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A Rhinestone Button
by
Gail Anderson-Dargatz (Goodreads Author)
In a world where everything depends on the harvest, Job Sunstrum is a late bloomer.
In the rough-and-tumble farming community of Godsfinger, Alberta, he lives a solitary existence, raising cattle and farming the land, like his father and grandfather before him. Yet the surrounding pasture do not old much attraction for him. Instead he prefers his humble farmhouse kitchen, w...more
In the rough-and-tumble farming community of Godsfinger, Alberta, he lives a solitary existence, raising cattle and farming the land, like his father and grandfather before him. Yet the surrounding pasture do not old much attraction for him. Instead he prefers his humble farmhouse kitchen, w...more
Published
(first published 2002)
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I first read a Gail Anderson-Dargatz book in 2000, during my first CÉGEP English class. We had to choose among 3 books to write a final report & oral presentation, and I chose "The Cure to Death by Lightning", I can't exactly remember why - probably because the title was interesting. That book was just the kind of book that you read throughout, thinking it's not really anything special but compelling enough anyway, until you close the last page - and then it hits you. "A Rhinestone Button" i...more
Crop circles, a duck in a nappy, and a crazy lady who squirts a water pistol at those she thinks are out of line. Sounds like a quirky read, right?
So utterly disappointed that there wasn't more of this quirkiness, that more wasn't made of Job's synaesthesia and less of the less than likable, one dimensional, fanatical characters, many of whom exhibited abusive tendencies towards animals, to say nothing of their fellow men.
A story essentially of being different, of finding acceptance, of fitting...more
3.5 STARS "Despite growing up in the small farming town of Godsfinger, Alberta, Job Sunstrum was always a bit of an outsider. A thin young man with blond, curly hair, he loved baking and cooking, and certainly did not fit in with the rough-and-tumble farmboys around town. There wasn't much understanding to be had at home on the family farm, either, where his domineering father and bully of a brother ran roughshod over his life. But even when Job takes over the farm after his father's death and h...more
This is the story of Jo Sunstrum – a farmer in god-fearing Alberta who is a late bloomer. After enduring the deaths of both his parents, the return of his pastor/proselytizing and arrogant brother (and his neurotic wife) and doubt about his own belief, Job finally manages to figure out what will make him truly happy.
While I did read this cover to cover in one night, there was something important missing from it. I closed the final pages and felt a sense of incompletion. There was no imparting sense of awe at the beauty of the words, at the cunning of the execution, nor any marvel at the feelings stirred up by the story.
Her books are often odd amalgamations. This book wasn't as hard to read as her last book was. Still with odd family patterns, rural life, tent preachers, homosexuality and other variations of a theme it made for an interesting and sometimes enjoyable read. Mostly though I find her work painful. Painful in that one remembers difficult moments in one's life or others life or simply because the subject matter is in a grey zone.
A great book for the cerebral and a so-so book for those that want the g...more
A great book for the cerebral and a so-so book for those that want the g...more
This story was based in Alberta (Edmonton and small towns outside of Edmonton) making it easy for me to relate to, as I have stayed with my sister in Alberta.
eh - it was ok. Slow moving. The most interesting aspect was the setting! (My neck of the rural Alberta woods).
I really had trouble with this novel. I enjoyed reading about the small town farming community, the overbearing evangelical church influences on young people still unsure of their sexual identity and the really lovely descriptions of the geography and power of nature in Godsfinger. However, I was overwhelmed by my visceral reaction to how the main character of Job Sunstrum was treated by everyone....I am sure that this is just what Anderson-Dargatz had intended for her readers, but it was just t...more
Great descriptions of sound into colour. Too much religion for me but great ending.
i enjoyed the descriptions of sound/vibrations in to colors/sense of touch.
Loved it! Loved Job, the main character.
Written by an old friend of mine from Qualicum.
Randomly chosen to be #69 of 2012... Perhaps my last for the year???
if you want to read this author, stick with a recipe for bees. this one wasn't great.
Began promisingly but ended in Irving like tedium.
This novel was disappointing, because it's nowhere as good as "The Cure for Death By Lightning". I couldn't picture any of the characters, let alone care about them, and the story seemed laboriously constructed.
Absolute pleasure to read.......
May 18, 2013
Carlee
marked it as to-read
May 01, 2013
Lois Connelly
is currently reading it
Apr 21, 2013
Bindu Chembrakkalathil
marked it as to-read
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Gail's novels The Cure for Death by Lighting and A Recipe for Bees were international bestsellers, and were both finalists for the prestigious Giller Prize in Canada. The Cure for Death by Lightning won the UK’s Betty Trask Prize among other awards. A Rhinestone Button was a national bestseller in Canada and Gail's first book, The Miss Hereford Stories, was short-listed for the Leacock Award for h...more
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updated Dec 31, 2011 12:50pm
Jan 01, 2012 11:03am