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May 26, 2008

J.D. rated it:

Kristy Kiernan has many gifts as a writer (and as for her gifts as a person, well, there's not enough room to write about them on only one Internet).

Two of those gifts shine the most brightly in this, her second book:

1. Characterization: Kristy writes characters so complex, so multidimensional, so REAL, that you feel that any moment they're going to step out of the page and strike up a conversation. When they suffer, you suffer along with them. And when they find their More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Jun 16, 2008

Heather rated it:

Honestly, the reason I decided to read this book is because of my son’s food allergies (click here to read more about this); I thought than any book touching on this topic deserves a chance from me. Of course, this book isn’t a novel of food allergies (thankfully!) – it’s an intimate look at one family dealing with multiple crises all at once. <p c More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 28, 2008

Jill rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 10, 2008

Bonnie rated it:

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Feb 02, 2010

Colleen rated it:

I enjoyed this well-written novel very much. The author effectively explored how people can go wrong in the name of faith/religion, how unscrupulous people can prey on the faith of others to further their own agendas, and how we can mistake other emotions and motivations as "faith," but how ultimately true faith can sustain us (and may be the ONLY thing that can sustain us) through the worst of life's events and carry us to a new and better life. Big issues, addressed in an interesti More...

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Nov 25, 2009

Eileen rated it:

Kristy Kiernan's "Matters of Faith" takes us inside a family whose little girl has profound food allergies, a growing condition among our nation's children.

The child, Meghan, is narrated as an outsider at her school. I would have liked to see some scenes with the child not filtered through her controlling mother's viewpoint.

An older son, Marshall, has been seeking his way through world religions, to the pride of his mom, Chloe, and the frustration o More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 27, 2011

Swiftyjess rated it:

I'm guessing I stumbled on this book at one out of the thirty or so food allergy awareness sites I read. My daughters each have a severe peanut allergy so I could relate, in part, to some of this story.

This is also a story about a teenager needing to find himself and going through several common (and some not so common, I'm guessing) religions to define who he is. I can relate in part to this, also. During the course of the book, a marriage wavers on divorce, striking a chord with More...

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Jan 14, 2009

Suzanne rated it:

Well, you were right Janet... this is VERY Jodi Picoult! I thought that Kristy was great with her character development and she kept me guessing as to what was going to happen then entire time. I really had a hard time putting it down. As I mentioned before I had a HUGE struggle with the wife/mother, I felt that she truly was self centered and focused on how these things affected her. I was thankful that the ending (without spoiling of course) gave me some hope. I wish that I had some closu More...

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Jul 17, 2009

Diane rated it:

If you like Jodi Picoult, you will probably like this book. A boy experimenting with different religions as a result of his trauma in witnessing a friend being hit by a train meets a girl at college with some interesting religious views. One is lack of medical intervention. When the two are out with his younger sister, who has severe food allergies, he allows the girlfriend to give his sister a small amount of peanut butter cookie while they are out on a boat miles from anyone. As the little More...

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Aug 02, 2010

Amy rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Feb 12, 2009

Donna Jo rated it:

As I read this book, I kept checking the cover--thinking it might have been written by Jodi Picoult. The book explored the family dynamics of a young man who has been searching most of his life to find a spiritual home. In college he meets a girl who leads him to vegetarianism and a "no doctor" policy. When he brings her home with him, they try the no medicine part out on his little sister who is highly allergic to peanuts.
As I read this book, I kept checking the cover--thinki More...

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Nov 17, 2009

Sara rated it:

My sister lent me this book, and I really, really enjoyed it. Dealing with the way that different people choose to believe; religiously, ethically, morally, etc and how those beliefs do or don't effect your interactions with others was such an interesting topic. Then basing that on the premise that the effects of those interactions can be so far-reaching and far more devastating than that casual annoyance of having someone quote the Bible to you in disdain for your current choices was refreshing More...

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May 04, 2008

Larramie rated it:

With a timely theme, characters who could be your neighbors and a different meaning of "new," Kristy writes with amazing grace that is beyond genius.

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Jun 06, 2009

Dymphna rated it:

I'm loving this book! I stayed up until 2am reading it last night.

This book traces a family of four (mom, dad, college age son and 12 year old daughter) during a very tragic time in their lives. It is not about faith in the traditional sense but really about life.

The author goes back and forth between a first person pov of the mom in the story, and a third person perspective from the pov of the son. Quite interesting and completely believable, this book shows what tra More...

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Jul 26, 2009

Kate rated it:

This goes on my "ehhh..." list - quick, pretty fluffy read (fluffy in the Jodi Picoult/Anita Schreve kind of way, not Danielle Steele) that has some good parts, but also some really silly parts...like who can really get all fired up about a peanut allergy??

It's the story of a husband & wife who have hit a distant spell in their marriage, and a peanut-allergy related incident, propelled by their son's crazy biatch of a girlfriend, that tears the family apart.

If More...

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Jul 28, 2011

Jennifer rated it:

This story tugged at my heart. While it wasn't what I envisioned in regards to reading a book with the title "Matters of Faith" - it had its own subtle way of showing the importance of faith, whether you believe in something certain or not. I am now determined to read Kristy's other book, "Catching Genius" because this one was THAT good that I'm really interested in reading her other work. They were not kidding when they said that they will leave readers of Jodi Picoult and A More...

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Dec 31, 2011

Stacia rated it:

I just finished the book, and I can't rate it right now*. I'm conflicted, which is the emotion I felt while reading. It's a well-written book. It's interesting. Once I started reading, I really couldn't stop. I thought the characters were well-developed, but I couldn't relate to any of them. I think this is my main barrier to being able to rate this book right now. I understood, intellectually, why certain characters would make these actions or hold these beliefs, I just couldn't relate to any o More...

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Mar 28, 2011

Lora rated it:

I liked this book because it could have been about a real life family. I liked how it incorporated real feelings that go on in a marriage and family and differences in faith, rather than just focusing on subject of the story-food allergies. At first, I thought how much can you make out of a food allergy when I first picked up this book, but I realized there was so much more wrapped up in this book than that! It kept my interest all the way through. I think anyone could find themselves somewhere More...

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Nov 13, 2008

Allison rated it:

It would be tempting to write this book off as one of many “just another” novels. With family drama as the structure and religion as the conflict, it would be easy to shelve this book right alongside an Anita Shreve “failing marriage” novel or a Jodi Piccoult “my child is dying/arrested/pregnant” novel. Husband/wife, mother/son, and father/daughter relationships always generate complicated, interesting stories; the problem is that most of them have already been told this way using this mother’ More...

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Sep 18, 2008

Laura rated it:

This is a good summary:

At age twelve, Marshall Tobias saw his best friend killed by a train. It was then that he began his search for faith; delving into one tradition, then discarding it for another. While his parents were at odds over his behavior, they found common ground with his little sister Meghan, whose severe food allergies required careful attention.

Now Marshall is home from college with his first real girlfriend. Meghan is thrilled to have her around, but the More...

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Nov 12, 2008

Desiree rated it:

I'm not quite sure how to rate this book. I can tell you that it had me crying, laughing... thinking. I could not put the book down and finished it within a day.

This book is perfect for anyone who wants to know "a day (or more)in the life of" a child with food allergies. This book is a "food allergy mother's" worst nightmare. It talks about the unending battle of keeping a child with life-threatening food allergies safe and alive. Every single minute of eve More...

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Jun 17, 2010

JoLee rated it:

Honestly it was pretty difficult for me to get through this book because the first 100 pages or so are such a downer. Everyone is making bad decisions. Everyone's life is messed up. No one is communicating. Plus, my biggest pet peeve, all the religious characters are crazy.

Luckily things picked up a little in the last half of the novel.

Although, this book club read was not really my style it did make for a really interesting group discussion.

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Mar 06, 2009

Rhonda rated it:

Good story, as a child Marshall witnesses his friend get hit and killed by a train, and never recovers from the trauma. He is affected by how his parents spend so much time and attention on his little sister who has SEVERE food allergies. Marshall comes home from college with a girlfriend who is a vegetarian and chooses alternative ways of medicine, etc. Together they "try" giving little sister Meghan, just a little bit of peanut butter cookie, which sends her into a deep coma. The More...

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Jan 31, 2011

Oridisi rated it:

This book will make you understand how powerful love, friendship, and even trust can be and how it can affect your life. Each character had an important role to play with the accident that involved Meghans life and throughout the book people's faith in God and themselves get tested to get limit and each person in this story will find themselves in a way they never knew was there.Anyone who is a devout believer i faith and miracles will love this book.

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Apr 19, 2010

Lois rated it:

I first read CATCHING GENIUS by Kristy Kiernan. I found her a good writer, but I didn't get caught up in the story. I thought I'd give her another try, and so I read MATTERS OF FAITH. The subject itself was extremely interesting and I learned a lot about food allergies, but then it's as if the story sort of ran out. I think the problem is that she gives us everything up front, leaving no room for surprises.

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Oct 01, 2010

Mandy Sue rated it:

The author is a very talented writer. This is the second book I have read from her and not with disappointment. Picoult fans will love her writing. They are very similar.

This was a solid story that grabbed me from the beginning. A son's search for faith and the consequences it caused the family. Although I found the ending wrapped up a bit too nicely, it didn't hurt the story.

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May 27, 2010

Marvin rated it:

My third novel in a row with religion--personal faith and its moral, social, and cultural consequences--at the very heart, but all three very different. This one is a very plot-driven, Jodi Picoult-like family drama. Each chapter is divided into two parts: the first narrated by the mother; the second focusing (in third person) on the son. The son is a seeker who has long experimented with various religions in his search for truth and comfort after the death of a friend. At the beginning of the s More...

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Feb 09, 2009

Laralee rated it:

This isn't well written - BUT - I kept reading it because of the story line. For me it was compelling. At times I was very critical of the mother. At other times I didn't know but that I would have some of her same emotions. The book has questions for bookclub use - which I found rewarding because it made me consider the book on a deeper level. Still thinking....

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Jun 24, 2011

Naseerah rated it:

This book was about 4 main characters, mom, dad, college aged son, 12 year old daughter. I loved the way Kristy Kieran described her characters. I had definitely learned how to describe my characters. I loved the plot of the story. I just could not stop reading the book. The book also dealt with way different people choose to believe, whether it’s religiously or morally. It also makes us understand the importance of love, friendship and trust. This book is also very Jodi Picoult. Everyone is mak More...

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Dec 25, 2010

Ana rated it:

At times exasperating, others captivating, Matters of Faith explores the theme of faith on various levels, from that of religious certainty, to the belief in someone's ability to recover from an unfathomable experience. Dealing with the topics of death and how that can affect our religious perceptions; the exploration of one's own spiritual path; redemption, forgiveness and reconciliation, Kristy Kiernan introduces us to the Tobias family and quietly explores their unraveling over the course of More...

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