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27th out of 91 books
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The Sweet By and By
by
Todd Johnson (Goodreads Author)
"I want you to know something if you don't already. Life is choosing whom and what you love. Everything else follows . . ."
Among the longleaf pines and family farms of eastern North Carolina, days seem to pass without incident for Margaret Clayton and Bernice Stokes until they discover each other in a friendship that will take them on the most important journe
...moreHardcover, 303 pages
Published
March 1st 2009
by William Morrow & Company
(first published February 6th 2009)
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This review was written by Mary Dunn Siedow and posted by Lizzy Mottern
The voices of women tell this story of five women’s relationships with family and friends. Margaret and Bernice are residents of a nursing home where Lorraine is a nursing assistant. Margaret is an upper class white woman with a sharp mind, a quick wit and a decaying body. Lorraine, who is black, respects her patients and treats them with sassy tongued dignity. Margaret and Lorraine have an edgy relationship, ...more
The voices of women tell this story of five women’s relationships with family and friends. Margaret and Bernice are residents of a nursing home where Lorraine is a nursing assistant. Margaret is an upper class white woman with a sharp mind, a quick wit and a decaying body. Lorraine, who is black, respects her patients and treats them with sassy tongued dignity. Margaret and Lorraine have an edgy relationship, ...more
I found this gem of a book at the Good Will store the other night and while I barely glanced at the blurb, I just thought I'd heard about it somewhere and picked it up.
I read it in one and half days. It's that delicious. It's exactly the kind of read I need right now while my Dad is in the nursing home. It really is a gem.
You would think the premise of the book would be depressing because no one likes to talk about growing old and becoming dependent on others and no one...more
I read it in one and half days. It's that delicious. It's exactly the kind of read I need right now while my Dad is in the nursing home. It really is a gem.
You would think the premise of the book would be depressing because no one likes to talk about growing old and becoming dependent on others and no one...more
Five North Carolina women from diverse backgrounds are bound together through a nursing home connection. Understandably a nursing home is not an upbeat place to center a story around. There are two senior patients (Margaret and Bernice), LPN Lorraine and her daughter April who wants to become a doctor, and Rhonda the local hair dresser who befriends them over her weekly appointments.
Each chapter is written from a character's point of view. Generally enjoyed the storyline and charac...more
Each chapter is written from a character's point of view. Generally enjoyed the storyline and charac...more
This book was simply not my cup of tea. I struggled to finish it, and when I did finally finish, I felt nothing except relief that it was over. I didn't think it was well written and I didn't like the characters. Southern lit (with the exception of Pat Conroy and The Help) is not a favorite, even under the best of circumstances, and this book was far from the best of its genre.
Honestly, I thought it was so dull that I can't even write a decent review-- there is simply so little to...more
Honestly, I thought it was so dull that I can't even write a decent review-- there is simply so little to...more
This book was such a pleasant surprise, I had no idea the story takes place in a retirement home, not that it diminishes the enjoyment, I simply haven't read books with that background before even though I'm well familiar with such a place. My favorite character, really witty and hilarious Margaret made this book a real pleasure to read, I simply couldn't wait to get back into it, to see what she would reveal to me as her days pass by. Living in a place where holidays are depressing she befriend...more
I had decided not to read this book. It looked like another "chick-lit" that was just going to be sappy. How glad I am that I changed my mind.
This was one of those little narratives without really a plot, just an account of the intertwining of a few women's lives in North Carolina. A sweet description that ends up being more (in my mind) of a celebration of the cycle of life, and those relationships that define us through to the end.
Mr. Johnson has a talent...more
This was one of those little narratives without really a plot, just an account of the intertwining of a few women's lives in North Carolina. A sweet description that ends up being more (in my mind) of a celebration of the cycle of life, and those relationships that define us through to the end.
Mr. Johnson has a talent...more
This is a "must read" book. Debut novel by Todd Johnson is not to be missed. It tells the tale of five southern women and how this separate lives mesh together. Characters include: Margaret Clayton, fiesty, sharp-as-a-tack, ninety-year-old woman in a nursing home; Bernice Stokes, short on memory due to grief and old age and befriended by Margaret; LPN African American Lorraine who cares for the residents of the nursing home and has suffered a hard life but is a God-fearing woman who be...more
I have to admit that when I first started to read this book I was a bit confused as to the structure and what exactly was going on with the story. After the first couple of chapters I realized that this was a version of good ol' Southern storytelling. There isn't really a plot, per se...but instead a glimpse into the lives of five women whose paths have crossed because of a nursing home. Two women work in the nursing home and two women live in the nursing home. Each woman gets the opportunity t...more
Wow, what a fantastic story of 5 women of different ages and from very different backgrounds whose lives come together in a journey of courage, hope, and humour.
You'll fall in love with the characters. Lorraine, a church-going, God-questioning nurse, befriends Margaret and Bernice in the old age home she works at. April, Lorraine's daughter struggles her way through medical school. Rhonda, the beer drinking hairdresser comes in and does the ladies hair on her days off and has a sassy...more
You'll fall in love with the characters. Lorraine, a church-going, God-questioning nurse, befriends Margaret and Bernice in the old age home she works at. April, Lorraine's daughter struggles her way through medical school. Rhonda, the beer drinking hairdresser comes in and does the ladies hair on her days off and has a sassy...more
If I could give 3.5 stars, I would. I can't, so I'm defaulting to 3. I will say that the writing in this book was exquisite. There were some incredibly poignant lines of prose in this book, and Todd Johnson is undoubtedly to be commended for that. Beautiful!
That being said, I just didn't come away from this book feeling as connected to these women as I had thought. The book initially drew me in (another kudos to the amazing prose), but it never brought me further. There was sugg...more
That being said, I just didn't come away from this book feeling as connected to these women as I had thought. The book initially drew me in (another kudos to the amazing prose), but it never brought me further. There was sugg...more
Oh, how I loved this book ! I know it is not meant for everyone, but if you have a fondness for the elderly, especially for Nursing Home elderly, you are gonna love it, too !
I laughed until the tears rolled down my cheeks; I cried until I couldn't see the page; I fell in love with the five main characters who tell their stories until they were so real I wondered what they are doing now.
I applaud you, Todd Johnson, for venturing into such a place as a Nursing Home where M...more
I laughed until the tears rolled down my cheeks; I cried until I couldn't see the page; I fell in love with the five main characters who tell their stories until they were so real I wondered what they are doing now.
I applaud you, Todd Johnson, for venturing into such a place as a Nursing Home where M...more
If there were a 4 1/2 star rating that is what I would give this lovely, sweet, poignant story about 5 women and a nursing home: Lorraine, loving African-American nurses aide; April, her med school daughter, Lorraine's 2 principal patients and beloved friends Margaret and Bernice (who can forget the stuffed monkey, Mr. Bernie) and Rhonda who cuts hair at the nursing home. If anyone had told me a man was capable of writing such a beatiful story as this I would have scoffed but he did (must have...more
How do you wan to get old? What things will matter to you as you age? Five very different southern women, in different stages of the aging process learn about life, love, and friendship in this lovely story.
Todd Johnson does a very good job in writing for a woman's point of view. The story is nicely paced and brings each woman's story to a satisfying conclusion. There's some real insight to what it means to grow old, when you body won't let you do what you used to do or when your bod...more
Todd Johnson does a very good job in writing for a woman's point of view. The story is nicely paced and brings each woman's story to a satisfying conclusion. There's some real insight to what it means to grow old, when you body won't let you do what you used to do or when your bod...more
A story with humor and the reality of getting old. The novel takes place in North Carolina at a nursing home where Margaret, a woman with a huge sense of humor and stubborness to match, forms a close friendship with Bernice, who is rarely lucid due to the onset of alzheimers. They make quite an amusing, heartwarming pair. A beer drinking beautician joins the scene at the home to do the ladies' hair one day a week. Although she's not too keen on being there at first she soons warms up to the h...more
This is a story of 5 women, two of them are elderly women in a nursing home (not far from the Raleigh area, actually); the other three are basically "caretakers". Question is who is taking care of whom? Truth is, in the act of caring for someone, we receive so much more than we give. This is a gentle, poignant story, but not a kind of tear your heart out gut wrencher, which it just skirts the edges of. These are all strong women, in their individual ways, who help one another and enri...more
It's fitting that THE SWEET BY AND BY takes place mostly in a nursing home because the pace of the novel is like the pace at a nursing home. It's very slow and not much happens. It's the same routine, day after day.
There's a lot of information on the pages, but nothing to really keep the story moving. The characters, plot, and story didn't keep it moving. The reader has to move himself or herself through it. Sometimes forcibly. There's no anticipation or excitement to jump r...more
There's a lot of information on the pages, but nothing to really keep the story moving. The characters, plot, and story didn't keep it moving. The reader has to move himself or herself through it. Sometimes forcibly. There's no anticipation or excitement to jump r...more
I enjoyed this book, would like to give it 3.5 stars. Overall story is told by 5 very different women through various stages of their lives.
Margaret, a fiesty smart woman that can no longer take care of herself
Bernice, a woman that most people consider "crazy" but still has a heart of gold
Lorraine, the nurse at the nursing home where Margaret and Bernice live, and has some secrets of her own
Rhonda, the woman who feels like she isn't quite what she wants t...more
Margaret, a fiesty smart woman that can no longer take care of herself
Bernice, a woman that most people consider "crazy" but still has a heart of gold
Lorraine, the nurse at the nursing home where Margaret and Bernice live, and has some secrets of her own
Rhonda, the woman who feels like she isn't quite what she wants t...more
I really enjoy stories that give you a bit of Southern flair, and The Sweet By and By sure delivered! Each chapter in this story is narrated by one of the main characters in the novel, which gives us an opportunity to watch each woman grow in her own way. They become connected by the time they spend together in a nursing home, so a couple of the characters are elderly residents. Margaret is one of the residents that seems to be mentally intact but physically limited while everyone is sure tha...more
I wish I had found this book right before I got on a plane for a vacation where I was going to do nothing but sit in a chair and read. Instead, I read it during the crazy Christmas season, where it is impossible to sit down for more than 30 minutes.
I loved the writing, and in fact,I read a few parts more than once just to savor the amazing way the words were put together. Such insight for a man (who writes from not only one woman's perspective, but five), that I am hopeful Mr. Johnson has ...more
I loved the writing, and in fact,I read a few parts more than once just to savor the amazing way the words were put together. Such insight for a man (who writes from not only one woman's perspective, but five), that I am hopeful Mr. Johnson has ...more
The Sweet By and By is a novel that tells the stories of women living and working in a nursing home - their friendships, experiences and tales from their past. Each chapter is narrated by a different character, similar to The Help. While I thought the plot could have been stronger and parts were very sad, I also thought The Sweet By and By was very moving. It exposed me to a subject I never think about and gave me a glimpse into that side of life. One of my favorite quotes by Bernice was: "...more
Although I live in the Pacific Northwest, I love reading novels about the South. Listening to the audio version of this book allowed the four main character's voices and perspectives to come across very clearly as they alternately told their stories. If you have a heart for the elderly, this book is for you, because the setting is primarily a nursing home. The author, Todd Johnson, must have loved his grandma! His portrayal of Margaret, a woman in her eighties, was spot on. I loved the ending, a...more
The four narrators bring their characters to life. The Sweet By and By acquaints us with women who have varying ties to a nursing home - a patient/resident and her friend, a nurse, the hairdresser, and the nurse's daughter. It was a wonderful story to listen to - very honest and poignant about aging and its attendant indignities. I wasn't wild about the somewhat protracted ending, but I understand how the author was trying to tie it all up.
I often wonder how much a good audio performanc...more
I often wonder how much a good audio performanc...more
I loved this book. It's hard to describe - similar to The Help, in that the narrators are women - black and white, in the South (North Carolina). But it differs from the Help in that it isn't about maids and who they work for - it's about taking care of one another and the friendships that build over time. (In a nursing home, but don't let that put you off)
Amazing to me is the author - a white male North Carolinian who studies history at Chapel HIll, gotr a master's in divinity f...more
Amazing to me is the author - a white male North Carolinian who studies history at Chapel HIll, gotr a master's in divinity f...more
The various characters were interesting and their "voices" seemed authentic despite the fact they were all female and the author is a guy. I found it terribly depressing even though the ending was attempting to be upbeat and non-sectarian, religion-wise. I’m just too close in age to the ladies who live in the retirement home in this book. It was too easy to picture myself a resident, too. I only hope there really are employees that are as kind, and selfless as the aide, hairdresser...more
After meeting the author in December, I finally finished reading his debut novel and while it left me wanting at times, the characters he evokes are three dimensional and familiar to all of us.
It's challenging enough for male authors to write believable female voices, but Johnson manages to write four (five if we count Bernice) complete women's voices without ever sounding as if he struggled to pull it off. No easy feat.
The book is more philosophical than it is story-dri...more
It's challenging enough for male authors to write believable female voices, but Johnson manages to write four (five if we count Bernice) complete women's voices without ever sounding as if he struggled to pull it off. No easy feat.
The book is more philosophical than it is story-dri...more
This was a very well written book that I devoured in two days. However it is too sad to recommend. Its about the lives of 5 Southern women. Two are in a nursing home at the end of their lives, two are young women in the beginning of their adult lives and the last is in the middle age bracket. To me, a good book, 1. makes me think about it for the next week after I have finished it and 2. makes me not want to start another book immediately so I can savor it. 3. Doesn't make me sad. ...more
Very close to 4 stars but just not quite there. The last few books I've read have all mentioned in some way about nursing homes and the sad state of people who live there. This book was set mainly in a nursing home and the chapters rotated through about 5 different women and the ways their lives intertwined. The set-up was similar to "The Help."
I enjoyed reading through this. There were a couple chapters with some crude language used by the younger college-going gener...more
I enjoyed reading through this. There were a couple chapters with some crude language used by the younger college-going gener...more
The characters look at the past as well as focus on the present. Pretty much every day life is happening to, with, and around them. People get their hair done in the nursing home. Unpleasantries occur. It's Lorraine's job as an LPN to deal with many of those unpleasantries. She doesn't seem to mind particularly, and along the way, she becomes friends with some of the patients. Sometimes Margaret will need a wheelchair to move about; sometimes a cane will suffice. Lorraine is the nurse who...more
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The good points. The writting is decent and the characters are fairly likeable. The bad. I finished the book and was like, what was the point of that, really what was the point. Oh well. We get five different points of view; two older ladies in an old folks home, the nurse who cares for them, their beautician, and the nurses' daughter. Lives keep overlapping, stories keep entertwining. People die, they grow, they get better. I was left feeling like there wasn't a real point, maybe that w...more
An excellent study of female friendships, mother/child relationships, and friendships crossing age barriers. The setting is a nursing home in North Carolina and the characters are 2 elderly ladies who reside there (one who is lucid only part of the time), the younger woman who comes in to do their hair,the LPN who develops a deep friendship with them, and her daughter who is determined to become a doctor. Humorous and tragic by turns but never depressing. Beautifully written.
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Todd Johnson's bestselling first novel THE SWEET BY AND BY received the 2010 Connecticut Book Award. The novel was also named a PEOPLE "Great Reads For Your Book Club" Pick, a REAL SIMPLE "Entertainment Selection," and a 2010 Books-A-Million Book Club selection.
Johnson has been a teacher and session singer in New York City and received a Tony Award nomination as a p...more
More about Todd Johnson...
Johnson has been a teacher and session singer in New York City and received a Tony Award nomination as a p...more
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“I think the trick is knowing where you're supposed to be, and lettig go of everything else long enough to be there.”
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“I learned that attention is a prize, in love. The first thing you give. And the first thing to go, when the ‘new’ wears off.”
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