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The Value Of Rain
Charles is 14, and after being discovered with his first love he is forced into a mental hospital to cure his sexuality. For the next ten years he endures mental and physical torture as part of that treatment and when he is finally free, he begins a relentless quest for vengeance against the woman who abetted his commitment into that hospital, his mother Charlotte. The Value of Rain chronicles Charles’ journey from hate to the unexpected beginning of redemption, and reveals the destructive nature of families, secrets and revenge.
What are people saying about The Value of Rain ?
"A must read!" "Could not put it down." "Masterfully woven." "A work of amazing beauty." "Utterly brilliant!"
What are people saying about The Value of Rain ?
"A must read!" "Could not put it down." "Masterfully woven." "A work of amazing beauty." "Utterly brilliant!"
224 pages, Paperback
First published July 23, 2011
4 people are currently reading
494 people want to read
About the author
Brandon Shire
23 books402 followersGreat stories should not depend on gender or sexual preference of a character, but instead upon the strength of the characters and the honesty and urgency of the story.
Brandon Shire proves he understands the complexity of writing LGBT fiction from two very different viewpoints – serious and smexy. His serious fiction is written for those who enjoy a book which explores life’s darker elements in a more literary form, while the smexy fiction is for those who enjoy a graphically erotic romance.
Regardless of the differentiation above, Brandon writes for people who enjoy being challenged, and for those who strive to understand situations they don’t typically encounter. He pens raw, emotional stories about characters which readers will either love or love to hate.
Life and love are pretty damned special, but neither is always perfect. Life can be painful, and real love hard to find. Brandon’s fiction is an exploration of the (sometimes) arduous search for happiness we all desire.
10% of the proceeds from the sale of any of Brandon’s book are donated to LGBT Youth charities.
Learn more about Brandon Shire and the LGBT Youth charities he supports at BrandonShire.com
Brandon Shire proves he understands the complexity of writing LGBT fiction from two very different viewpoints – serious and smexy. His serious fiction is written for those who enjoy a book which explores life’s darker elements in a more literary form, while the smexy fiction is for those who enjoy a graphically erotic romance.
Regardless of the differentiation above, Brandon writes for people who enjoy being challenged, and for those who strive to understand situations they don’t typically encounter. He pens raw, emotional stories about characters which readers will either love or love to hate.
Life and love are pretty damned special, but neither is always perfect. Life can be painful, and real love hard to find. Brandon’s fiction is an exploration of the (sometimes) arduous search for happiness we all desire.
10% of the proceeds from the sale of any of Brandon’s book are donated to LGBT Youth charities.
Learn more about Brandon Shire and the LGBT Youth charities he supports at BrandonShire.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews
September 14, 2012
REVIEW COMPLETED SEPTEMBER 14, 2012
What is the value of rain?
An excellent and intense book, beautifully written by Brandon Shire.
I'm stunned. I never thought that Brandon's beautiful prose could go hand in hand with a hero spitting such crudeness all around him. I'll be honest, I didn't love Charles. I can't even put the finger on it why I couldn't bring myself to love him, and I feel bad about it. I was so appalled, after all, to witness the humiliation, pain, sexual and physical abuse that he had to bear during his stay at Sanctuary and the Birch Building that I felt I should…I don't know…value him more, really love him? Sure, I felt for him and I hurt for him in a major way but in the end I just couldn't get past his hostile anger, even though there's no doubt about it that Charles had every right to be very, very angry. Then again, I have to ask myself how long a person can/should go through life, driven by revenge, and ignoring so many things that matter so much more. And what really matters and makes life worth living is not revenge. This story was also a journey of exploring the value and beauty of life as well as grief and penance.
The Value of Rain is a difficult, exhausting read, and yet very thoughtful and poignant. Now and then I had to put it down to take a breather. Even though the story is surrounded by a heavy blanket of anger, grief, bitterness, hostility and wistfulness the book closes on a hopeful note. The ending is one of the shortest, yet most meaningful that I've ever read. Having said that, it did not feel rushed at all. The story itself as well as the ending leave room for interpretation and you will have to form your own conclusions. As I see it you can define your very own Value of Rain.
"We never see what we have until it's too late, Charles. We spend so much time focusing on the greener grass that we fail to appreciate how much grows in our own garden. We're too willing to pluck out something as a weed because we've grown bored with it, or because we're unwilling to allow it to fully blossom before we're trolling around for new seedlings. Then all of a sudden we turn around and see nothing but raw dirt and holes in the ground and we wonder why and how we have come to such a derelict place. Not realizing we did it ourselves. But that doesn't mean it's too late to start valuing what you have already, Charles," he added with a slightly emphatic nod.
It's a story that will stay with you for awhile. After having read The Value of Rain I was out for a ride with my MTB. I like to do that to take a breather, to relax. During my whole ride (90 minutes) I had this book on my mind. On top of that, I was listening to music. Not good. It was a bit distracting and Baba's focus was off. You know what can happen when you don't pay attention in heavy traffic. So, I think I really need a guideline "Cycling in Traffic Safely After Having Read a Brandon Shire Book".
Dear Charles,
Rainfall is very vital to people and has a dramatic effect on agriculture. Rain lets plants and trees thrive and it cleans the earth of unwanted germs. It seems to me, though, that The Value of Rain had a very dramatic effect on you too, Charles. Please get rid of all the unwanted germs that are eating at you.
The Value of Self-Esteem
Self-esteem encompasses beliefs and emotions. And I think that your self-esteem is pretty low, Charles. Your self-esteem is build upon thoughts and feelings you have about yourself, and I know that you don't think highly of yourself. Maybe it's time for a self-evaluation, an opinion of who you are and where you are standing in your life at the moment and where you want to go from there; an evaluation also of your points of view. If you don't like your beliefs then change them because what you believe is what you get in life.
The Value of Love
To define love is pretty vague, and yet it's so simple. You fall in love but you can't explain the meaning of love; it's something that has to be experienced. You can feel, hear, see and taste love. Love means joy, passion, heart throb, happiness but also pain and heartache. Accept yourself, be proud of who you are, start loving yourself and then give love and let people love you back. Love is what gives your life a meaning, a sense of being taken care of, and a will to wake up every morning. Embrace life and love to its fullest.
I strongly believe that the best things start out small, they grow slowly yet steadily and end up big. The smallest things can have a huge impact and make the biggest changes of all. Let it happen, Charles.
I suppose that you are on the right path. You have a garden full of daisies after all--take care of them, and when you can get past your wall of anger you will see that there is still hope. Hope for a little more rain.
May your wishes come true.
Take care.
Baba
****************
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thank you Baba. Another stunning review for which I am very grateful.
But I would also like to include a WARNING here for potential readers:
Rain is not in any way, shape, or form a M/M (or romance) read. It is a very hard story about 'reparative therapy' directed at LGBT youth. Author Tomas Mournian also wrote a book about the same subject and did a documentary with the help of pop star George Michael. For more on why I wrote this you can see http://brandonshire.com/the-value-of-...
B.
What is the value of rain?
An excellent and intense book, beautifully written by Brandon Shire.
I'm stunned. I never thought that Brandon's beautiful prose could go hand in hand with a hero spitting such crudeness all around him. I'll be honest, I didn't love Charles. I can't even put the finger on it why I couldn't bring myself to love him, and I feel bad about it. I was so appalled, after all, to witness the humiliation, pain, sexual and physical abuse that he had to bear during his stay at Sanctuary and the Birch Building that I felt I should…I don't know…value him more, really love him? Sure, I felt for him and I hurt for him in a major way but in the end I just couldn't get past his hostile anger, even though there's no doubt about it that Charles had every right to be very, very angry. Then again, I have to ask myself how long a person can/should go through life, driven by revenge, and ignoring so many things that matter so much more. And what really matters and makes life worth living is not revenge. This story was also a journey of exploring the value and beauty of life as well as grief and penance.
The Value of Rain is a difficult, exhausting read, and yet very thoughtful and poignant. Now and then I had to put it down to take a breather. Even though the story is surrounded by a heavy blanket of anger, grief, bitterness, hostility and wistfulness the book closes on a hopeful note. The ending is one of the shortest, yet most meaningful that I've ever read. Having said that, it did not feel rushed at all. The story itself as well as the ending leave room for interpretation and you will have to form your own conclusions. As I see it you can define your very own Value of Rain.
"We never see what we have until it's too late, Charles. We spend so much time focusing on the greener grass that we fail to appreciate how much grows in our own garden. We're too willing to pluck out something as a weed because we've grown bored with it, or because we're unwilling to allow it to fully blossom before we're trolling around for new seedlings. Then all of a sudden we turn around and see nothing but raw dirt and holes in the ground and we wonder why and how we have come to such a derelict place. Not realizing we did it ourselves. But that doesn't mean it's too late to start valuing what you have already, Charles," he added with a slightly emphatic nod.
It's a story that will stay with you for awhile. After having read The Value of Rain I was out for a ride with my MTB. I like to do that to take a breather, to relax. During my whole ride (90 minutes) I had this book on my mind. On top of that, I was listening to music. Not good. It was a bit distracting and Baba's focus was off. You know what can happen when you don't pay attention in heavy traffic. So, I think I really need a guideline "Cycling in Traffic Safely After Having Read a Brandon Shire Book".
Dear Charles,
Rainfall is very vital to people and has a dramatic effect on agriculture. Rain lets plants and trees thrive and it cleans the earth of unwanted germs. It seems to me, though, that The Value of Rain had a very dramatic effect on you too, Charles. Please get rid of all the unwanted germs that are eating at you.
The Value of Self-Esteem
Self-esteem encompasses beliefs and emotions. And I think that your self-esteem is pretty low, Charles. Your self-esteem is build upon thoughts and feelings you have about yourself, and I know that you don't think highly of yourself. Maybe it's time for a self-evaluation, an opinion of who you are and where you are standing in your life at the moment and where you want to go from there; an evaluation also of your points of view. If you don't like your beliefs then change them because what you believe is what you get in life.
The Value of Love
To define love is pretty vague, and yet it's so simple. You fall in love but you can't explain the meaning of love; it's something that has to be experienced. You can feel, hear, see and taste love. Love means joy, passion, heart throb, happiness but also pain and heartache. Accept yourself, be proud of who you are, start loving yourself and then give love and let people love you back. Love is what gives your life a meaning, a sense of being taken care of, and a will to wake up every morning. Embrace life and love to its fullest.
I strongly believe that the best things start out small, they grow slowly yet steadily and end up big. The smallest things can have a huge impact and make the biggest changes of all. Let it happen, Charles.
I suppose that you are on the right path. You have a garden full of daisies after all--take care of them, and when you can get past your wall of anger you will see that there is still hope. Hope for a little more rain.
May your wishes come true.
Take care.
Baba
****************
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thank you Baba. Another stunning review for which I am very grateful.
But I would also like to include a WARNING here for potential readers:
Rain is not in any way, shape, or form a M/M (or romance) read. It is a very hard story about 'reparative therapy' directed at LGBT youth. Author Tomas Mournian also wrote a book about the same subject and did a documentary with the help of pop star George Michael. For more on why I wrote this you can see http://brandonshire.com/the-value-of-...
B.
December 8, 2012
” I barely enter life and, thanks to you, [my mother] I believe neither in anything, nor anyone. (…) Any faith seems a deceit to me, any authority a blight, any tenderness calculating. The most sincere friendship, goodwill, tenderness to come, I will suspect it, I will discourage it, I will disavow it. Mankind must live alone. Loving is abdicating. Hating is claiming myself. I am, I live, I attack, I destroy. I think, therefore I contradict.»
Hervé Bazin, Viper in the Fist.
Charles is fourteen years old when he is discovered with his first love, Robert and sent in an asylum.
The Value of Rain is a sharp, unrelenting fiction without any additional plot that could distract or relieve you from your focus on the heart of the matter : what does it actually mean to reject, hurt and damage someone’s self to the point that he can only survive on ferocity? How many layers to peel, how many kinks to work out in order to truly understand someone’s story? What is the cost of becoming responsible of oneself, outgrow the survival mode and build a meaning for one’s life?
The book alternates the narrative of Charles’ story with its present culmination, enhancing how much Charles froze in the past. It could be read like a play, each part an act, each scene an added layer, with characters coming on and out of stage.
Reading it means to sit, receive and absorb stories of crushed childhoods and youths, accompany them to their conclusion without reward and ponder about what is actually at stake.
I left Charles, Robert, Bruce, Snow and all the other characters a few days ago and they’re still inhabiting my brain.
It is unsettling, hurtful and I don’t know what else but it’s worth it.
”He had seen and penetrated my façade in a single glance, confessing all my frailties and weaknesses without amusement, condemnation or pity. He respected the frailty he saw and would change nothing, unlike all the well meaning people before him.
This was my teacher.”
Brandon Shire, The Value of Rain
May 19, 2013
There are dead people in my head.
The best first sentence ever.
And I liked the ending.
The best first sentence ever.
And I liked the ending.
December 8, 2011
Brandon Shire's The Value of Rain is a beautiful, stunning, brutally real look at growing up Gay in the America where people admire politicians who make remarks like those of Rick Perry and Michelle Bachman.
Richard Nixon was president of the United States of America when the story begins. To help those not familiar with the atmosphere of America toward the GLBT community at that time consider these remarks on San Francisco made by President Nixon:
""But it's not just the ratty part of town. The upper class in San Francisco is that way. . . . It is the most faggy goddamned thing you could ever imagine with that San Francisco crowd. I can't shake hands with anybody from San Francisco."
The Value of Rain is the story of Charles who was sent to a mental hospital at age fourteen by his mother to be "cured" of his homosexuality. He ended up spending the next ten years in a series of "treatment" facilties. Much of the book is taken up with Charles many years in these barbaric programs. The story begins in 1971 when his mother finds out he is gay. The Value of the Rain took me on an emotional roller coaster ride over years of Charles life. Much of the book is taken up with the extreme hatred Charles has for his mother and his life long quest for revenge on her for all of the terrible things that happened to him in the institutions he spent many years in. He met and loved wonderfully kind and gentle young men there and also completely brutal thugs. He was thrown in with young criminal sex offenders almost all of whom had been horribly molested as children. The doctors and workers are themselves full of loathing for those they are allegedly treating.
The story is narrated in a very interesting fashion with flashes back and forth in the life of Charles. It is a very nonlinear story which because of this bold treatment by Shire strongly stays with us. Just as the consciosness of Charles was fragmented by his experiences so our experience of the story requires a reconstructive process for it to be understood. What seems like vicious story of hatred toward his mother builds slowly to a profound experience of the cathartic power of love and compassion.
The language in the book goes from lyrical passages you will read over and over for their sheer beauty to sections that are quite jarring in their depictions of the cruelty and hatred in the world of Charles and his family.
This is an intense deeply felt very emotionally intense book. At times Charles hatred for his mother is not easy to take but for sure it is real.
"I stand at at the foot of my mother's bed as she lay dying. I have no remorse; it's all I can do not to hurry death with my own hands".
As I read this amazing book, I was reminded of two literary items from my recent past. I somehow was brought to mind Katherine Mansfield who was sent by her mother to be treated for her sexual interest in women to "Health Spas" who procedures included being sprayed with high pressure hoses. I also recalled Anton Chekhov's story of life in a Czarist era mental hospital, "Ward Six".
The author donates 50 percent of the sales of this book to GLBT youth charities.
The Value of Rain is set in America but the discrimination talked about in the book is world wide.
I salute Shire for his wonderful first novel and I look forward to reading more by him in the future.
Richard Nixon was president of the United States of America when the story begins. To help those not familiar with the atmosphere of America toward the GLBT community at that time consider these remarks on San Francisco made by President Nixon:
""But it's not just the ratty part of town. The upper class in San Francisco is that way. . . . It is the most faggy goddamned thing you could ever imagine with that San Francisco crowd. I can't shake hands with anybody from San Francisco."
The Value of Rain is the story of Charles who was sent to a mental hospital at age fourteen by his mother to be "cured" of his homosexuality. He ended up spending the next ten years in a series of "treatment" facilties. Much of the book is taken up with Charles many years in these barbaric programs. The story begins in 1971 when his mother finds out he is gay. The Value of the Rain took me on an emotional roller coaster ride over years of Charles life. Much of the book is taken up with the extreme hatred Charles has for his mother and his life long quest for revenge on her for all of the terrible things that happened to him in the institutions he spent many years in. He met and loved wonderfully kind and gentle young men there and also completely brutal thugs. He was thrown in with young criminal sex offenders almost all of whom had been horribly molested as children. The doctors and workers are themselves full of loathing for those they are allegedly treating.
The story is narrated in a very interesting fashion with flashes back and forth in the life of Charles. It is a very nonlinear story which because of this bold treatment by Shire strongly stays with us. Just as the consciosness of Charles was fragmented by his experiences so our experience of the story requires a reconstructive process for it to be understood. What seems like vicious story of hatred toward his mother builds slowly to a profound experience of the cathartic power of love and compassion.
The language in the book goes from lyrical passages you will read over and over for their sheer beauty to sections that are quite jarring in their depictions of the cruelty and hatred in the world of Charles and his family.
This is an intense deeply felt very emotionally intense book. At times Charles hatred for his mother is not easy to take but for sure it is real.
"I stand at at the foot of my mother's bed as she lay dying. I have no remorse; it's all I can do not to hurry death with my own hands".
As I read this amazing book, I was reminded of two literary items from my recent past. I somehow was brought to mind Katherine Mansfield who was sent by her mother to be treated for her sexual interest in women to "Health Spas" who procedures included being sprayed with high pressure hoses. I also recalled Anton Chekhov's story of life in a Czarist era mental hospital, "Ward Six".
The author donates 50 percent of the sales of this book to GLBT youth charities.
The Value of Rain is set in America but the discrimination talked about in the book is world wide.
I salute Shire for his wonderful first novel and I look forward to reading more by him in the future.
July 25, 2016
After this one I need one with rainbows and HEA :'(
Este libro ha sido duro de leer. Mi corazón va con Charles. Con una familia como la suya yo también buscaría venganza. Y más después de todo lo que transcurre en su vida.
Lo que no me ha gustado es como todos alrededor de Charles saben más que el y le dicen que dejé de buscar venganza pero no le ayudan.
También la actitud de Charles no me gusta. Esta tan ciego por vengarse que no tiene ojos para nada más y rechaza la poca ayuda que recibe. Sin darse cuenta que está haciendo lo mismo que le hicieron a él :-|
Y el final es adecuado con la historia pero me sabe a poco.
Este libro ha sido duro de leer. Mi corazón va con Charles. Con una familia como la suya yo también buscaría venganza. Y más después de todo lo que transcurre en su vida.
Lo que no me ha gustado es como todos alrededor de Charles saben más que el y le dicen que dejé de buscar venganza pero no le ayudan.
También la actitud de Charles no me gusta. Esta tan ciego por vengarse que no tiene ojos para nada más y rechaza la poca ayuda que recibe. Sin darse cuenta que está haciendo lo mismo que le hicieron a él :-|
Y el final es adecuado con la historia pero me sabe a poco.
September 27, 2011
Recent news articles and social reaction has driven me to certain kinds of stories as of late. Memoirs, tragic tales, and sorrow filled worlds. I fell into this book through chance and curiousity. As a gay male, I wanted to feel the confusing journey of this young man. I wasn't sure what to expect, and I wasn't prepared for where it took me at times.
As I said, some of the books I read are right up this alley, but I prefer to casually read fantasy books. Call it my escape if you will.
What I found in this book was a young man at odds with his past, present, future, family, and most of all himself. In an often times horrifying display of subtle description the eventual institutional committing of a young gay boy on the verge of sexual discovery was gripping! It never went over the top in the way of story telling during this period in his life, it was very matter of fact. This I enjoyed. To explain what happened without making me disgusted should be the goal in these types of situtations and Brandon Shire succeeds.
Oh how I loved Breece! From his name, to his wisdom! Granted the revelations he brings with him are the showstopper, he was such an original character. A bum with a heart of gold and tortured soul! At times, when the main character Charles was plummeting into destruction, he was surrounded by genius pearls of wisdom by so many strong support characters. The writting here is top notch. Skipping the usual surrounding descriptives of most novels and instead sticking to inner monologue, and turmoil descriptives are what kept me in love with Charles. I say this because this kid is frustrating! You know why he acts the way he does, and I FELT for the poor kid.... But I wanted to reach in and slap him! This is not a bad thing! Books should invoke these types of emotions. These are the emotions that I imagined the other characters feel about him and his fight against his anger and pain. Everyone except Breece! Whom I loved!
Ok, now, lets talk about that ending while staying spoiler free. Why we just weren't given a name to the person "he met once" really stumped me for a moment. After re-reading it three times I finally knew who the person was, but I had to really think about it. After I figured it out I came to the conclusion for the story. The decisions Charles made kind of shocked me! I felt a little stupid for not figuring out who the person was immediately though.
Why Breece did what he did seemed a tad out of character, even though through the journey you find out that he wasn't really ever what he seemed. Still, I can't say that it could have ended differently and stayed true to the story and history of the characters. If I felt like there was more closure then I couldn't ever truly feel the way Charles felt his whole young adult life. I think that was the point though, the bow we expect to wrap things up at the end of a struggle is never as pretty as we had imagined. The answers we often seek are usually far from simple, and the ending here felt complex. Many things were unspoken, but I assumed a lot from the last chapters interaction and an earlier chapters event.
Of course this is a journey that I was glad to have had, this book is certainly one that I will suggest in the future. As a debut novel this was ballsy, memorable, and had many great moments!
As I said, some of the books I read are right up this alley, but I prefer to casually read fantasy books. Call it my escape if you will.
What I found in this book was a young man at odds with his past, present, future, family, and most of all himself. In an often times horrifying display of subtle description the eventual institutional committing of a young gay boy on the verge of sexual discovery was gripping! It never went over the top in the way of story telling during this period in his life, it was very matter of fact. This I enjoyed. To explain what happened without making me disgusted should be the goal in these types of situtations and Brandon Shire succeeds.
Oh how I loved Breece! From his name, to his wisdom! Granted the revelations he brings with him are the showstopper, he was such an original character. A bum with a heart of gold and tortured soul! At times, when the main character Charles was plummeting into destruction, he was surrounded by genius pearls of wisdom by so many strong support characters. The writting here is top notch. Skipping the usual surrounding descriptives of most novels and instead sticking to inner monologue, and turmoil descriptives are what kept me in love with Charles. I say this because this kid is frustrating! You know why he acts the way he does, and I FELT for the poor kid.... But I wanted to reach in and slap him! This is not a bad thing! Books should invoke these types of emotions. These are the emotions that I imagined the other characters feel about him and his fight against his anger and pain. Everyone except Breece! Whom I loved!
Ok, now, lets talk about that ending while staying spoiler free. Why we just weren't given a name to the person "he met once" really stumped me for a moment. After re-reading it three times I finally knew who the person was, but I had to really think about it. After I figured it out I came to the conclusion for the story. The decisions Charles made kind of shocked me! I felt a little stupid for not figuring out who the person was immediately though.
Why Breece did what he did seemed a tad out of character, even though through the journey you find out that he wasn't really ever what he seemed. Still, I can't say that it could have ended differently and stayed true to the story and history of the characters. If I felt like there was more closure then I couldn't ever truly feel the way Charles felt his whole young adult life. I think that was the point though, the bow we expect to wrap things up at the end of a struggle is never as pretty as we had imagined. The answers we often seek are usually far from simple, and the ending here felt complex. Many things were unspoken, but I assumed a lot from the last chapters interaction and an earlier chapters event.
Of course this is a journey that I was glad to have had, this book is certainly one that I will suggest in the future. As a debut novel this was ballsy, memorable, and had many great moments!
February 16, 2012
4.5
What a roller coaster of emotions this book was for me, The Value of Rain is so far out of my reading zone you have no idea. Yet, I was interested in giving it a chance based on all the raves reviews. I have to say I was far from disappointed, and I am glad I gave it a chance.
Charles is fourteen and in love with a boy who makes his days better, he is the sunshine within his dark and gloomy life. This love leads the boys into a sexual relationship and later they are caught together. The events that unfold is tragic, horrendous, and will leave you positively heart broken. Charles is institutionalized by his mother and uncle, and left in a mental hospital to undergo 'treatment' to remove his homosexuality.
It's hard to imagine a mother doing that to her own child, but Charlotte is no mother. The years of suffering and heartache leaves Charles to plot revenge against those that took away his life and the love he had for a boy. With the help of a doctor and a father he never knew, Charles is given the opportunity to heal and move forward; but his mind is stuck in the past and he wants to see the end of his mother. Though Charlotte is dying, Charles is just unable to forgive and find some peace.
The author writes an incredible tale of the most vicious circumstance that could ever befall a child. At times I felt the circumstances was a bit too extreme and extravagant, but it paints the picture that our children do suffer. Whether it be for their sexuality or the fact that they have parents who should never have given birth to children. It is sometimes a cruel world for the young, and they fall victim to people who hurt and abuse them. Which makes the reading experience for The Value of Rain that much stronger.
Charles is a complex and frustrating character and he really pisses me off. I understood his need for revenge and hurting the person who hurt him, but he should have realized that there was no way to hurt a woman who willingly gave up a son. He's also offered so much love but never accepts it, but I understand he is a giver of love but not one who accepts it (you will understand exactly what I mean when you read the book). He frustrates the crap out of me, but yet I am sympathetic towards him. If I were in his shoes, I wouldn't be very forgiving either.
Overall, this book is a series of twists and scenes, that are harsh in its realism but fulfilling because of that. Its like a story written for the forgotten boys/girls and the cruelties they face with no one to care for them. It's a lot more than gay fiction, it's a great freaking read. Charles, and every character from this book will leave you spellbound and then break your heart, it's just that intense. Though Charles was a pawn in the game of adults and was left suffer, he still possesses the capability to love. I think it's for that reason why I like this book so much.
I would love to read about Charles again, the ending left too much to the imagination.
SideNote- Half the proceeds from the purchase of this book goes to LGBT charities combatting homelessness. That my friends is a very good thing, so give some support.
What a roller coaster of emotions this book was for me, The Value of Rain is so far out of my reading zone you have no idea. Yet, I was interested in giving it a chance based on all the raves reviews. I have to say I was far from disappointed, and I am glad I gave it a chance.
Charles is fourteen and in love with a boy who makes his days better, he is the sunshine within his dark and gloomy life. This love leads the boys into a sexual relationship and later they are caught together. The events that unfold is tragic, horrendous, and will leave you positively heart broken. Charles is institutionalized by his mother and uncle, and left in a mental hospital to undergo 'treatment' to remove his homosexuality.
It's hard to imagine a mother doing that to her own child, but Charlotte is no mother. The years of suffering and heartache leaves Charles to plot revenge against those that took away his life and the love he had for a boy. With the help of a doctor and a father he never knew, Charles is given the opportunity to heal and move forward; but his mind is stuck in the past and he wants to see the end of his mother. Though Charlotte is dying, Charles is just unable to forgive and find some peace.
The author writes an incredible tale of the most vicious circumstance that could ever befall a child. At times I felt the circumstances was a bit too extreme and extravagant, but it paints the picture that our children do suffer. Whether it be for their sexuality or the fact that they have parents who should never have given birth to children. It is sometimes a cruel world for the young, and they fall victim to people who hurt and abuse them. Which makes the reading experience for The Value of Rain that much stronger.
Charles is a complex and frustrating character and he really pisses me off. I understood his need for revenge and hurting the person who hurt him, but he should have realized that there was no way to hurt a woman who willingly gave up a son. He's also offered so much love but never accepts it, but I understand he is a giver of love but not one who accepts it (you will understand exactly what I mean when you read the book). He frustrates the crap out of me, but yet I am sympathetic towards him. If I were in his shoes, I wouldn't be very forgiving either.
Overall, this book is a series of twists and scenes, that are harsh in its realism but fulfilling because of that. Its like a story written for the forgotten boys/girls and the cruelties they face with no one to care for them. It's a lot more than gay fiction, it's a great freaking read. Charles, and every character from this book will leave you spellbound and then break your heart, it's just that intense. Though Charles was a pawn in the game of adults and was left suffer, he still possesses the capability to love. I think it's for that reason why I like this book so much.
I would love to read about Charles again, the ending left too much to the imagination.
SideNote- Half the proceeds from the purchase of this book goes to LGBT charities combatting homelessness. That my friends is a very good thing, so give some support.
December 16, 2011
Gay, straight, or in between, human stories don't get much more powerful than in Brandon Shire's The Value Of Rain.
At it's heart, this is the tale of a young teenager (Charles) who is catapulted from the arms of his first love into the restraints of a mental hospital. Over the next ten years he is mentally, physically, and psychologically abused, all in an effort to cure him of his gayness - and all at his own mother's behest. While he manages to hold onto his identity, the experience changes him, transforming an innocent boy in search of love into a scarred young man in search of revenge.
This is a book that's, at times, both sad and angry, literally haunted by the dreary sound and images of falling rain. It's not a difficult story, but it is a challenging one, told in a deliberately haphazard fashion. The story jumps around through Charles' life, contrasting past and present, giving meaning to one, while justifying the other. What struck me most about the book was how beautifully Brandon writes, especially when writing about the cruelties which Charles encounters. It's very disconcerting to both admire and despise the same passages, drawn in by the narrative, only to recoil from the subject matter.
Like I said, this is a story that's sad and angry, and full of a lot of pain . . . but that pain, ultimately, leads to a catharsis. Charles evolves as much over the course of the story as he did during the duration of his imprisonment, and even if he can never reclaim his innocence, he can make peace with his situation. As for the ending, it's been a few days since I've read it, and I'm still not sure how I feel about it. The human part of me rejects it, demanding a very different sense of satisfaction, but the reader in me admires it, appreciating just how Brandon brought everything together.
A powerfully moving read, it also comes with a note of caution for anybody who has ever felt like an outsider, who has ever been shunned or made to feel ashamed - this is a book that will make you think, feel, and sympathize, whether you want to or not.
At it's heart, this is the tale of a young teenager (Charles) who is catapulted from the arms of his first love into the restraints of a mental hospital. Over the next ten years he is mentally, physically, and psychologically abused, all in an effort to cure him of his gayness - and all at his own mother's behest. While he manages to hold onto his identity, the experience changes him, transforming an innocent boy in search of love into a scarred young man in search of revenge.
This is a book that's, at times, both sad and angry, literally haunted by the dreary sound and images of falling rain. It's not a difficult story, but it is a challenging one, told in a deliberately haphazard fashion. The story jumps around through Charles' life, contrasting past and present, giving meaning to one, while justifying the other. What struck me most about the book was how beautifully Brandon writes, especially when writing about the cruelties which Charles encounters. It's very disconcerting to both admire and despise the same passages, drawn in by the narrative, only to recoil from the subject matter.
Like I said, this is a story that's sad and angry, and full of a lot of pain . . . but that pain, ultimately, leads to a catharsis. Charles evolves as much over the course of the story as he did during the duration of his imprisonment, and even if he can never reclaim his innocence, he can make peace with his situation. As for the ending, it's been a few days since I've read it, and I'm still not sure how I feel about it. The human part of me rejects it, demanding a very different sense of satisfaction, but the reader in me admires it, appreciating just how Brandon brought everything together.
A powerfully moving read, it also comes with a note of caution for anybody who has ever felt like an outsider, who has ever been shunned or made to feel ashamed - this is a book that will make you think, feel, and sympathize, whether you want to or not.
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March 27, 2015No rating
How do you rate this book? I can't even begin. Brandon Shire has proven to me time and again that he's an author unlike any other I've experienced. His writing isn't just beautiful and eloquent...it's stunning. So poetic, I regretfully admit that I can't read it unless I have complete silence and concentration. I'm not uneducated- it's THAT complex. Add a very sad, complex plot and it's overwhelming at times.
I honestly stopped The Value of Rain with 20 pages left- yeah, like 97%. I didn't want to read the ending. I knew it wouldn't make me happy and would just cause me more sadness.
Charles Benedict was a fourteen year old boy when his sadistic, b$tch mother institutionalized him for being gay. And this was no fancy psychiatric hospital. It was awful. Years upon years in a place where he entered fully sane and watched people get electrocuted, drugged, abused and gradually become INsane. When he finally meets a psychiatrist who realizes he shouldn't be in this place at all, he's finally released. Charles, rightfully so, is filled with hate and vengeance. He will get his mother back.
From this point on, the story kind of lost me. Charles had so much hate and scars from all those years. He couldn't seem to accept any good in the world or move on. It was heartbreaking and I just couldn't see what happened in the end .
Call me a wimp but I can't finish it. I don't want to know....
Moving on to something with rainbows and unicorns.
August 22, 2013
The emotions this story wrought in me left me silent and dazed, drained of all usefulness until I could ruminate on my responses. The writing is stunningly beautiful and reminiscent of Southern authors such as Harper Lee, Flannery O'Connor, and Pat Conroy with all its subsequent family hatred and love. Interwoven within this prose is one man's horrific struggle of revenge against the one person who should have loved him unconditionally.
Charles is fourteen years old when he is caught in compromising circumstances with another boy. Thrown away by his mother, Charlotte, to a mental institution, he spends the next ten years enduring the worst that humans can do to one another, suffering through electric shock, beatings, and abuse. But it is there that he also meets some of the gentlest people he will ever know, lost in their delusions and drugs. Released, finally, from the institution, Charles struggles to live free, staying with the father he's just met. But when that father dies, Charles flees to New Orleans attempting to discover any secrets he can about his mother to use against her in his vengeance.
I've never met someone as consumed with hate and bitterness as Charles is. It feeds him, appears to have always fed him. His relationship with his mother is frightening in its intense disgust, rage, and overwhelming need to exact revenge on her, not just for his confinement, but also for the deaths of people he consigns to her responsibility because those men loved him and Charlotte couldn't allow that. In his hatred and revenge he doesn't seem to realize that he's made himself into a mirror image, a twin, of his malicious mother.
This beautiful story made me think. It made me cry. It made me mourn. It made me cry.
NOTE: This book was provided by the author for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Charles is fourteen years old when he is caught in compromising circumstances with another boy. Thrown away by his mother, Charlotte, to a mental institution, he spends the next ten years enduring the worst that humans can do to one another, suffering through electric shock, beatings, and abuse. But it is there that he also meets some of the gentlest people he will ever know, lost in their delusions and drugs. Released, finally, from the institution, Charles struggles to live free, staying with the father he's just met. But when that father dies, Charles flees to New Orleans attempting to discover any secrets he can about his mother to use against her in his vengeance.
I've never met someone as consumed with hate and bitterness as Charles is. It feeds him, appears to have always fed him. His relationship with his mother is frightening in its intense disgust, rage, and overwhelming need to exact revenge on her, not just for his confinement, but also for the deaths of people he consigns to her responsibility because those men loved him and Charlotte couldn't allow that. In his hatred and revenge he doesn't seem to realize that he's made himself into a mirror image, a twin, of his malicious mother.
This beautiful story made me think. It made me cry. It made me mourn. It made me cry.
NOTE: This book was provided by the author for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
March 4, 2012
"There are dead people in my head." From the opening line to last,
The Value of Rain
by Brandon Shire seizes your heart and does not let go, even long after the book is closed. The story of a family that fuses love to hatred and life to death and rolls those two fusions together, so that it is impossible to ever separate them. Though only a few scenes take place in New Orleans, The Value of Rain echoes the southern gothic tradition, entangled and hidden bloodlines and all. Indeed Flannery O'Connor and Eudora Welty would be comfortable in this world, and would be envious of the writer. The characters are strong in their weaknesses, and their strengths always betray them. A first act of physical love propels a young boy from his already precarious existence into the living hell of a psychiatric hospital for a hideous 'cure' for his gayness. Charles's non-chronological narrative of his journey through that hell, and all that follows, is told with an unerring eye for detail, both physical and emotional.
The Value of Rain
also shows the strong emotionally warping effect of revenge; given the chance to escape, to just be loved for himself, Charles finds he can not let go of the emotional and deadly pas de deux with his mother Charlotte. This is a lyrically beautiful book, masterfully woven with intense emotion, insightful and frightening in its clarity.
September 24, 2011
That which breaks us in our youth can take a life time to heal. Brandon Shire has displayed that very sentiment so eloquently in this impressive debut novel. The language at times poetic...at other times vulgar and crude. I discovered the book this morning and devoured it in a few hours even though at times it was uneasy to get through because of the exposed, horrific moments young Charles encountered in the institution. But this is when Shire shows what an intense author he is; unafraid to paint vivid pictures for his readers so they can live inside of that appalling world that Charles calls 'life'. With each turn of the electronic page, I found myself pulling for this protagonist on his quest of self discovery and years lost. Thank you, Mr. Shire. I may never walk out into the rain and see the annoyance that I've often felt in the past.
February 15, 2016
Powerfully emotive characters, plot and dialogue - this is no page flicker; be prepared to work to fully appreciate the story, it's layers, and the message of possibility ... and you'll need a strong stomach at times, be advised.
I almost could not read on at some points because I couldn't process the emotional responses quickly enough. I read it one sitting - I think I had to to fully engage.
I think this may well be the first book by Brandon Shire that I have read; it won't be the last.
Alp
I almost could not read on at some points because I couldn't process the emotional responses quickly enough. I read it one sitting - I think I had to to fully engage.
I think this may well be the first book by Brandon Shire that I have read; it won't be the last.
Alp
June 20, 2015
A very painful read that has no real moments of levity to temper the angst, then again it wasn't supposed to. It's an exhausting and intense read that will haunt you for days afterward. While it's certainly worthy of a reread or twenty, I don't know that I could. I think I spent at least half of it with tears in my eyes. It's not an easy read, but it's definitely worthy of your time if you choose to do so. I wish I had better words, but I'm too shredded to come up with them...maybe later.
May 30, 2016
*
Very much beyond 5 stars
Very much beyond 5 stars
November 23, 2019
Though this novel had a decent plot, it was more than a bit difficult to read. Why? Spelling and grammar errors as well as the occasional misuse of vocabulary abounded. The author desperately needed an editor.
January 8, 2012
The Value of Rain is a book like a glass of ice water to the face, to the heart. It’s a dark novel, an endless rainy night in a season of monsoons; when the sun comes out—and it does come out—it remains half-hidden in its own shadow much like the protagonist, Charles, himself.
The writing is as spare, unforgiving and mean as the story it tells. A torrent of horror and atrocity pours down with the vigor of acid rain. The extreme cruelty and apathy of the adults veers perilously close to caricature yet this very exaggeration serves to cast a spotlight on the harsh reality that is the central premise of this unforgettable book: we are failing our LGBT children; we are failing to give them a sense of self-worth, we are failing to love them.
At fourteen, after being caught in the arms of his first love, in aftermath of his first gay experience, Charles is committed, remanded to the first of two consecutive psychiatric institutions—institutions that are part warehouse, part torture chamber. Both institutions, more cemetery for the barely living than hospital, uniformly fail those in its custody. One youngman, Snow, cuts himself, the reason for his incarceration, yet he regularly finds razors and continues to cut himself, eventually slitting his own wrists. Another youngman, forced to eat his own shit, also succumbs to despair and engineers his own escape. That Charles himself survives at all is a miracle and a puzzle.
Over ten years we follow Charles’ trajectory to despair. Finally the release he deserves, the release we find ourselves hoping for, occurs and he moves out into the greater world. Yet, perhaps not surprisingly, even after even after he is freed, he remains imprisoned―in a carapace of hatred, his need for revenge; alone, unreachable, ignoring love, like glancing blows against the hard brilliant shell of his stilled heart.
The Value of Rain is a difficult book to forget. When you reach the end you will realize as Charles’ uncle Breece warns, “Now the hard part, letting go, is up to you.” And you’ll realize letting go of this story and its haunted cast of characters is not so easy.
The writing is as spare, unforgiving and mean as the story it tells. A torrent of horror and atrocity pours down with the vigor of acid rain. The extreme cruelty and apathy of the adults veers perilously close to caricature yet this very exaggeration serves to cast a spotlight on the harsh reality that is the central premise of this unforgettable book: we are failing our LGBT children; we are failing to give them a sense of self-worth, we are failing to love them.
At fourteen, after being caught in the arms of his first love, in aftermath of his first gay experience, Charles is committed, remanded to the first of two consecutive psychiatric institutions—institutions that are part warehouse, part torture chamber. Both institutions, more cemetery for the barely living than hospital, uniformly fail those in its custody. One youngman, Snow, cuts himself, the reason for his incarceration, yet he regularly finds razors and continues to cut himself, eventually slitting his own wrists. Another youngman, forced to eat his own shit, also succumbs to despair and engineers his own escape. That Charles himself survives at all is a miracle and a puzzle.
Over ten years we follow Charles’ trajectory to despair. Finally the release he deserves, the release we find ourselves hoping for, occurs and he moves out into the greater world. Yet, perhaps not surprisingly, even after even after he is freed, he remains imprisoned―in a carapace of hatred, his need for revenge; alone, unreachable, ignoring love, like glancing blows against the hard brilliant shell of his stilled heart.
The Value of Rain is a difficult book to forget. When you reach the end you will realize as Charles’ uncle Breece warns, “Now the hard part, letting go, is up to you.” And you’ll realize letting go of this story and its haunted cast of characters is not so easy.
January 31, 2014
This is the second book I've read by this author and I have to say he's a favorite of mine. I'll be reading everything he writes eventually. What I like best about his writing is that he doesn't shy away from writing it real. I don't like watered-down stories and I don't require a HEA in a book. Brandon Shire writes gay fiction, and it's always packed with drama and realism.
This story is not pretty in any way. It's brutal and unforgiving. Right away it graps you by the throat and doesn't let up once throughout the whole book. I like that in a story, and I like when an author doesn't disappoint me.
Charles, Charlotte, and all the others are well thought out and developed. Conflict? Hell, the whole story is conflict, so that's certainly not missing. I don't know if everyone will like this book. It's very dark and disturbing. For those of us who thirst for those types of books it works very well. Make me think and feel. Oh, Brandon Shire, you do it so very, very well.
The one thing that did bother me was something that might be a small thing to most. I really would give this a 4.5 star instead of a five because of it, but since I can't, I rounded up simply because of the solid story telling and development.
What bothered me? The continuous use of peoples names in dialog. Hardly anyone refers to someone by their name over and over in a conversation. There may be a few, rare people who do this. I could see Charlotte being irritating enough to do it. But all of them do it, and it constantly pulled me out of the story. It jarred me and made me think of those old Publishing Clearing House letters from Ed McMahon, where he addressed you by name about twenty-five times in his form letter.It rang false in those letters and made the dialog less believable here. When two people are talking, we don't need to be reminded who one is talking to.
However, I strongly ugre you to not let that stop you from reading this book. It is worthy of your time, and there are many instances where the thoughts in this book made me stop and savor them. Even when ugly, they often had a truth to them that made me nod and say, "Yes, exactly. That's so often the way it is."
This story is not pretty in any way. It's brutal and unforgiving. Right away it graps you by the throat and doesn't let up once throughout the whole book. I like that in a story, and I like when an author doesn't disappoint me.
Charles, Charlotte, and all the others are well thought out and developed. Conflict? Hell, the whole story is conflict, so that's certainly not missing. I don't know if everyone will like this book. It's very dark and disturbing. For those of us who thirst for those types of books it works very well. Make me think and feel. Oh, Brandon Shire, you do it so very, very well.
The one thing that did bother me was something that might be a small thing to most. I really would give this a 4.5 star instead of a five because of it, but since I can't, I rounded up simply because of the solid story telling and development.
What bothered me? The continuous use of peoples names in dialog. Hardly anyone refers to someone by their name over and over in a conversation. There may be a few, rare people who do this. I could see Charlotte being irritating enough to do it. But all of them do it, and it constantly pulled me out of the story. It jarred me and made me think of those old Publishing Clearing House letters from Ed McMahon, where he addressed you by name about twenty-five times in his form letter.It rang false in those letters and made the dialog less believable here. When two people are talking, we don't need to be reminded who one is talking to.
However, I strongly ugre you to not let that stop you from reading this book. It is worthy of your time, and there are many instances where the thoughts in this book made me stop and savor them. Even when ugly, they often had a truth to them that made me nod and say, "Yes, exactly. That's so often the way it is."
January 15, 2013
2.75
An ambitious novel. The ending was a pleasant surprise, and struck the right tone.
My problems with the book revolved around the number of like-sounding characters who seem to be all-knowing fountains of life truths. This, along with . These details truly stretched believability for me.
Readers in general can accept time shifts with some brief summary to fill us in. We'd be bored with every detail of every day. Here however there felt like something missing, something odd about This is a long time, and presumably one that would have great influence on Charles. Sad to say, we don't get a real sense of just how long a period this is. It reads as a far more brief period of time.
Another issue I had: the number of typos in this book. Usually I can look past a few without being pulled from the story. Here? Too many cases of "passed" being used when the correct word is "past." Also the odd construct of "...," instead of merely the ellipses. Too many cases of missing quotation marks altogether. Some incorrect vocabulary.
I didn't dislike the book. It just didn't come together as well as I hoped.
An ambitious novel. The ending was a pleasant surprise, and struck the right tone.
My problems with the book revolved around the number of like-sounding characters who seem to be all-knowing fountains of life truths. This, along with . These details truly stretched believability for me.
Readers in general can accept time shifts with some brief summary to fill us in. We'd be bored with every detail of every day. Here however there felt like something missing, something odd about This is a long time, and presumably one that would have great influence on Charles. Sad to say, we don't get a real sense of just how long a period this is. It reads as a far more brief period of time.
Another issue I had: the number of typos in this book. Usually I can look past a few without being pulled from the story. Here? Too many cases of "passed" being used when the correct word is "past." Also the odd construct of "...," instead of merely the ellipses. Too many cases of missing quotation marks altogether. Some incorrect vocabulary.
I didn't dislike the book. It just didn't come together as well as I hoped.
June 3, 2014
Although classified as LGBT literature the book would appeal to all readers as there are many other themes explored - love, rejection, family, loss, etc. The book gripped me for the start and I really connected with the main character Charles. I found myself in complete admiration of his strength of character and determination. I was impressed by the quality of writing, particularly the descriptive language which flowed so well. At first I liked the way the story jumped back and forth from the present (at the hospital with his dying mother) to various events in his past when growing up. Some of the scenes and situations were shocking and I had to stop and re-read just to be sure of what I had read.
However towards the latter part of the book I found some of the scenes to be too unrealistic (I am not sure if they are real events or not) and I was easily confused. I felt the pace was too quick and so the lack of depth at times resulted in some events appearing less authentic.
A dark read but one that I found really enjoyable and certainly I felt I could learn from the style of writing used by the author. I am looking forward to reading more of this authors books.
However towards the latter part of the book I found some of the scenes to be too unrealistic (I am not sure if they are real events or not) and I was easily confused. I felt the pace was too quick and so the lack of depth at times resulted in some events appearing less authentic.
A dark read but one that I found really enjoyable and certainly I felt I could learn from the style of writing used by the author. I am looking forward to reading more of this authors books.
August 3, 2011
The Value of Rain is a tale of clausterphobic intensity about a young boy whose life is almost destroyed by his outrage to take revenge on those who harmed him twenty years earlier. This is a story about lost love for all the wrong reasons. It is about family scheming to keep secrets hidden and to keep lives from progressing. I was in tears at times to learn of the pain young Charles encountered. I connected with this character and our emotions felt as though they were continuously conversing with each other. This is an extremely well written tale. Brandon Shire is a name that I expect to break out onto the pages of literature for quite some time to come.
August 11, 2016
An unbelievably tough read, given where the story could have gone. This is both beautiful and devastatingly tragic, although the use of profanities stuck out on more than one occasion, and the occasional grammatical errors / misplaced punctuation were an irritation ( feels like it needs a good proofread). It is for these reasons that I can not give this novel five stars.
September 18, 2014
While I thought the first half was well written and heartbreaking, the second half really lost me. New Orleans changed the whole tone of the book, which suddenly became bloated with too many all-knowing characters who had way too much insight into Charles' life. The insta-love with Manuel was unconvincing and everything seemed to unravel from there.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 16, 2011
This book was recommended by a friend, who wouldn't shutup about it till I read it. I'm glad he was persistent. I can't think of a book in recent memory had this much impact. I alternated between anger, sadness, befuddlement, amazement and shock. It is a tour de force of the first order.
August 30, 2011
The author has completely and utterly wowed me with this story. I will definitely be looking out for more of Brandon's books.
July 24, 2015
Emotional, Powerful, Intense & Real! An Excellent Read! I Loved It!
July 20, 2017
Sólo una palabra. Cuático.
March 17, 2012
Charles Benedict is one of the most beautifully flawed characters I've had the pleasure of meeting in a long time. I'm not ashamed to say that he really is what makes this story. Torn from the arms of his first love, and viciously thrust into an asylum for "people like him", Charles' story is a tough one. Brandon Shire paints a picture of a boy who feels unloved, unaccepted, but most of all vengeful. His only motivation throughout the entire story is to get back at the one woman who caused him all the pain, Charlotte, his mother. Being in Charles' head isn't easy. It isn't pretty. However it is engrossing.
What I really enjoyed about this book was how gorgeously it deals with the ideas of family life and accepting yourself. Yes, Charles is gay. Yes, this book does have sexual scenes between two men. Which, if I may add, are really tastefully done. However this story is about so much more than just being a gay adolescent. Charles comes from a deeply broken family that is buried in secrets. His reality is one that is hard to face, but is truth for a lot of people out there. I was moved by how raw and honest Charles' character was in this book. Offered many a hand to hold on his road to freedom from his past, he still keeps pushing forward doggedly until the end. He proves that sometimes motivation is everything, even if it might not be the healthiest kind of motivation.
It's tough to aptly express all the emotions that are warring within me after finishing The Value of Rain. At the forefront is a deep love for Charles and his story. No matter how broken he was, or how frustrated I was with his inability to give in to love or make choices that were good for himself, I still adored him. Beneath that is a slight annoyance at how completely destroyed his family was. I am still questioning if it was really all necessary. Just my opinion I know, but Charles isn't the only member of his family who has issues. They all do. Every single one. The family that is depicted in this story is so broken, so dysfunctional, that I almost couldn't bear to read about them.
I'm going to fully admit that, after reading the first page of this book, I almost didn't continue. The raw anger and harsh language that pepper the first chapter almost turned me off. I'm glad I didn't act on instinct though, because The Value of Rain ended up being something that I needed to read. Charles' story is one that broke my heart and then put the pieces back together in a whole new configuration. This isn't a book that is an easy read. It isn't a happy story. What it is though is a deep look into the life of a character who is so used to pain that he isn't sure he is ready to accept happiness yet. It's a tough read, but one I am glad I finished.
What I really enjoyed about this book was how gorgeously it deals with the ideas of family life and accepting yourself. Yes, Charles is gay. Yes, this book does have sexual scenes between two men. Which, if I may add, are really tastefully done. However this story is about so much more than just being a gay adolescent. Charles comes from a deeply broken family that is buried in secrets. His reality is one that is hard to face, but is truth for a lot of people out there. I was moved by how raw and honest Charles' character was in this book. Offered many a hand to hold on his road to freedom from his past, he still keeps pushing forward doggedly until the end. He proves that sometimes motivation is everything, even if it might not be the healthiest kind of motivation.
It's tough to aptly express all the emotions that are warring within me after finishing The Value of Rain. At the forefront is a deep love for Charles and his story. No matter how broken he was, or how frustrated I was with his inability to give in to love or make choices that were good for himself, I still adored him. Beneath that is a slight annoyance at how completely destroyed his family was. I am still questioning if it was really all necessary. Just my opinion I know, but Charles isn't the only member of his family who has issues. They all do. Every single one. The family that is depicted in this story is so broken, so dysfunctional, that I almost couldn't bear to read about them.
I'm going to fully admit that, after reading the first page of this book, I almost didn't continue. The raw anger and harsh language that pepper the first chapter almost turned me off. I'm glad I didn't act on instinct though, because The Value of Rain ended up being something that I needed to read. Charles' story is one that broke my heart and then put the pieces back together in a whole new configuration. This isn't a book that is an easy read. It isn't a happy story. What it is though is a deep look into the life of a character who is so used to pain that he isn't sure he is ready to accept happiness yet. It's a tough read, but one I am glad I finished.
July 14, 2012
I'm sure many people have used the words that came to mind for me when I read this book, such as gritty, raw, emotional, difficult, uncomfortable, heartbreaking and real.
This is not an easy read, not everything gets tied up into nice, little packages of completion, but if the book ended that way, it would not fit the rest of the story - but that makes the ending even more emotional for how much you would like that tidy ending to a fictional piece!
Although the catalyst for the main character was discovering he was gay and in love when it was still not easily accepted, for me, the even more powerful message for the book was one of letting go which is important in the story, but so easily relatable in your own life. There is the physical letting go of people in your life, or in the life of the character (and for me, I'm not sure which one I cried for more, Snow or Manuel!) but what about the emotional and mental letting go? Is it more a show of strength to hold onto the issues that are within your emotions and your mind, or to let them go? And I don't speak of diagnosed mental illness, but those of us who hold onto resentments, hurts and actions that we believe have been done to us, even moreso if perceived to be intentional, in our lives.
I know I have done this in my life, but this book is an incredibly strong illustration of what you lose by holding onto your past as a badge of honour, especially if you are fully aware of what you are doing. And it's not that a person should not feel hurt and betrayed, and in this book, Charles absolutely was wronged at the tender age of 14 and it went on for a decade to follow, his family are definitely messed up for the parts they played in it, however, after the 10 years, he has so many opportunities to start anew, with people who care about him, not his past, where he could say to hell with those that contributed to his decade of confinement.
This is a book about choices, and as in life, they are not easy, they have consequences, which can be painful, and can be an addiction on their own.
And how interesting that the question of The Value of Rain goes throughout - for me, it is cleansing, the air smells fresh and it adds to growth - ever notice how green everything is after a really good rain?!? As for the snow version of moisture, a beautiful, peaceful blanket that makes you think of snow angels, snowmen and maybe a snowball fight! Just my two cents for that question, and if you wonder what it has to do with a book review, you'd have to read the book...
This is not an easy read, not everything gets tied up into nice, little packages of completion, but if the book ended that way, it would not fit the rest of the story - but that makes the ending even more emotional for how much you would like that tidy ending to a fictional piece!
Although the catalyst for the main character was discovering he was gay and in love when it was still not easily accepted, for me, the even more powerful message for the book was one of letting go which is important in the story, but so easily relatable in your own life. There is the physical letting go of people in your life, or in the life of the character (and for me, I'm not sure which one I cried for more, Snow or Manuel!) but what about the emotional and mental letting go? Is it more a show of strength to hold onto the issues that are within your emotions and your mind, or to let them go? And I don't speak of diagnosed mental illness, but those of us who hold onto resentments, hurts and actions that we believe have been done to us, even moreso if perceived to be intentional, in our lives.
I know I have done this in my life, but this book is an incredibly strong illustration of what you lose by holding onto your past as a badge of honour, especially if you are fully aware of what you are doing. And it's not that a person should not feel hurt and betrayed, and in this book, Charles absolutely was wronged at the tender age of 14 and it went on for a decade to follow, his family are definitely messed up for the parts they played in it, however, after the 10 years, he has so many opportunities to start anew, with people who care about him, not his past, where he could say to hell with those that contributed to his decade of confinement.
This is a book about choices, and as in life, they are not easy, they have consequences, which can be painful, and can be an addiction on their own.
And how interesting that the question of The Value of Rain goes throughout - for me, it is cleansing, the air smells fresh and it adds to growth - ever notice how green everything is after a really good rain?!? As for the snow version of moisture, a beautiful, peaceful blanket that makes you think of snow angels, snowmen and maybe a snowball fight! Just my two cents for that question, and if you wonder what it has to do with a book review, you'd have to read the book...
December 8, 2013
The Value of Rain is a bit of a departure for me since it is definitely not a romance novel like the other stories reviewed here, however it is my intention to expand my wings by reading other gay-themed books, particularly those with a more serious message. I couldn't have started with a book more powerful than this one and I was so moved by it, I've actually read it three times in a row.
The story is narrated by Charles and alternates between the present where he is sitting by his dying mother's bedside, and the past where Charles recounts the incident leading firstly to his confinement in a psychiatric facility and then to how his life progressed beyond that. Charles has a very distinct voice and my heart broke for the fourteen year old boy who was guilty of nothing more than falling in love and was an unwilling victim of circumstances beyond his control. The experiences Charles has to endure while in care are horrifying to say the least and while Shire doesn't shy away from describing them bluntly, the writing is nicely balanced and doesn't tip over too far into glorification for the sake of it.
While there is no doubt Charles garners our empathy, there is also a great deal of frustration at play here because we realise he needs to let his past go if he is to have any hope of a future. There are various people in Charles's life who beseech him to do this but Charles has such a burning desire for vengeance, he just can't let it go but to us it feels like his mother is succeeding in ruining his life. This isn't a criticism since Shire does such a great job of making us care for Charles, we can't help seeking that elusive happy ending for him.
The writing is exquisite and I love all the rain imagery used throughout, particularly in how Charles uses it as a means of measuring whether something is worthwhile. The language is beautiful but the overall tone is so heartbreakingly emotional, it can be downright painful to read at times which may make the book sound too depressing for some readers. If you are looking for something light to read, then The Value of Rain isn't for you but if you want to read a story that will wrench your heart and make you feel something, then give it a go.
Posted from BitterSweet Reviews
The story is narrated by Charles and alternates between the present where he is sitting by his dying mother's bedside, and the past where Charles recounts the incident leading firstly to his confinement in a psychiatric facility and then to how his life progressed beyond that. Charles has a very distinct voice and my heart broke for the fourteen year old boy who was guilty of nothing more than falling in love and was an unwilling victim of circumstances beyond his control. The experiences Charles has to endure while in care are horrifying to say the least and while Shire doesn't shy away from describing them bluntly, the writing is nicely balanced and doesn't tip over too far into glorification for the sake of it.
While there is no doubt Charles garners our empathy, there is also a great deal of frustration at play here because we realise he needs to let his past go if he is to have any hope of a future. There are various people in Charles's life who beseech him to do this but Charles has such a burning desire for vengeance, he just can't let it go but to us it feels like his mother is succeeding in ruining his life. This isn't a criticism since Shire does such a great job of making us care for Charles, we can't help seeking that elusive happy ending for him.
The writing is exquisite and I love all the rain imagery used throughout, particularly in how Charles uses it as a means of measuring whether something is worthwhile. The language is beautiful but the overall tone is so heartbreakingly emotional, it can be downright painful to read at times which may make the book sound too depressing for some readers. If you are looking for something light to read, then The Value of Rain isn't for you but if you want to read a story that will wrench your heart and make you feel something, then give it a go.
Posted from BitterSweet Reviews
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