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243rd out of 753 books
—
982 voters
Dakota Blues
by
Lynne M. Spreen (Goodreads Author)
In this award-winning debut novel, workaholic Karen Grace is fired after attending her mother's funeral in her Midwestern hometown. Now Karen is fifteen hundred miles from home, just one more middle-aged worker out of a job in a tough economy. To make matters worse, her husband recently left her for his pregnant girlfriend.
At a crossroads, Karen must find the courage to c...more
At a crossroads, Karen must find the courage to c...more
Paperback, 306 pages
Published
July 17th 2012
by CreateSpace Indie Publishing Platform
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While attending her mother’s funeral in her North Dakota childhood hometown 50 year old Karen Grace is facing some interminable changes in her otherwise carefully mapped out life, her marriage is falling apart and her highly stressful job of many years is in question, when she misses her flight home she decides to take a small break and get to know the family that remains and the friends she left behind. This impromptu visit causes a domino effect of actions and reactions in Karen’s life so when...more
“What would it feel like to be one of only three people left in your family that had shared such a life… What happened to the memories when you died, but more than that, what happened to the lessons learned, the maturation a person gained from living through such hard times?”
Karen speculates about this after going through a family album with her Aunt Marie. I would hope for the ancestor’s sake one of the three would be Lynne Spreen. By the time I reached this part of her wonderful novel, I felt...more
Karen speculates about this after going through a family album with her Aunt Marie. I would hope for the ancestor’s sake one of the three would be Lynne Spreen. By the time I reached this part of her wonderful novel, I felt...more
Recently I've adjusted to the shock, trauma, and relief of relinquishing a professional title that--looking back--I realize I worked too hard to achieve. My reflections over the past year have been similar to those of the protagonist in Lynne Spreen's terrific book, "Dakota Blues." In frank, honest terms, she tells the story of a bright and interesting woman, Karen Grace, often in scenes I recognize from my own current life. Her experiences are very real....
I remember as an adolescent finding co...more
I remember as an adolescent finding co...more
At 50, it all came crashing down on Karen Grace, a successful human resources executive for a struggling health care corporation Her marriage was on the rocks, her mother had died suddenly, and her boss was a cost-cutting tyrant, lacking any empathy for her HR role.
With her plate overflowing at work and her husband taking steps to force her from their home, Karen reluctantly travels from southern California to Dickinson, North Dakota to attend her mother’s funeral and settle her affairs. The sma...more
With her plate overflowing at work and her husband taking steps to force her from their home, Karen reluctantly travels from southern California to Dickinson, North Dakota to attend her mother’s funeral and settle her affairs. The sma...more
DAKOTA BLUES by Lynne M. Spreen is my favorite kind of story, one in which the protagonist is someone I’d like to have as a friend. She seems real, her problems are believable, and she faces life in a realistic and completely understandable way (without magic or supernatural powers). The story of Karen Grace comes to life on the pages.
Fifty-year-old, high-powered executive Karen faces three life-changing crises. When her mother dies, she must leave California and return to her rural hometown in...more
Fifty-year-old, high-powered executive Karen faces three life-changing crises. When her mother dies, she must leave California and return to her rural hometown in...more
I couldn't put this one down. It is a well told story of a woman-of-certain-age experiencing a personal crisis that brings her back home but also one that had me reflecting on choices I've made in my own life. Dakota Blues took me back to my own prairie home in Saskatchewan where I walked the dusty streets of the small town and felt the embrace of relatives I've long since forgotten about. I found myself cheering the heroine on as she took a journey that enabled her to come to the place of appre...more
On the positive side, this book was very well written with respect to sentence structure, grammar, flow, and style. There was excellent character development, and the author’s descriptions of the physical surroundings were so realistic, I felt like I was there. Technically, in my opinion, Lynne Spreen is a very good writer.
On the negative side, nothing happened of any consequence until halfway into the book--up until then, it was all backstory and set up. Throughout the book, there were several...more
On the negative side, nothing happened of any consequence until halfway into the book--up until then, it was all backstory and set up. Throughout the book, there were several...more
I won this book in a GoodReads giveaway. The main character, Karen Grace, is a fifty-year old woman who loses her job in HR through no fault of her own. The book explores how she successfully handles a number of life crises, including going through a divorce and surviving a near-death experience. All of the characters are extremely well-developed and the writing is excellent. Reading the book has made me feel better about myself, and more optimistic about the path ahead. I will definitely be re-...more
Karen is middle-aged,overburdened with family obligations and suddenly abandoned by all.I almost didn't get through this book, it just hit too close to home and I am amazed that a work of fiction can so closely parallel my own insignificant life.A great read for anyone who has spent their entire lives in the service of others.
Pretty good book, there's a few things that could've made the book better.
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Thanks to all who entered the giveaway of Dakota Blues, or added it to your "to-read" shelf! Winners included readers from American, Canada and England. I'm so happy that you're curious about the book, and I hope you'll let me know your thoughts after you've read it. Writing it was a beautiful labor of love, and I'm get...more
More about Lynne M. Spreen...
http://www.amazon.com/Lynne-Spreen/e/...
Thanks to all who entered the giveaway of Dakota Blues, or added it to your "to-read" shelf! Winners included readers from American, Canada and England. I'm so happy that you're curious about the book, and I hope you'll let me know your thoughts after you've read it. Writing it was a beautiful labor of love, and I'm get...more
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Aug 12, 2012 04:15pm