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Nov 26, 2011

Doreen rated it:

A terrible thing happened to Matt Logelin: his beloved wife died the day after their only child was born, 7 weeks prematurely. As he struggled to put his life back together and raise a baby on his own, he set up a non-profit foundation to help other men and women who found themselves in a similar situation. In the process, he grew somewhat as a person.

Hopefully, that precis will save you from having to read the actual book. Proceeds from its sale go to the non-profit mentioned above, More...

2 comments like (20 people liked it)

Nov 29, 2011

Lisa rated it:

There are so many things one could say about this book. As a 32 year old married mother of a precious toddler, of course this book rang many bells in my head and of course it broke nearly every time Matt wrote about his lost wife. As a human, as a person who loves to feel and wants to be reminded how awesome it is to be in love with the Love of your life, this book spoke to me on different levels. I don't know how it could not.

Matt Logelin openly writes from a place of suffering a More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 20, 2012

Mitchell A. rated it:

This was an emotional roller coaster for me. I really struggled to give this little memoir a star rating. So, everyone knows the premise: A 30 year old man is delighted by the birth of his daughter one day and loses the love of his life the next, what now?

A lot of the criticisms I've read here on GR are quasi-valid: The writing is so-so. He does come off like a music snob at times. His profanities are redundant; some argued crass. In response to this I would say: He never claims to More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 15, 2010

Jim rated it:

In a remarkable coincidence, Matthew Logelin and I each lost a young wife, were left with a daughter named Madeline, and wrote a book about the experience. He and I are very different people but we both came to some very similar conclusions.

0 comments like (27 people liked it)

Aug 09, 2011

Laurie rated it:

I have been following Matt Logelin for over two years, and I was thrilled when I was hooked up with a copy of Two Kisses for Maddy to read before it was released last week. From a literary standpoint, I found the story moving and easy to read if not heart-wrenchingly sad and difficult at times. While I love Matt's blog that is written in mostly in verse, the prose in this book filled in some gaps on a story that I already felt I knew quite well.

From a social, human standpoint, Matt, More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Feb 11, 2012

Sasha rated it:

I did not read the entire book. Although I can sympathize with the situation, I don't think this should be a book. I could not force myself to read the rest of it. That is all I will say because I feel the situation itself makes it hard to say anything that could be perceived as negative after the suffering this family has endured. Although, maybe that's exactly how this book ended up published...nobody wanted to hurt anyone's feelings.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 03, 2011

Christine rated it:

I've read Matt's blog so I knew how his story unfolds before I read the book. And that meant I was crying from basically the first page as he described how he and Liz met and fell in love. I don't think Matt's the best writer ever. (His blog drives me a bit crazy because he writes in blocky short sentences a la Rosie O'Donnell). But Matt doesn't claim to a be a writer. This was never his goal. He was thrust in to the literary world after suffering a horrible tragedy...the death of his wife the d More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 22, 2011

Leighanne rated it:

First off, I don't recommend the book to my friends. The foul language is unnecessary most of the time and even seems forced. In fact, in order to finish the book, I had to tell myself to just look beyond it and read the story. I really wanted to finish his story.
That being said, I give it four stars because it was engaging and truthful and kept my heart tied right in to his emotions. It could be just because I am overly emotional right now at my own loss, but I basically cried through th More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 11, 2011

Andrea rated it:

I'm glad I've completed this book, though I think I would've enjoyed it a whole lot more had I read it verses listening to the author reading it. A friend lent the audio book to me, and I was really grateful.

I went to school with Matt from 9th grade on, and I'd heard about his tragic loss. I clearly remember seeing his wife's obituary in the Star Tribune and thinking that this must have happened to some other Matt Logelin. That's super odd now that I reflect on that. It's not like his More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 07, 2011

Maija rated it:

This book revolves around a tragic story of Matt's wife passing away only a day after giving birth to their first child. This is one of those stories you hope (and assume) will never happen to anyone you know, but it does happen.

I had seen Matt's blog a few times, and then found this book on the library's hot new releases shelf so thought I'd give it a spin(Multnomah County is doing this cool "Lucky Day" thing that is a shelf of new releases you can check out rather than wa More...

3 comments like

Jun 03, 2011

Christina rated it:

I came across Matt's blog shortly after Maddy was born. I have a son who was born about a year earlier and so I truly could relate to the blog posts about newborn Maddy. But of course newborn trials and tribulations were not all the blog was about. The blog was super sad and I was feeling empathy exhaustion or something because I couldn't stop tearing up all the time. I had to put an end to following the blog.

So I came across this book 3 years later absolutely wanting to read i More...

0 comments like

Jun 02, 2011

Sara rated it:

This is such a great memoir, covering a very sad situation but managing to be inspiring and uplifting instead of completely and utterly depressing. The author's wife died the day after their daughter was born, and this book chronicles his relationship with his wife and then his struggle to get through the first year of their daughter's life as a single parent.

The author has a very relatable writing style that drew me in almost immediately. I was unsure about this book before star More...

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May 31, 2011

Patricia rated it:

**Warning: This author, even though he wrote a book in an "attempt to turn [his] sadness into something beautiful," uses a lot of coarse, vulgar language, and is quite offensive. I do not recommend it for this reason.**

This is the sad, true story of a young man who becomes a widower at the age of 30, the day after his daughter is born seven weeks early. He loved his young, beautiful wife deeply, and he writes about their love story, the birth, her death, and the year of More...

1 comment like (3 people liked it)

May 15, 2011

Ruth rated it:

When I selected this book I figured it would either be a tear-jerker focusing on the emotional cost of losing a long-term lover or a comedy of errors in which this guy has to figure out what to do with the business end of a baby, since he has no wife to teach him. It was neither. It was much more about Matthew than about Maddy, despite the title, and the writing style did not emotionally engage me. When I picked up the book, I knew his wife would die, and fully expected to shed a tear or two More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Dec 16, 2011

Erin rated it:

Five stars for Matthew's resiliency, and the awareness it brought to me, but three stars for the book. I had the feeling that if I had followed his blog, I would already have known the whole story. Also, the swearing was unnecessary. (I feel like a broken record in saying that, because I say it often). Perhaps listening to this book made the cursing seem worse. It seemed forced, as if he was trying to push his "tough" personality into the book. Also, normally during a book like t More...

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Oct 19, 2011

Molly rated it:

First, I should say: the dismal rating I've given this book is not because of its content (and certainly not reflective of other Good Readers' repulsion of the language--at least not of the foul sort--my husband's been known to call me a pirate) and the story itself--it makes my heart go out to Logelin and his family.

But.

The writing is terrible. Terrible.

There was so much cliche and so much that made me wonder: well yes, that is sad, but why did this become More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

May 27, 2011

Janene rated it:

I have been a follower of Matt's blog for a few years now. I found his blog through someone else's blog and was immediately drawn to his parenting style and his story.

I bought this book because I felt like I needed it but never really had any intention of actually reading it. I already knew Maddy and Liz's story and it really is heartbreaking. I didn't think (because I'm insanely sensitive) that I would be able to read it without crying the whole way through.

When I got More...

0 comments like

May 07, 2011

Marianne rated it:

This is one of those stories that is hard to review. of course the story of life and death is heatwrenching and the story itself, unfortunately true, will certainly make for a great book. However this story did not sound like just another "regular" person having significant crisis. This is a very lucky, well connected and highly supported father who has lost his wife unexpectedly and as written in the book, he is far from the only person the experience this. so to me the book takes More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

May 06, 2011

Kristy rated it:

My first real book review on here, and, boy, do I have a lot say about this one.

'Two Kisses for Maddy' is the story of a man who become both a father and a widower in the span of twenty-seven hours, and his journey to mourn his wife and live for his daughter. At first I didn't like this book: the writing is a little simple and full of 'fucks' and 'shits.' But it read quickly, and I came to enjoy how conversational the book is. The author is a blogger, too, after all.

The other More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Dec 10, 2011

Miz rated it:

Memoirs can be hard to rate - especially memoirs like this as they deal with loss. Many times the author isn't a writer, but is writing to share the story for various reasons. For that reason, you can't judge it or rate it as you would another books , whether it is fiction or fact.

While reading Two Kisses for Maddy, I was struck by his love for his life and his desire to look after his daughter and how he managed to channel some of the things positively. He became a better person. Yet, More...

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Jul 27, 2011

Judy rated it:

This is the story of Liz and Matt Logelin - how they met, fell in love, married, bought a house, and started a family. It started happy but turned to tragedy when Liz had a difficult pregnancy and then suddenly passed away 27 hours after their baby was born leaving a very immature Matt to raise Maddy. The book covers Maddy's first year. It was interesting following Matt and Maddy as Matt worked through all the grief, sorrow, and insecurities caring for a newborn. I felt a great deal of sympathy More...

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Jun 06, 2011

Samantha rated it:

This was a very sad story but I really enjoyed it. The story of a man who loses his wife 2 days after she gives birth to their daughter. He speaks from a very honest place and I can respect that. Ive read a lot of reviews about his bad language but he was just relaying who he is and his exact feelings about certain situations. How can you fault a man for being honest and showing who he truly is? It was so sweet to hear this man talk about his love for his wife and his feelings after her death More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 11, 2012

Tamara rated it:

I made the mistake of browsing through some of this book's GD reviews prior to reading it. A few readers said they felt that Matt was a snobby hipster douchebag. I wish that I hadn't peeked at those reviews as they coloured my perception of the author before I gave this book a chance (shame on me!) I did press on though, and I am glad I did. I came to the conclusion that the author is not in fact a hipster douchebag. He is a brutally, painfully honest real person. This book is the most accurate More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 22, 2011

Jennifer rated it:

I've followed Matt Logelin's blog for some time now. Logelin began blogging as a way to keep family and friends updated while his wife, Liz, was pregnant with their first child. After enduring a difficult pregnancy involving hospitalized bedrest, they were overjoyed when their daughter, Madeline, was born, premature but otherwise healthy. Joy turned to agonizing grief when Liz collapsed and died 27 hours after Madeline was born, having only had one glimpse of their daughter.

Through More...

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Dec 19, 2011

Voracious rated it:

This man went through a terrible experience, I know. And it sounds like he's doing a great job with his daughter. But he didn't appeal to me.

I understand being massively sensitive in the wake of loss, but not continuing to defend your excessive over-reactions. He's hugely judgmental about silly things. For example, he whines about strangers asking about "Maddy's mother" rather than "his wife". That's just silly. No-one's going to risk offending a stranger by More...

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Nov 25, 2011

Meredith rated it:

This memoir is billed as moving story of love and loss. Although the story is a sad one in the abstract, the writing and tone don't engage the reader's sympathies. In his introduction, the author announces that he makes no claim to be a writer, but that absolves neither him nor his publisher for the lack of craft in this book. Any narrative is a work of art, and for those requiring help in telling their stories, there are editors and ghostwriters.

The unnecessary profanity and cr More...

1 comment like

Sep 15, 2011

Selina rated it:

One of the beat books i have ever read(and I have read thousands) so full of love, loss, and raw heartbreak, but so worth it!! I have cried many many times while reading this(bawled actually) but it has also shown me what it takes to be a ''better'' parent, and how your own child can not take the pain away, but make it just a little more berable! I can only hope that someday I will be as good of a parent as he is! AFter losing his wife suddenly only 24 hrs after their beautiful baby entered the More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Dec 16, 2011

Gina rated it:

I can't even begin to imagine the roller coaster of emotions Matt has gone through that he did not add in the book. I feel for them both.

I'm an emotional person to begin with but there are many parts of this book that have made me cry.

Matt has to go through life without the woman he loves. Maddy will never know what it's like to feel her mother's unconditional love.

I know from reading reviews of this book before I read it that some have an issue with the swe More...

0 comments like

May 05, 2011

Shoshanah rated it:

I've been reading Matt's blog for almost 3 years now, and feel in love with his story. So it isn't really a surprise I was looking forward to reading his books I actually bought the book the day I saw it in a store, which coincidentally was the day it came out. While I couldn't wait to read it, I was at least a little skeptical. There's a fear when reading a book based on a blog, that you'll be reading the exact same thing you've rad before. Not that I didn't enjoy the story the first time, but More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 17, 2011

Dusty rated it:

Most everyone starts this review with a recap of Matt's life, or at least the aspect of the story that is relevant to this book, so I might as well follow suit but I'll give the very abbreviated version. Matt was widowed 27 hours after the birth of his daughter, Madeline. This book is that story.

While this book is largely about Matt's grief and the hope he finds in his daughter Maddy, I think more than anything it's a love story. This book wouldn't have been anywhere near as powerful More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)