false 2 0 false false Sun Sep 27 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Sep 13 20:44:36 -0700 2009 Sun Sep 27 20:07:01 -0700 2009
There are places in which this is uproariously funny. I liked getting glimpses into Ukrainian history as the narrator and younger sister, Nadia, pieces together parts of her family's history. The characters are interesting and funny, and I liked seeing the slow reconciliation between the sisters. I had heard this book compared to The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society, which I really loved.

But for me there was too much focus on Valentina's voluptuousness and Nadia's father's excitement about that. Ugh. One reason I liked The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society so much was that it was pretty much free of any such details. Valentina's chest size was pretty central to the plot, so I'm not sure how the author could have left it out. Still, that was not my cup of tea, and I would not recommend it to anyone who prefers clean reading.]]>