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75th out of 154 books
—
198 voters
A Year and a Day: A Novel
Fifteen-year-old Alice dreams of her first kiss, has sleepovers, auditions for Our Town, and tries to pass high school biology. It's 1975, and at first look, her life would seem to be normal and unexceptional. But in the world that Leslie Pietrzyk paints, every moment she chronicles is revealed through the kaleidoscope of loss, stained by the fact that Alice's mother, with...more
Paperback, 368 pages
Published
March 1st 2005
by Harper Perennial
(first published 2004)
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The novel centers on Alice in the year following her mother's suicide, through her relationships with her remaining family and new friends. I found using that log line to explain the book doesn't do justice to the story's depth or the characters' development as people. The book touches on so much more than just a grieving teenager, which can be a lot to handle by itself. There are issues concerning the validity of existence, the strength of family, a little Ouija board action, and ultimately rem...more
This is a wonderful story of a 15 year old girl who loses her mother, and spends a year questioning why, all the while hearing her mother's voice speaking to her, coaching her, teaching her, and telling her things that she did not know when her mother was alive.
Alice Martin is a typical teenager...hanging out with friends, having crushes on boys, and cherishes the times that she spends with her mom. Her mother, however, occasionally falls into deep depressions, and it was during one of these spe...more
Alice Martin is a typical teenager...hanging out with friends, having crushes on boys, and cherishes the times that she spends with her mom. Her mother, however, occasionally falls into deep depressions, and it was during one of these spe...more
The day-to-day struggles Alice internalizes as a teenager trying to make it without her mother are touching. It's hard enough being a teenager. But teenager who is different (in this case having the stigma of her mother's suicide hanging over her) makes going to school and facing her peers even more challenging. Overall, the book felt very true to the struggles Alice would be experiencing. As she is discovering who she is and facing her own life with many unanswered questions, Alice walks alone...more
Oh.My.Goodness - this book is outstanding! On a whim, I downloaded it to my Ereader (having never heard of this author nor anything whatsoever of this book) - I just loved the cover art. Well, this book turned out to be one of the better books I have read this year (rates up there with my love for Middlemarch!).
The subject matter is a bit hard to take - a 15-year old girl, Alice, dealing with the aftermath of her beloved Mother's suicide. During the following year and a day, Alice hears her Mot...more
The subject matter is a bit hard to take - a 15-year old girl, Alice, dealing with the aftermath of her beloved Mother's suicide. During the following year and a day, Alice hears her Mot...more
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A woman I didn't really know, but sat with for three weeks during Cole's 7th grade baseball season gave me this book. She read all during the games--it was so interesting. I loved this book. Here's a summary:
Fifteen-year-old Alice dreams of her first kiss, has sleepovers, auditions for Our Town, and tries to pass high school biology. It’s 1975, and at first look, her life would seem to be normal and unexceptional. But in the world that Leslie Pietrzyk paints, every moment she chronicles is revea...more
Fifteen-year-old Alice dreams of her first kiss, has sleepovers, auditions for Our Town, and tries to pass high school biology. It’s 1975, and at first look, her life would seem to be normal and unexceptional. But in the world that Leslie Pietrzyk paints, every moment she chronicles is revea...more
Pretty good novel, coming of age story of a sixteen year old girl in Iowa struggling to understand why her mother killed herself. The story unfolds as a year in her life as she grieves, grows in understanding both of herself and her mother. It sometimes really captured the scene, such as detasselling corn then a sudden fierce thunderstorm or a slumber party full of girls, but it seemed a little slow or repetitious to me by the end of the book.
I really enjoyed this book a lot. It's about a girl whose mother dies suddenly, and she's told that it takes a year to get over the death and have life feel more normal.
I was just a little bit older than the main character, Alice, in 1975, and even though I grew up in a vastly different area, I could relate to so much of what she was going through in life, besides the death of her mother.
I'd highly recommend this book.
I was just a little bit older than the main character, Alice, in 1975, and even though I grew up in a vastly different area, I could relate to so much of what she was going through in life, besides the death of her mother.
I'd highly recommend this book.
I loved the writing style and the prose, and if I were really into the story I would have completed it.
I also loved how the author really described the emotions and the grief, so much so that I could actually see how much Alice and her family were grieving for their mother. However, A Year and A Day isn't really my kind of book so I couldn't complete it.
I also loved how the author really described the emotions and the grief, so much so that I could actually see how much Alice and her family were grieving for their mother. However, A Year and A Day isn't really my kind of book so I couldn't complete it.
Will be interesting to see what book club thinks....there are some aspects of the novel I really liked--the anger and confusion of not knowing what exactly happened and the cultural time references, but I thought the novel didn't go far enough in explaining and resolving a lot of the books issues.
Personally I loved this book. I reread it when I'm down and I think its because I identify with the mother. She wanted so much out of her life, but got side tracked. Seeing her children deal with her choice is heartbreaking.
I read this a little while after my friend's mother passed away from breast cancer and this book had me crying. It's absolutely heartbreaking but simply and beautiful all together. I would definitely recommend it!
Feb 03, 2010
Sera
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Sera by:
BOMC
Shelves:
literary-fiction,
own
I really enjoyed this book. It focuses on the year after a 15-year old girl loses her mother to suicide. It's not as heavy as it sounds. I enjoyed it because I thought that it captured in a very specific, but subtle way, how we all go through the grieving process. The author did some research for this book, and her knowledge comes through on the pages.
This book is both a well-written and a quiet read. I found it to be a nice change of pace from some of the other things that I have been reading o...more
This book is both a well-written and a quiet read. I found it to be a nice change of pace from some of the other things that I have been reading o...more
Fifteen year old Alice and her older brother, Will, deal with the death of their mother in this coming-of-age novel set in a small town in Iowa. I had a lot of empathy for Alice as she tried to find her way through the first year after her mother died without much help from the adults around her. I found that I read this book slowly as I wanted to savor it.
This novel told such a beautiful story of a growing up, dealing with the loss of a mother, the relationship between brother & sister and the secrets everyone has. Truly a wonderful novel from start to finish.
First-person narrative chronicling the year following fifteen-year-old Alice's mother's suicide. Amidst a time when her world is upended Alice "hears" her mother's voice; offering make-up tips, boyfriend advice, sharing secrets from her own shadowy past yet never answering the one thing Alice most wants to know, why? The cast of high school characters is a bit too formulaic but Pietrzyk's writing remain unstilted. Alice's actions seem consistent with someone in her shoes and I think most America...more
This is a story of loss with an amazing character, Alice, leading readers thru her ordeal after her mother commits suicide.
Loved this book. Such sympathetic characters, I found myself lost in their stories.
Aug 31, 2008
Michelle
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
probably a woman before a man...I think the mother/daughter aspect is easier to identify with
Tragic and sad and hopeful and beautiful all in one. The setting of the seventies era enhances the effect of the message this book is putting out there. It brings up an interesting point that as children we often forget that our parents are human beings, without super powers and have lived full lives and experienced many things before and during the time they are our parents that we are not aware of. This book really made me think a lot about my parents and put some things into perspective for m...more
Leslie is an old pal of mine, and while I read this book when it first came out, I also opened it recently and could not put it down.
It's a lovely story of a young Iowa girl whose mother dies unexpectedly. It's set in the 70s, and the author is spot on with the cultural elements.
It's tragic and beautiful all at the same time.
It's a lovely story of a young Iowa girl whose mother dies unexpectedly. It's set in the 70s, and the author is spot on with the cultural elements.
It's tragic and beautiful all at the same time.
LOVED this book. In fact, this is the book I've always wanted to write. Perfect. A must-read.
Pretty good book for the Wal-Mart clearance rack, although I like endings a little more wrapped up and was waiting the whole time to find out why she could hear her dead mother talking to her. Wasn't satisfied with the answer.
This was a very touching novel about loss and recovery.
I loved her previous book Pears on a Willow Tree.
May 12, 2013
Beth
marked it as to-read
May 11, 2013
S.W. Hubbard
marked it as to-read
Apr 26, 2013
Janice
marked it as to-read
Apr 20, 2013
Kristen
marked it as to-read
Mar 31, 2013
Maryanne Lyons
marked it as to-read
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