters have for their children shines on through the darkest of times. The pain, the suffering, the laughter and the love are all shared by the reader and I praise Pearlman for her wonderful job of sucking me into the story.
This story is sentimental, and full of conflict, it is about life’s hardships and how the two sisters can deal with these hardships to become closer. It is a story about sisters and family, loss and abandonment, love and most of all forgiveness. I can recommend this book to anyone who doesn’t mind reading about life’s hardships or a book that can and will spark a dozen different thoughts and emotions. While it was a rough ride for me personally since my own personal tragedies were far too close to those suffered by Sky, I can still honestly say I think this is what I classify as a must read.
Details/Disclaimer: Review copy was provided to me in exchange for a fair and honest review. The free book held no determination on my personal review.
We have two sisters who are diametrically opposed on pretty much everything. Sky is the “perfect child” at least in Tara’s eyes. Tara meanwhile is the hellion, the one who needs no one. But BOTH girls have scars that run so deep inside them from their own childhood. Sky’s father passed away suddenly when she was just a child, her mother remarried (the wrong man), Tara was born and almost immediately Tara’s father was out of the picture, because he was a cheat. Tara winds up being the strong one in this book, the one who helps her sister deal with all the tragedies that have been thrown in her path. Tara helps her sister and in return Sky gets an inside look at Tara’s life and the daily prejudices she must deal with. The thing is this author has hit upon the very things that children deal with even as adults. Sky resented her sister because her sister still had a father, even an absentee father is still a father. Tara meanwhile envied her sister because she was allowed to go out, have sleep overs, wear make-up and all the other things younger siblings envy older ones. Tara also was jealous of the relationships Sky had with her husband. Something she herself cannot seem to do with her longtime boyfriend and “baby daddy”. Tara is ALWAYS looking over her shoulder for the woman who will steal her man away from her and she can’t fully open herself up to Aaron, even though he loves her fully.
Pearlman did a wonderful job reenacting what would happen should two such people be suddenly thrust together. Their forced time together leads to some very interesting and intense interactions, the anger comes out in odd times and this in turn leads to such strong acts of kindness and understanding and compassion that we the reader are literally in their lives.
I can say one thing about 60% into the book I was doing some serious yelling at the books Author in my head and saying if you kill off one person so help me god I’m going to scream! I truly did have a unique bond with Sky due to my own personal life and tragedies. And I have also a keen understanding of where they live since I lived in Flint Michigan for many, many years. I can understand the bigotry and racism that Tara and Aaron must deal with and the fears they have for their son Levy.
I have to say one thing I truly enjoyed her thoughts that you should love regardless, not to the destruction of yourself, but in spite of yourself. I will say I felt the story had far too much death in it for my own personal tastes, but that could once again be due to my own life and the pure number of deaths that have happened in our family in the last 2 years.
I also can say truthfully that while I didn’t “enjoy” this read I did enjoy the ending and I did enjoy the fact that it wasn’t a true story. I also can say I did enjoy the way the author looked at the exact same space in time through BOTH sisters’ eyes by breaking it into separate chapters unique to each sister. So while you had read something just seconds before it took on a whole new depth when you saw how the other sister saw the same situation. This is indeed what I always believed that BOTH sides of a story must be told for a person to know what honestly happened, because somewhere in the middle is where the truth of the situation lies.
This book was a fabulous mix of past and present and told in such a manner that you never wondered. The sisters travel along their paths merging and separating until these paths finally merge to show just how close a bond there is with sisters, and that family is there for you when you need it.
Pearlman did a fabulous job on character creation and you feel as if the characters are actual family members or friends. The emotions this author can pull from you is amazing and the love that the sisters have for their children shines on through the darkest of times. The pain, the suffering, the laughter and the love are all shared by the reader and I praise Pearlman for her wonderful job of sucking me into the story.
This story is sentimental, and full of conflict, it is about life’s hardships and how the two sisters can deal with these hardships to become closer. It is a story about sisters and family, loss and abandonment, love and most of all forgiveness. I can recommend this book to anyone who doesn’t mind reading about life’s hardships or a book that can and will spark a dozen different thoughts and emotions. While it was a rough ride for me personally since my own personal tragedies were far too close to those suffered by Sky, I can still honestly say I think this is what I classify as a must read.
Details/Disclaimer: Review copy was provided to me in exchange for a fair and honest review. The free book held no determination on my personal review.
July 15, 2012
This review is also posted at The Bawdy Book Blog.
A Gift for My Sister leaves you emotionally raw and rips your heart to shreds…before putting it back together in such a way that you know you’ll never be the same again. Because this is a story that, once you’ve finished it and set it aside, takes a piece of your heart with it.
Sky and Tara are half-sisters; they share a mother, but Tara came along a number of years after Sky’s father passed away and their mother remarried, disrupting the comfortable twosome Sky and their mother had built over their own grief. Tara, having inherited the musical gene from her wayward, promiscuous father, uses her creativity as a measure of comfort in what she perceives is the absence of familial love. If she only has herself and her music to depend on, she doesn’t need anyone else.
Likewise, Sky, when she marries her high school sweetheart and best friend Troy, and they go off across the country to be lawyers together and raise a child, finds the twosome in him she has missed since Tara was born, and determines that is all she needs to survive.
Both sisters treat the other as if they have nothing in common, because they aren’t fully blood, when sometimes that doesn’t matter at all. Family can be created, not born.
Until tragedy strikes and the two sisters are thrown together by circumstance and the familial bonds they didn’t think existed.
I can’t say enough good things about A Gift for My Sister. There are just so many! The premise is initially very sad and full of heartbreak. After having several miscarriages, a stillbirth, and losing her best friend, Sky loses her husband Troy to a mysterious bacteria. Her family rallies around her in support, including Tara and her rap crew, a group of black kids from Detroit that Sky would rather judge than face her wrongfully preconceived notions. Notions that, in light of her recent loss, they all look past gracefully. Tara, desperate for some measure of a sisterly bond that they never really had, tries again and again to reach Sky and find what they’ve been missing all these years. But old resentments are hard to get over when one daughter lost her father and the other daughter’s father abandoned her.
I feel like I could wax poetic about A Gift for My Sister all day long and simply not do it any justice. This is a book I don’t even want to tell you about; I just want you to read it. It personally struck a chord in me because I have an older half-sister, who is not quite eight years older than I am (we share the same father) and a younger stepsister by four years, whose father passed away nine years ago (and he raised me). And while my younger sister and I were close in childhood, and my older sister and I were not, the tides reversed when my stepfather passed away. Tragedy can do funny things to families; it can make you or break you. But, I like to hold out hope that in the end, it all works out. And A Gift for My Sister really gives me hope that it will.
It addresses so many issues: family estrangement, race & prejudice, death, infidelity, but most importantly: how you live your life. It was heartbreaking and it was happy. I identified with all of the characters on a really deep level and this is the contemporary read I recommend everyone read at least once in their lives.
Because it doesn’t matter how you die; only how you live.
*This book was provided to me by the publicist in exchange of an honest review.
A Gift for My Sister leaves you emotionally raw and rips your heart to shreds…before putting it back together in such a way that you know you’ll never be the same again. Because this is a story that, once you’ve finished it and set it aside, takes a piece of your heart with it.
Sky and Tara are half-sisters; they share a mother, but Tara came along a number of years after Sky’s father passed away and their mother remarried, disrupting the comfortable twosome Sky and their mother had built over their own grief. Tara, having inherited the musical gene from her wayward, promiscuous father, uses her creativity as a measure of comfort in what she perceives is the absence of familial love. If she only has herself and her music to depend on, she doesn’t need anyone else.
Likewise, Sky, when she marries her high school sweetheart and best friend Troy, and they go off across the country to be lawyers together and raise a child, finds the twosome in him she has missed since Tara was born, and determines that is all she needs to survive.
Both sisters treat the other as if they have nothing in common, because they aren’t fully blood, when sometimes that doesn’t matter at all. Family can be created, not born.
Until tragedy strikes and the two sisters are thrown together by circumstance and the familial bonds they didn’t think existed.
I can’t say enough good things about A Gift for My Sister. There are just so many! The premise is initially very sad and full of heartbreak. After having several miscarriages, a stillbirth, and losing her best friend, Sky loses her husband Troy to a mysterious bacteria. Her family rallies around her in support, including Tara and her rap crew, a group of black kids from Detroit that Sky would rather judge than face her wrongfully preconceived notions. Notions that, in light of her recent loss, they all look past gracefully. Tara, desperate for some measure of a sisterly bond that they never really had, tries again and again to reach Sky and find what they’ve been missing all these years. But old resentments are hard to get over when one daughter lost her father and the other daughter’s father abandoned her.
I feel like I could wax poetic about A Gift for My Sister all day long and simply not do it any justice. This is a book I don’t even want to tell you about; I just want you to read it. It personally struck a chord in me because I have an older half-sister, who is not quite eight years older than I am (we share the same father) and a younger stepsister by four years, whose father passed away nine years ago (and he raised me). And while my younger sister and I were close in childhood, and my older sister and I were not, the tides reversed when my stepfather passed away. Tragedy can do funny things to families; it can make you or break you. But, I like to hold out hope that in the end, it all works out. And A Gift for My Sister really gives me hope that it will.
It addresses so many issues: family estrangement, race & prejudice, death, infidelity, but most importantly: how you live your life. It was heartbreaking and it was happy. I identified with all of the characters on a really deep level and this is the contemporary read I recommend everyone read at least once in their lives.
Because it doesn’t matter how you die; only how you live.
*This book was provided to me by the publicist in exchange of an honest review.
October 2, 2012
I'm a sucker for books about sisterhood. Maybe it's because I have a younger sister of my own and I personally understand how unique our relationship can be. Even though I enjoyed reading A Gift for My Sister, it left me with a sad, sinking feeling that I couldn't seem to shake away all day after I finished the book.
I really enjoyed Pearlman's writing. She has an exceptional way of adding depth to her characters through flashbacks that are seamlessly embedded within the story in a way that builds upon a character without taking away from keeping track of the present. Tara and Sky are deeply flawed and so blinded to truth and reality because their perceptions of each other are muddled by past hurts, loss, rejection and self-preservation at the cost of never truly accepting the other for who they are.
This story took me way too far down with all the tragedies and didn't pick me back up in time. It really pushed the limit of how much sadness I could take in one book, for ONE character. Maybe because Tara has a 2-year old and so do I, I felt too much for her character and the loss in her life. I kept waiting for the story to turn, but I guess since the story takes place over such a short period of time, it might not be very realistic for the sisters to change so quickly. The turn came too late for me and didn't quite uplift me the way I was hoping it would.
However, Pearlman's writing was very engaging, so I am looking forward to reading some of her other books.
For more reviews from the bookish mama, please click here.
I really enjoyed Pearlman's writing. She has an exceptional way of adding depth to her characters through flashbacks that are seamlessly embedded within the story in a way that builds upon a character without taking away from keeping track of the present. Tara and Sky are deeply flawed and so blinded to truth and reality because their perceptions of each other are muddled by past hurts, loss, rejection and self-preservation at the cost of never truly accepting the other for who they are.
This story took me way too far down with all the tragedies and didn't pick me back up in time. It really pushed the limit of how much sadness I could take in one book, for ONE character. Maybe because Tara has a 2-year old and so do I, I felt too much for her character and the loss in her life. I kept waiting for the story to turn, but I guess since the story takes place over such a short period of time, it might not be very realistic for the sisters to change so quickly. The turn came too late for me and didn't quite uplift me the way I was hoping it would.
However, Pearlman's writing was very engaging, so I am looking forward to reading some of her other books.
For more reviews from the bookish mama, please click here.
October 9, 2012
A Gift For My Sister opens with Sky, a lawyer, as a little girl reminiscing about her childhood and losing her father at the tender age of seven and has to walk the life path pretending it did not shatter her world, for everyone around her treated her as a disease and she is contagious.
The character Sky deeply grieving in her sorrow thinks of her father, his sudden death and like a windy storm her life's path was changed with surprises and personal trials.
First she had to accept a step sister who replaced her only child status away in momma's heart she became lost and she was left to fend for herself. She is travelling through life as a discarded broken vessel which leads her to make impulsive choices. Such as a love affair at a tender age, of eight grade and become a young mother to sweet Rachael too early in her life. And has a child born out of commitment to the only refugee holding her safe in the blowing unpredictable winds of her life, her man Tory.
Another personal storms lashing at Sky to add to the sorrowful agony she has experienced, she loses her BFF, Mia to an unexpected death and the storms keep pouring as other tragedies occurred which were so painful and soul searing this reader used a box of Kleenex to finished the tumult and haunting story of the two sisters finding themselves in the midst of obstacles on the path of travelling life and reminiscing with elegant pose about their past to present and what the futures holds.
This story revolves around two half-sisters, Sky the older one and a lawyer and Tara the younger one, a promising rap singer and they are divided from the beginning of their existence and are fateful to come together in unity at the end of this inspiring read to discover their selves and the theme of forgiveness with a an renewal of their sisterhood.
Their union is a stormy and tender relationship. The younger sister Tara is a rap singer on the rise to become a superstar, has her man Aaron and sweet baby Levy yet has her own insecurities, her father walked on the family and the girls’ mother became distant and did not have faith in men.
The younger sister Tara is involved with a rap group, her baby is Levy and described as if he is real and squeezable, and all the children in the story are delightful toddlers and add humour to it.
Sky speaks about the pain of losing her best friend and the intensity pours out of the pages and she is trying to function through the darkness sharing her private thoughts of her daily life. As the plot continues there are more personal trials that come like a wicked thunderstorm and kept pounding upon them. The major infliction was connected to the everyone has a moment in their lives when lightning strikes and you are alerted to the most shattering news a living person receives about someone close to you is in trouble or deceased and you look at the clock, remembering that exact moment as it is etched deep into the crevices of the core of our being.
In this story the clock stops at 3:42 a.m., for Sky this was her point of no return or healing after absorbing the reality of the truth.
Once again the storms rolls in and captures her in its grips and she has to struggle to come up for air or give up and let the deep slumber of defeat swallow her up leaving all behind.
The author is able to switch between characters, from the two sisters, the men in their lives, and others with an easy reading flow.
The author adds expressive details and speaks of the characters as they were her actual family and friends, he chapters about the younger sister Tara and her husband Aaron and their baby Levy is written with intensity and depth of poetic language of the deepest emotions of what ones hides but does not voiced out loud about fear, jealous and other sensitive topics. Tara and her family give the reader a glimpse in the highs and lows about the rise to fame as rap singers, the divorce of her mom and husband and the abandonment she felt when her dad walked out on the family and the resentment she held for Sky the apple of mom’s eye.
She is hurt by the abandonment of her father and meeting her new step mom, and other issues yet to be able to cherish the little gifts in life and tries to balance the past and present with her music and acceptance and forgiveness and have no regrets. She is this reader’s hero because the silent treatment from her dad made her cunning and she got her justice in a sweet way, he the father should be responsible for her dreams and she took it upon herself to earn them with or with-out his assistance. Showing strength and becoming an independent strong woman. This action was the start of her music career with a purchase of an instrument.
Back to Sky, she is having flashbacks like lighting in a storm then the thunder is loud, for another tragedy bolts her into a harsh reality that everything she cherishes is about to go under an attack as her personal life goes through a cyclone of terrifying speed, out of control.
This story is sentimental, full of agony and conflict. As it continues it speaks of deadly medical conditions and what happens to Sky and the one she loves with every ounce of her being.
The storms are raging yet the author has the characters hold on tight to hope, as they are drowning in all the emotional, physically and spiritual battles each face in their own way and described their insight of a lesson learned.
An event that crushes Sky’s world has Tara deciding to put the bitterness aside to come to a compromise and step up to be a caretaker to her sister Sky, yet the jealous, resentment and anger lies under the surface under the surface, like a volcano and is about to explode.
For the two step sisters are walking a fragile line of caring or distancing from each other due to conflicts they can't not get pass. The tension in the plot, between the two you could cut with a knife.
To add to the mix, Tara is travelling with her homies her band, and they are like family to her and now her sister and Rachael are accepted.
They travelled across the states to arrive at their next schedule show, in between stopping at tourist sites and other places of interest which all contribute to the rumbling volcano waiting for a release valve.
This book is about life's hardships and two half-sisters Sky, a lawyer and Tara, a rap star who were estrange until the lighting of tragedy strikes one and they both come together in grief to rebuild their broken relationship and to remember all they lost to come to know each other deeply and repair their broken bond and find their role in their large and extended family.
During the roller coaster ride they call life there were lost and found and learn lessons and gain a deep bond of insight and understanding about each other, their past and what to enjoy in their future as they journey divided then together in their paths of self-discovery and forgiveness
This reader desires to include some writing of this insightful life tapestry of the two half-sisters and had their struggles and acceptance was a gift to a sister.
"I consider the luck of simply being born, of being plucked out of the cosmos and bestowed with eyes to see, and nerves to feel, and ears to hear. Our senses. Our speech. Our breath. How crucial and insistent our ceaseless moving lungs from our first cry to our last."
http://agiftformysister.blogspot.com/... to find out more about this amazing story and the promotion for reviewers.
http://www.amazon.com/A-Gift-My-Siste...
This book was given in exchange for a honest review.
April 8, 2019
Logically simple, but emotionally complicated
October 30, 2013
How Ann Pearlman Reminded me about the Importance of Family
I won this book ages ago, and was quite excited for its arrival in the mail. I voraciously read and thoroughly enjoyed it. Then, because it affected me in such a profound way, have been struggling ever since to write a review.
This review has taken me the longest to write of all the books I’ve had read and sitting in a pile. I’ve wondered why this review was so hard to get started on, but re-reading the final two chapters really pin-pointed a few things for me.
1. Family is important.
2. Brother or Sister doesn’t really matter, family is important, and they’re always there for you, no matter how screwed up and crazy life gets.
I’ve always been the ‘crazy one’ I think, and while reading the book really identified with both Tara and Sky, but more so with Tara, for obvious musical reasons. I know that drive, that all-consuming urge to write and create and play. I know, and struggled with stage presence, and the ability to detach myself from the ‘real’ world, and the performance world. I’ll never be famous, or have people like King after me, but I do know what it’s like to be pulled in two directions, and make the ‘wrong’ decision over and over again.
I’ve been lucky though, I have a family that has always stood beside me, picked up the pieces, and helped me start over. Tara and Sky are lucky too, but the journey they both take to realize that simple fact is long and tumultuous.
The prose is excellent, the characters come to life, and the attention to detail in printing made this book that much more enjoyable. There’s a small difference in the font between Tara and Sky’s chapters, and that little detail really made me feel like two very different people were talking.
I loved the recipes at the end as well, and have decided that I should probably check out some of Pearlman’s other books starting with the Christmas Cookie Club. The premise is something I’ve taken part in before, and I’m sure the book will be scrumptious in many ways.
This was not an easy read. Both characters struggle deeply, not only with making the ‘right’ choices, but also with the aftermath of all the ‘wrong’ choices they’ve made in the past. I do know that feeling of being compelled to create, sing and play music. I feel it not only for music, but for writing. This often makes life more about deciding which way to turn next, than following any one clear path, and if you choose to read this book, I imagine you’ll find that both characters are torn for different but ultimately similar reasons.
I don’t often recommend books to family members, but this is one I would recommend to all three of my sisters in-law. I hope they’re reading this, and I hope they know that even when family finds each other strange, difficult and bewildering, they still love you more than anything else.
In the recent past, my life has involved changing jobs (drastically), moving to the first place I’ve unpacked at for 9 years, and many discussions revolving around the importance of family, what is family, and how to respect and honour other family members even when you don’t understand or agree with their choices.
Sometimes I read books because they’re fun, and sometimes just for simple escape. I started reading this book not knowing what to expect, but honestly expecting something much lighter and less thought provoking. I was way off base with that one, but so very glad I picked up A Gift for My Sister all the same.
If I could give one gift to my brother and my sisters in-law it would be to show them that I will always be their family, and while I may not always understand or agree, I’ll love them just as much.
Oh, and thanks for always sticking by me, watching me fall, and picking me back up. We all know how stubborn I am, and how much I enjoy making my OWN choices (dammit) even when they mean tumultuous seas in my future.
I won this book ages ago, and was quite excited for its arrival in the mail. I voraciously read and thoroughly enjoyed it. Then, because it affected me in such a profound way, have been struggling ever since to write a review.
This review has taken me the longest to write of all the books I’ve had read and sitting in a pile. I’ve wondered why this review was so hard to get started on, but re-reading the final two chapters really pin-pointed a few things for me.
1. Family is important.
2. Brother or Sister doesn’t really matter, family is important, and they’re always there for you, no matter how screwed up and crazy life gets.
I’ve always been the ‘crazy one’ I think, and while reading the book really identified with both Tara and Sky, but more so with Tara, for obvious musical reasons. I know that drive, that all-consuming urge to write and create and play. I know, and struggled with stage presence, and the ability to detach myself from the ‘real’ world, and the performance world. I’ll never be famous, or have people like King after me, but I do know what it’s like to be pulled in two directions, and make the ‘wrong’ decision over and over again.
I’ve been lucky though, I have a family that has always stood beside me, picked up the pieces, and helped me start over. Tara and Sky are lucky too, but the journey they both take to realize that simple fact is long and tumultuous.
The prose is excellent, the characters come to life, and the attention to detail in printing made this book that much more enjoyable. There’s a small difference in the font between Tara and Sky’s chapters, and that little detail really made me feel like two very different people were talking.
I loved the recipes at the end as well, and have decided that I should probably check out some of Pearlman’s other books starting with the Christmas Cookie Club. The premise is something I’ve taken part in before, and I’m sure the book will be scrumptious in many ways.
This was not an easy read. Both characters struggle deeply, not only with making the ‘right’ choices, but also with the aftermath of all the ‘wrong’ choices they’ve made in the past. I do know that feeling of being compelled to create, sing and play music. I feel it not only for music, but for writing. This often makes life more about deciding which way to turn next, than following any one clear path, and if you choose to read this book, I imagine you’ll find that both characters are torn for different but ultimately similar reasons.
I don’t often recommend books to family members, but this is one I would recommend to all three of my sisters in-law. I hope they’re reading this, and I hope they know that even when family finds each other strange, difficult and bewildering, they still love you more than anything else.
In the recent past, my life has involved changing jobs (drastically), moving to the first place I’ve unpacked at for 9 years, and many discussions revolving around the importance of family, what is family, and how to respect and honour other family members even when you don’t understand or agree with their choices.
Sometimes I read books because they’re fun, and sometimes just for simple escape. I started reading this book not knowing what to expect, but honestly expecting something much lighter and less thought provoking. I was way off base with that one, but so very glad I picked up A Gift for My Sister all the same.
If I could give one gift to my brother and my sisters in-law it would be to show them that I will always be their family, and while I may not always understand or agree, I’ll love them just as much.
Oh, and thanks for always sticking by me, watching me fall, and picking me back up. We all know how stubborn I am, and how much I enjoy making my OWN choices (dammit) even when they mean tumultuous seas in my future.
September 6, 2012
A Gift For My Sister is a story about tragedy, family, and overcoming the odds. Every chapter has two sections, one from Tara;s perspective (the younger sister) and one from Sky's perspective (the older sister). Sky is the result of a very loving marriage that was shattered by the unexpected death of her father. A little after this tragedy, Sky's mother remarried and had Tara. Unfortunately,Tara's father was a philanderer. He left the family when Tara was fairly young and remarried only to cheat on that wife as well. Both girls essentially grew up fatherless. Their mother was much closer to Sky than Tara which has been the root of some of their sibling issues.
Sky was the good girl who always did what mom said and always had a plan. She followed her goals to a fault. However, things typically worked out for her until she tried to have a baby. Her luck with having children was terrible and resulted in miscarriages, a still born, and finally one healthy baby. Since this was out of her control, her mother was always there to love and care for Sky. Tara saw this as one more thing that brought mother and daughter closer and took her mother away from her. This story starts off with Sky's learning to live without her best friend who had just died of a very young age (due to fertility meds) and now her husband is deathly ill at 28 years old as well. As you can see, Sky has had a lot of heartache and loss in her 27 years. Tara didn't really understand how all this loss affected her until Sky's husband actually dies. Tara is the one to pick her up off the ground and put her life on a track rather than leaving Sky to drift aimlessly.
From Tara's perspective, we learn that she is the rebellious teenager who is just wanting attention. She mostly wants her father's attention because she feels that Sky has all their mother's attention. Unfortunately, her father truly does not care about her. She ends up falling in love with an ex-child convict at 15 and gets pregnant at 17. Since she has always felt like her mother didn't really want her, she moves in with Aaron before finishing high school. The only real problem with this (since Aaron is very willing to take care of her and his baby) is that Tara is a white girl and Aaron is black. Tara essentially gives up her white life and immerses herself in the black community because of her love and because of her music. You see, the driving force behind Tara is that she has a need to create music. It is a part of her that cannot be ignored. Aaron understands this and together they create a rap group. This story demonstrates how two opposite worlds can join together and even understand one another through Special Intent (the rap group). They become the rock that Sky needs to move past all her loss. While on tour, they take Sky and her daughter Rachel into their family and move them across the country.
Both sisters had a lot of problems with each other. One never felt the loss of the other and Sky never saw Tara as having to have a hard life in any way. Their road trip teaches them a lot about themselves and each other. You will need to read the book to actually learn what "the gift" is because I think I have already shared more than enough with you!
Read more reviews at Identity Discovery Blog.
Sky was the good girl who always did what mom said and always had a plan. She followed her goals to a fault. However, things typically worked out for her until she tried to have a baby. Her luck with having children was terrible and resulted in miscarriages, a still born, and finally one healthy baby. Since this was out of her control, her mother was always there to love and care for Sky. Tara saw this as one more thing that brought mother and daughter closer and took her mother away from her. This story starts off with Sky's learning to live without her best friend who had just died of a very young age (due to fertility meds) and now her husband is deathly ill at 28 years old as well. As you can see, Sky has had a lot of heartache and loss in her 27 years. Tara didn't really understand how all this loss affected her until Sky's husband actually dies. Tara is the one to pick her up off the ground and put her life on a track rather than leaving Sky to drift aimlessly.
From Tara's perspective, we learn that she is the rebellious teenager who is just wanting attention. She mostly wants her father's attention because she feels that Sky has all their mother's attention. Unfortunately, her father truly does not care about her. She ends up falling in love with an ex-child convict at 15 and gets pregnant at 17. Since she has always felt like her mother didn't really want her, she moves in with Aaron before finishing high school. The only real problem with this (since Aaron is very willing to take care of her and his baby) is that Tara is a white girl and Aaron is black. Tara essentially gives up her white life and immerses herself in the black community because of her love and because of her music. You see, the driving force behind Tara is that she has a need to create music. It is a part of her that cannot be ignored. Aaron understands this and together they create a rap group. This story demonstrates how two opposite worlds can join together and even understand one another through Special Intent (the rap group). They become the rock that Sky needs to move past all her loss. While on tour, they take Sky and her daughter Rachel into their family and move them across the country.
Both sisters had a lot of problems with each other. One never felt the loss of the other and Sky never saw Tara as having to have a hard life in any way. Their road trip teaches them a lot about themselves and each other. You will need to read the book to actually learn what "the gift" is because I think I have already shared more than enough with you!
Read more reviews at Identity Discovery Blog.
September 6, 2018
Ok so let me start by disclaiming that I didn't specifically go looking for this book or research it. I needed a cheap easy read to tide me over until the end of a holiday, and also one in the first person for my Around The Year challenge. So it's not like I was eager to read it or anything.
Which should soften the blow of how awful it was. But I'm still annoyed I wasted my time with it.
There are various others here who have noted they didn't even finish the book. I wish I had read their reviews first but I was browsing a cheap book store and needed to make a decision on the spot. The premise was good and it seemed like the perfect quick holiday read.
I WAS WRONG.
The plot notwithstanding, the whole book was a comedy of errors. The writing was junky and rushed. The characters were annoying and unlikeable. Some of the dialogue, oh my god. For example, we have Tara...I think she's in her late teens or early twenties? She had a baby at 17 and he's a toddler from the sounds of it. Oh and she's also somehow on the road to massive stardom with her black rapper boyfriend and his "crew."
So we assume she's fairly young. Which I think is meant to be conveyed by the peppering of the word "like" amongst her dialogue, albeit in random places you, like, wouldn't think to, like, say like. But then she's also supposedly meant to have the maturity and wisdom of a grown-ass woman. So she busts out with lines like (and I quote), "So there's my self-self that's beyond race, and my black-self, the self that other people can't immediately perceive. And my white self", and "I don't want you for a lover, and this is a lover's gesture".
Uh...what 20ish-year old talks like that? Who ANYWHERE talks like that? It's straight out of a soap opera.
The whole thing was so rushed and disjointed. One minute Sky is barely processing the tragedy that's befallen her, and literally the next page her entire family is packing her up and moving her back across the country. She didn't seem to get much of a say in it but oh well. We have minor flashbacks to the family's dynamic but don't get a real understanding of Tara's resentment towards her mother and Sky until very near the end, and even then it's very wishy-washy.
And most importantly...what exactly was the gift the title promised? Was it the metaphorical gift of understanding? Because as a reader, I was utterly confused; my gift would have been to never have started this book.
Which should soften the blow of how awful it was. But I'm still annoyed I wasted my time with it.
There are various others here who have noted they didn't even finish the book. I wish I had read their reviews first but I was browsing a cheap book store and needed to make a decision on the spot. The premise was good and it seemed like the perfect quick holiday read.
I WAS WRONG.
The plot notwithstanding, the whole book was a comedy of errors. The writing was junky and rushed. The characters were annoying and unlikeable. Some of the dialogue, oh my god. For example, we have Tara...I think she's in her late teens or early twenties? She had a baby at 17 and he's a toddler from the sounds of it. Oh and she's also somehow on the road to massive stardom with her black rapper boyfriend and his "crew."
So we assume she's fairly young. Which I think is meant to be conveyed by the peppering of the word "like" amongst her dialogue, albeit in random places you, like, wouldn't think to, like, say like. But then she's also supposedly meant to have the maturity and wisdom of a grown-ass woman. So she busts out with lines like (and I quote), "So there's my self-self that's beyond race, and my black-self, the self that other people can't immediately perceive. And my white self", and "I don't want you for a lover, and this is a lover's gesture".
Uh...what 20ish-year old talks like that? Who ANYWHERE talks like that? It's straight out of a soap opera.
The whole thing was so rushed and disjointed. One minute Sky is barely processing the tragedy that's befallen her, and literally the next page her entire family is packing her up and moving her back across the country. She didn't seem to get much of a say in it but oh well. We have minor flashbacks to the family's dynamic but don't get a real understanding of Tara's resentment towards her mother and Sky until very near the end, and even then it's very wishy-washy.
And most importantly...what exactly was the gift the title promised? Was it the metaphorical gift of understanding? Because as a reader, I was utterly confused; my gift would have been to never have started this book.
February 17, 2017
Sky and Tara are half-sisters who share the same mother. The difference in their age and their individual personalities make them seem like anything but sisters. They each have their own issues and quirks. Sky, who remembers her own father as a loving person, looks at her relationship with her husband differently than Tara, who remembers her father as an unfaithful man who left them behind for another woman. Sky’s need for security matches Tara’s need to belong. When tragedy strikes Sky’s life repeatedly and she loses her best friend, her job and her husband in a small span of time, she is left feeling alone and distraught. Tara steps in, going out of her way, and makes sure that Sky is taken care of. Sky taking a road trip with Tara and her band is just the beginning of a journey of self-discovery and connecting with family for both the sisters. What happens? Do the sisters realize that they are not so different after all? Well, you have to read the book to have to take this journey along with the sisters and understand their perspectives.
I do not have any sisters and so I personally do not know much about the relationship between sisters. I only know from watching others around me that it is much like any other sibling relationship. The love-hate aspects, the fights, the secret sharing and the love between siblings are the best things in a person’s life. No matter how similar you are or how different you are, it is simply impossible to deny the natural bond. This book basically explores that very bond. Sky and Tara are only half sisters, but they are sisters. No matter how different they thought they are, no matter how alienated things felt growing up – when Sky needed support Tara was there for her. They finally got to actually knowing each other and understanding each other’s perspectives. While it was really a great experience to see the sisters trying to find their way to each other, I personally didn’t like either of the sisters that much. They were both bit too self-centered for my liking.
This book will take you on a very emotional journey of love, loss and tragedy. I loved the foundation of the story and there is no denying that I loved the author’s languid style of storytelling.
I do not have any sisters and so I personally do not know much about the relationship between sisters. I only know from watching others around me that it is much like any other sibling relationship. The love-hate aspects, the fights, the secret sharing and the love between siblings are the best things in a person’s life. No matter how similar you are or how different you are, it is simply impossible to deny the natural bond. This book basically explores that very bond. Sky and Tara are only half sisters, but they are sisters. No matter how different they thought they are, no matter how alienated things felt growing up – when Sky needed support Tara was there for her. They finally got to actually knowing each other and understanding each other’s perspectives. While it was really a great experience to see the sisters trying to find their way to each other, I personally didn’t like either of the sisters that much. They were both bit too self-centered for my liking.
This book will take you on a very emotional journey of love, loss and tragedy. I loved the foundation of the story and there is no denying that I loved the author’s languid style of storytelling.
May 30, 2012
Sky and Tara are half sisters. Sky's father died when she was young. Her mother remarried and Tara was born. Tara's father left them to chase after other women. Both of their father's shaped their lives. Sky has issues with needing to feel secure. She is a perfectionist. Tara has always felt like she didn't fit in with her family. She has trust issues when it comes to men. Both of them have children they would do anything for. On the day Sky loses her job her husband ends up in the hospital. At the same time Tara's band is hitting the road for their first tour across the United States. When her brother-in-law dies, she takes control of things and helps to move her sister and niece back to Michigan. They will take the long way back because Tara's group is still touring. During this trip the two sister must discover how much they are alike, how much they really know about each other, and how much they really love each other if they are ever going to be able to have a sisterly relationship.
I enjoyed this book. There were seven years between my oldest sister and myself. We were so much alike. She is gone now but we had such a great relationship. One of my younger sisters and I had a very rocky relationship. Like Tara my sister was very musically talented. She always did her own thing. I was the studious one who had to have everything in its place and organized. When my first marriage fell apart she was haughty about how I was no different that she was with her failed marriages. She had no idea that I had envied the way she had so much courage to do what she had to do to survive. After our oldest sister died we became closer. She said she always envied my ability to learn so quickly. I could see so many parallels between the sisters in this book and my sister and myself. There were so many lessons to be learned. I look forward to reading more from this author.
I enjoyed this book. There were seven years between my oldest sister and myself. We were so much alike. She is gone now but we had such a great relationship. One of my younger sisters and I had a very rocky relationship. Like Tara my sister was very musically talented. She always did her own thing. I was the studious one who had to have everything in its place and organized. When my first marriage fell apart she was haughty about how I was no different that she was with her failed marriages. She had no idea that I had envied the way she had so much courage to do what she had to do to survive. After our oldest sister died we became closer. She said she always envied my ability to learn so quickly. I could see so many parallels between the sisters in this book and my sister and myself. There were so many lessons to be learned. I look forward to reading more from this author.
May 15, 2015
How strong is a bond between sisters, even if they are only half sisters? I think through this book you find that sharing a mom is a bond that can overcome almost anything. Tara and Sky are half sisters who have lived through quite a few disappointments in each of their lives, but they don't realize what emotions each sister has had to live through until a true tragedy hits and they are on a road trip of sorts.
Being a sister this book hit real close to my heart. Although my sister and I have not faced the level of personal struggle that these characters have, I saw in them the difference that sisters can be affected by the same situation.
Ann Pearlman does a magnificent job of switching between the two characters to show the full story, at one point the characters describe the same fight and how intriguing to see how each one "heard" the fight. The descriptions of feelings, people and places were just spot on, it made me feel like I could really see it, but I wasn't overwhelmed by it at all.
A sweet companion novel to The Christmas Cookie Club. It was great to see a larger story come out of a book that I loved so much that I plan on rereading during the holidays again this year.
Being a sister this book hit real close to my heart. Although my sister and I have not faced the level of personal struggle that these characters have, I saw in them the difference that sisters can be affected by the same situation.
Ann Pearlman does a magnificent job of switching between the two characters to show the full story, at one point the characters describe the same fight and how intriguing to see how each one "heard" the fight. The descriptions of feelings, people and places were just spot on, it made me feel like I could really see it, but I wasn't overwhelmed by it at all.
A sweet companion novel to The Christmas Cookie Club. It was great to see a larger story come out of a book that I loved so much that I plan on rereading during the holidays again this year.
August 9, 2012
This just wasn't the book for me. I loved the premise but was never able to get behind any of the characters. The conversations usually left me confused; in fact, most of the story left me feeling confused. There were some stock 2D characters who had more of an impact than they should have, though for reasons unknown; character's actions, feelings, and responses didn't really make sense to me and didn't feel believable; and it all had the surreal, dream-like quality of strangeness that you just have to accept only it always happened at the wrong times.
More than anything, I walked away feeling puzzled and was glad to be finished with the book which made me feel sad because it seemed, especially after reading the chapter of recipes, that the author really loved these characters.
More than anything, I walked away feeling puzzled and was glad to be finished with the book which made me feel sad because it seemed, especially after reading the chapter of recipes, that the author really loved these characters.
January 7, 2014
Tara and Sky although sisters are very different and seem to have little in common. When tragedy strikes they are thrown together and forced to look at themselves and the wider world.
I enjoyed this book and particularly the writing style of alternative chapters from Sky and Tara's viewpoint of the same events. Although some of it can be rather superficial at times it manages on the whole to stay believable even when dealing with deep emotions.
Recommend it especially if you have a sister!
I enjoyed this book and particularly the writing style of alternative chapters from Sky and Tara's viewpoint of the same events. Although some of it can be rather superficial at times it manages on the whole to stay believable even when dealing with deep emotions.
Recommend it especially if you have a sister!
October 6, 2012
I truly enjoyed reading this book. The road trip becomes an emotional struggle for the two sisters , but in the end such a great blessing. I have a sister and I could relate to the way I think about her and she about me. If I was given the chance, I would go down the same road just to really get to know her. The story is a real eye opener and yet very heart warming as well. teaches us all a lesson in life. Great book worth your time reading very interesting.
October 16, 2012
i was so happy to recieve my copy of this wounderfull little book that i won on goodreads. as it is an amazing story that truly touched my heart. i loved the charecters and hated to see the book come to an end. i will keep this novel in my permanat library to be read over again. thank you ann for a wounderfull read, i can not wait for your next novel.
September 24, 2013
This story explores the relationship between two sisters and how their eyes are opened when life's ride gets bumpy. The geography was a little beyond me, but that didn't interfere with being able to follow the plot.
Slightly scary in places - it points up the fact that none of us really knows what tomorrow will bring. Get through the tragedy and there's feel-good by the end.
Slightly scary in places - it points up the fact that none of us really knows what tomorrow will bring. Get through the tragedy and there's feel-good by the end.
November 29, 2011
I cannot really say much about the plot in this book without giving it away, what I can say is I was very disappointed with this book, it started off so well, it began to repeat itself and I found it boring and depressing, I did manage to finish the book, however I would not recommend.
November 1, 2012
Sometimes a book exactly catches the emotions you are feeling, and the exact thoughts you are thinking about. This book really got into my head and heart, reflecting my own thoughts and feelings about some current life events. Very evocative and profound for my life right at this moment.
May 25, 2012
I received this book from the Atria/Emily Bestler Books for review.I really liked this novel .It kept me away from other novel until I finished.I will read other novels by this author.
November 3, 2012
This was really a sadder read than I thought it would be. Read my full review at Girl Who Reads
September 10, 2012
Nice story about finding the positive, connecting threads in relationships that had previously only been perceived through all the negative aspects. Easy to read, hard to put down.
December 19, 2012
To read review just pop onto Condygurl's page :)
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
June 28, 2013
Wow, don't forget your tissues.
June 8, 2017
„Apfelblüten im August“ erzählt die Geschichte der beiden ungleichen Halb-Schwestern Sky und Tara. Eigentlich hat Sky alles im Leben was man sich wünschen kann. Einen wundervollen, sie vergötterten Ehemann, eine entzückende kleine Tochter, ein schönes Haus und einen guten Teilzeit-Job als Anwältin. Und auch Tara, die Wilde und Unangepasste, hat scheinbar endlich ihren Platz im Leben gefunden. Die Rap-Gang in der sie zusammen mit Lebensgefährten Aaron auftritt, startet gerade so richtig erfolgreich durch und sie befinden sich auf großer Tournee auf den USA. Mit im Gepäck natürlich immer ihr kleiner, entzückender Sohn.
Doch plötzlich bricht die ganze Idylle in sich zusammen und ein Schicksalsschlag nach dem nächsten prasselt auf die Schwestern ein. Troy, Skys Ehemann und große Liebe stirbt plötzlich und unerwartet an einer Vireninfektion und Sky zieht sich völlig in sich selbst und ihre Trauer zurück und droht daran zu Grunde zu gehen. Ihre Familie beschließt, dass es für sie das Beste wäre wieder in ihre Heimatstadt zu ziehen. Und so beginnt eine Reise quer durch Amerika bei der am Ende nichts mehr so ist wie es war.
Bei dem vorliegenden Buch handelt es sich um eine Fortsetzung des Romans „Der Christmas Cookie Club“. Diese Information habe ich aber erst erhalten, als ich „Apfelblüten im August“ fertig gelesen hatte und ich muss sagen, dass ich nie das Gefühl hatte, dass mir wertvolle Information gefehlt hat. Beide Bücher kann man ohne Probleme unabhängig voneinander lesen, da sie in sich abgeschlossen sind.
Die Geschichte wird abwechselnd aus der Sicht der beiden Halb-Schwestern Tara und Sky erzählt. Durch diesen kapitelweisen Perspektivenwechsel bekommt man einen sehr guten Einblick in die Gefühlslage und Gedankenwelt der beiden, aber auch einen guten Eindruck wie sie auf die jeweils andere wirken. Sowohl Tara als auch Sky sind sehr starke Persönlichkeiten, die beide wissen was sie von ihrem Leben erwarten. Auf den ersten Blick scheinen sie völlig unterschiedlich und inkompatibel zu sein, dieser Eindruck verliert sich aber mehr und mehr je besser man die beiden kennenlernt. Von Kapitel zu Kapitel kann man mehr Gemeinsamkeiten entdecken und ihre Verhaltensweisen besser verstehen.
Auch die Nebencharaktere werden sehr detailreich und anschaulich beschrieben und tragen sehr zur Handlung bei. Im Vergleich zu anderen Büchern dienen hier die Nebendarsteller nicht nur als Statisten und Lückenfüller. Sie haben ihre eigene Geschichte und unterstützen maßgeblich die Botschaft die vermittelt werden soll.
Auch wenn der Titel einen klassischen Herz-Schmerz-Roman vermuten lässt, versteckt sich hinter den Seiten so viel mehr. Natürlich gibt es die klassischen Elemente eines Liebes- und Frauenromans, aber Autorin Ann Pearlman geht noch auf so viel mehr ein. Einerseits natürlich auf die Themen Verlust und Trauer, andererseits aber auch auf Vater-Tochter-Beziehungen. Aber auch Rivalität unter Geschwistern, Klassendenken, Rassismus, Selbst- und Fremdeinschätzung, Freundschaft, Familie, Erfolg und Ruhm sind zentrale Themen in der Geschichte. Besonders schön wird der Roman dadurch, dass diese Themen von verschiedenen Seiten beleuchtet werden und man erkennt dass vieles was für einen selbst normal und alltäglich ist, für andere ein täglicher Kampf ist.
Im Anhang sind noch einige Kochrezepte aufgeführt, die die Geschichte perfekt abrunden. Hierbei handelt es sich um Gerichte die im Laufe des Buches Erwähnung finden, zusätzlich wird bei jedem Rezept noch einmal auf die Bedeutung und die Verbindung des Gerichts eingegangen. Dieses Kapitel rundet das Buch perfekt ab.
Bei „Apfelblüten im August“ handelt es sich um eine wunderbare und tiefgründige Familiengeschichte die zum Nachdenken anregt.
Doch plötzlich bricht die ganze Idylle in sich zusammen und ein Schicksalsschlag nach dem nächsten prasselt auf die Schwestern ein. Troy, Skys Ehemann und große Liebe stirbt plötzlich und unerwartet an einer Vireninfektion und Sky zieht sich völlig in sich selbst und ihre Trauer zurück und droht daran zu Grunde zu gehen. Ihre Familie beschließt, dass es für sie das Beste wäre wieder in ihre Heimatstadt zu ziehen. Und so beginnt eine Reise quer durch Amerika bei der am Ende nichts mehr so ist wie es war.
Bei dem vorliegenden Buch handelt es sich um eine Fortsetzung des Romans „Der Christmas Cookie Club“. Diese Information habe ich aber erst erhalten, als ich „Apfelblüten im August“ fertig gelesen hatte und ich muss sagen, dass ich nie das Gefühl hatte, dass mir wertvolle Information gefehlt hat. Beide Bücher kann man ohne Probleme unabhängig voneinander lesen, da sie in sich abgeschlossen sind.
Die Geschichte wird abwechselnd aus der Sicht der beiden Halb-Schwestern Tara und Sky erzählt. Durch diesen kapitelweisen Perspektivenwechsel bekommt man einen sehr guten Einblick in die Gefühlslage und Gedankenwelt der beiden, aber auch einen guten Eindruck wie sie auf die jeweils andere wirken. Sowohl Tara als auch Sky sind sehr starke Persönlichkeiten, die beide wissen was sie von ihrem Leben erwarten. Auf den ersten Blick scheinen sie völlig unterschiedlich und inkompatibel zu sein, dieser Eindruck verliert sich aber mehr und mehr je besser man die beiden kennenlernt. Von Kapitel zu Kapitel kann man mehr Gemeinsamkeiten entdecken und ihre Verhaltensweisen besser verstehen.
Auch die Nebencharaktere werden sehr detailreich und anschaulich beschrieben und tragen sehr zur Handlung bei. Im Vergleich zu anderen Büchern dienen hier die Nebendarsteller nicht nur als Statisten und Lückenfüller. Sie haben ihre eigene Geschichte und unterstützen maßgeblich die Botschaft die vermittelt werden soll.
Auch wenn der Titel einen klassischen Herz-Schmerz-Roman vermuten lässt, versteckt sich hinter den Seiten so viel mehr. Natürlich gibt es die klassischen Elemente eines Liebes- und Frauenromans, aber Autorin Ann Pearlman geht noch auf so viel mehr ein. Einerseits natürlich auf die Themen Verlust und Trauer, andererseits aber auch auf Vater-Tochter-Beziehungen. Aber auch Rivalität unter Geschwistern, Klassendenken, Rassismus, Selbst- und Fremdeinschätzung, Freundschaft, Familie, Erfolg und Ruhm sind zentrale Themen in der Geschichte. Besonders schön wird der Roman dadurch, dass diese Themen von verschiedenen Seiten beleuchtet werden und man erkennt dass vieles was für einen selbst normal und alltäglich ist, für andere ein täglicher Kampf ist.
Im Anhang sind noch einige Kochrezepte aufgeführt, die die Geschichte perfekt abrunden. Hierbei handelt es sich um Gerichte die im Laufe des Buches Erwähnung finden, zusätzlich wird bei jedem Rezept noch einmal auf die Bedeutung und die Verbindung des Gerichts eingegangen. Dieses Kapitel rundet das Buch perfekt ab.
Bei „Apfelblüten im August“ handelt es sich um eine wunderbare und tiefgründige Familiengeschichte die zum Nachdenken anregt.
December 13, 2023
So first off, I'm really confused about how this was a Christmas book... the edition I have looks very much like a Christmas book, and between that and the title, I thought it was at least somewhat Christmas-adjacent. Nope, not at all. Not a problem, but it wasn't what I expected.
The main plot was fine. Sky and her grief journey made a decent plot. The secondary plots of her relationship with Tara and Tara's journey as a rap star were... interesting. Tara was definitely very young (although it's never quite clarified how young), but definitely wise beyond her years.
This book mostly felt very white. It felt like a white woman trying to explain the struggles of Black people to a white audience (which is what it was), but at times it was over the top. Moments of history being explained to our white characters who can't believe what they did. The confrontation with the cop. So much of it felt like it was there to prove a point, but it was being rammed down your throat in a way that was clearly written by a white person for other white people (very The Help ) and that just wasn't what I was looking for.
Anyway, despite the cover and title, this was not much of a Christmas book. It was very much a family drama, and not a great one at that.
The main plot was fine. Sky and her grief journey made a decent plot. The secondary plots of her relationship with Tara and Tara's journey as a rap star were... interesting. Tara was definitely very young (although it's never quite clarified how young), but definitely wise beyond her years.
This book mostly felt very white. It felt like a white woman trying to explain the struggles of Black people to a white audience (which is what it was), but at times it was over the top. Moments of history being explained to our white characters who can't believe what they did. The confrontation with the cop. So much of it felt like it was there to prove a point, but it was being rammed down your throat in a way that was clearly written by a white person for other white people (very The Help ) and that just wasn't what I was looking for.
Anyway, despite the cover and title, this was not much of a Christmas book. It was very much a family drama, and not a great one at that.
November 18, 2023
What happens when you think someone else seems to have it too easy? Life seems so unfair? When you find it hard to deal with your emotions?
I couldn’t help but get teary with this one. I related to and felt Sky’s pain, as anyone would if they have/are going through grief and loss, but equally could sympathise with Tara’s point of view.
Pearlman captured the turmoil of the girls emotions and struggles wonderfully well, not seeming to skip too rapidly from one to the other or make it seem like they just “got over” things.
I couldn’t help but get teary with this one. I related to and felt Sky’s pain, as anyone would if they have/are going through grief and loss, but equally could sympathise with Tara’s point of view.
Pearlman captured the turmoil of the girls emotions and struggles wonderfully well, not seeming to skip too rapidly from one to the other or make it seem like they just “got over” things.
July 19, 2018
This is the first time I have given up on a book, I did really want to finish it but after 2 weeks and only reading 10 pages there was no way I could have finished it
I usually always enjoy the books I read but for some reason I just could not get into this one. I did try and the cover is lovely - which is why I picked up this book
I usually always enjoy the books I read but for some reason I just could not get into this one. I did try and the cover is lovely - which is why I picked up this book
December 31, 2022
I found this book a little hard to get into in places but I did enjoy it overall. It was very thoughtful provoking making us consider death, black rights and family relationships. It was good to see how the two sisters interacted and how they overcame their difficulties. Overall a good read if you've got the time to invest in it.
November 7, 2024
I was surprised that this book only had an overall average of 3 stars. I really liked it. I started reading this series thinking it would be cozy Christmas reading, the first book is called The Christmas Cookie Club, but they are more about the relationships and growth of the characters in the stories.
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