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topic: the memory keeper's daughter by kim edwards
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I am currently reading this book and am having a hard time finishing it. I can't get attached to any of the charecters and the story is really dragging. Is anyone else having this problem or is the book worth reading til the end? I purchased the book a few days ago because a friend referred it to me. Thanks
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it took me months to finish the book. and i really only did that because i was committed to it although not attached to the characters at all. the story does drag and the characters are caught in cyclical moping patterns. overall i found this book a disappointment
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I understand what you mean about the cyclical moping patterns but I was caught up in whether the family would ever meet Phoebe which kept me reading...
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I am so happy to read these comments! I thought I was the only one! I am completely stalled and unable to finish it. The only reason I will eventually finish it is because the link between Caroline and Nora is still incomplete. But I've grown to hate all the characters (except David, whom she killed off) in the meanwhile.
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I couldn't even finish the book. I really wanted to read it because I liked the storyline, but couldn't get through it.
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I sort of read this book quite a while ago. Frankly, it stunk. The characters are underdeveloped and unappealing. I also had a hard time finishing it. In fact, I only skimmed it from the middle part to the end. I sent it back to the publisher informing them that this was an insult to my intelligence. I cannot believe this is a best seller that people actually read!
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message 7:
by
Masymas
(last edited 02/21/2008 08:05AM)
02/09/2008 07:54AM
I am not much of a critic, I tend to like everything, an interesting problem. But I thought the authors whole point was the undercurrent of the secret, and what kept me reading was it's impact on people's lives, and psyche's, especially david's. Some of that was a little contrived, but i was drawn in to the secret, one momentary decision by two people and what becomes of it. I was also drawn in by the fact that this was not an uncommon response to having a child with down's syndrome. I'd say that aspect of the story is what made it a bestseller, not it's character development, but it's human content, a cautionary tale in favor of honesty.
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I couldn't finish it either for the same reasons. The premise seemed great, but it took entirely to long to tell the story. I gave up and never finished it.
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I really enjoyed this book! I thought the writing was beautiful and the characters were complex and interesting.
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I just finished this book, and I'm glad I'm not the only one with a horrible review! I totally thought the characters were completely unrelateable, and that the story dragged on and on and on...I finished it because I had started it, but boy was I glad when I was finally done with it!
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my book is now in the trash - thats how bad I thought it was!
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I'm really surprised at all of the negative comments. I just finished it about a week ago and I absolutely loved it. I thought it was an interesting study on how one event can change a family's entire dynamic.
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Someone loaned me this book (because she thought it was good, believe it or not!) so I felt I had to finish it. I finished it but I did not enjoy it. A positive note: I'm relieved that I didn't BUY this book! =)
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Someone loaned me this book (because she thought it was good, believe it or not!) so I felt I had to finish it. I finished it but I did not enjoy it. A positive note: I'm relieved that I didn't BUY this book! =)
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I know what you are saying. I half read this book about a year ago. I could not finish it either. I also felt some characters did not even belong. Iam also glad I got this from the library and did not buy it. :)
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I read it and found it disappointing. I always felt the reader was kept at too much of a distance from the characters, like we were viewing them through a filter. Did see that it has become a Lifetime (I think) movie that is airing sometime soon.
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I would definitely agree that it took me longer to read this short book than it should have. I would suggest finishing it. I found, and others may not agree, that it got easier to read after the son was introduced as a teenager. At that point we also got to hear more about Phoebe, and Nora finally stopped going on for pages about the same thing. Plus I found the relationship between David and his son to be very sad and yet very interesting and real (thinking of my own brother and father). There is an inability in many men to relate to their sons. They love them, and yet don't know how to love them. Thus the son assumes they don't. How that helps some-what.
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I completely agree with Masymas, Gween and Jo6353! I was also drawn to the secret and the impact it had - how it changed those involved - even if they didn't know the secret (aka Nora and Paul).
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I really enjoyed this book too - I read it about a year ago and still think about it. I did think the wife was a bit dramatic and needed to get over her issues w/ her husband. He wasn't that bad?!
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I finished this book in less than a day and actually I liked it. It's not the best book I've ever read but I didn't think it was as bad as seems to be the general consensus here. What kept me going was the secret too - will David ever tell Norah, will she ever know that her daughter didn't die? I thought the writer did an excellent job in showing how a secret this size rips a family apart.
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I am reading this book right now - well, I'm listening to it on audiobooks. It's endless and tedious. The only reason I continue on is that I have been driving a lot lately, and audiobooks help pass the time. However, this one is so bad. I feel like shaking David and Nora and telling them to grow up or get divorced.
Also, as I mention in my review, the details just aren't credible. For example, the man's name was David Henry McAllister. When he was accepted to college, the person typing the acceptance left off the name "McAllister," so he was able to live the rest of his life as David Henry. Come one - what about Social Security? What about his high school transcript? What about birth certificates?
I have to wonder why the author put so many of these stupid, unbelievable details in her novel. Doesn't she know that they disrupt the flow of the story?
I, too, am glad I didn't buy the book.
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Huh, Yeah I liked it too, but probably just because I'm fascinated by family dynamics. It was interesting to see how the family as a unit was affected by the secret and it really made me more aware of my own family and the barriers that I could be creating. I also felt like a learned a lot about down syndrome, especially the emotions involved with it, which is a subject I think is still a bit taboo in todays society. It made me more empathetic to those parents who raise these beautiful children today.
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i finished this book in 2 days... i thought it was an interesting read!!!
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I just finished reading the book myself and was disappointed. I knew that it was not one of my favorites when it took me a month to read it and if I really love a book it will take me a week at the most. I just found it really sad and tragic. I don't think it's the worst book I have ever read, but it is not a book that I would recommend anyone to read.
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