May 2024 Group Read #2 with Guest Author, Angel N. Van Atta > Likes and Comments
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Oh my gosh! Yayyyy!! This is such an amazing book! 🖤
I am so excited for this! Angel is a good friend and wonderful writer.
This does sound like my kind of story. Looking forward to reading this.
I've been meaning to read this! Looking forward to it!
Hello, there! Thank you all so much for having me! I'm absolutely honored to be here! I hope you're all having the best most amazing week ever!
This sounds like a great read. I’m excited about it!
Absolutely excellent book. I read it in two sittings (I had to sleep) because I couldn't put it down.
Awww, thank you so much, kind humans! ❤️
Fantastic book, fantastic author! I love Angel, she's brilliant.
Awww, Elizabeth! I admire you so much! Thank you! ❤️
I plan to join in on this read as well. It's now in my Kindle Library!
Hey, Angel! I am prepared for all the feels!
Thank you for making time for us, Angel. I was emotionally touched by both your book and your personal story. Your work was very original.
I was definitely hesitant to read this because of it being about abuse and from the child’s point of view but hearing what people are saying about it I’m jumping in!
Hi, Sally! Thank you!!! I hope you enjoy!!!
Aww, Pisces51, thank you. That means alot. :)
Thank you so much, Dawn! I hope you enjoy!
About 30% in and I think you’ve done an amazing job, Angel, with using Mella as the protagonist voice of the story. I’ve read numerous other books where the child’s voice doesn’t feel authentic. Mella’s language and word choices are spot on. And the way she’s rationalizing and siding with her father over her mother just chills me to the bone. So subtle, but it hits like a hammer. Nicely done.
Kenneth wrote: "About 30% in and I think you’ve done an amazing job, Angel, with using Mella as the protagonist voice of the story. I’ve read numerous other books where the child’s voice doesn’t feel authentic. Me..."Thank you! I appreciate that very much. Truly.
Kenneth pointed out a couple of points I did not consider. He is absolutely right about the child narrator and the language used by Mella sounding so natural to me as I read. The other was the child's has violation between believing her mother's tale of the take and the a moment later feeling that her Daddy is a good man. So typical for a child. It truly was a fine and well crafted book about a horror that hits close to home in its various guises.
Thank you, Pisces. I really love exploring how everyone has depth. And even the bad men among us have good parts and people who love them. And this is especially true with children, who see everything through a veil of innocence and acceptance.
Finished this one today. Damn. Talk about running the gamut of emotions. I’m still in awe of how well you captured Mella’s voice, Angel. How much of a challenge was it for you to get her just right?
Wow, Kenneth, thank you. That's an incredible compliment and I appreciate it very much. Honestly, when the story is ready to come, it comes, in whatever voice it's in. And Mella's voice was one of the easier ones I've had to follow. It was so much fun, and very therapeutic.
I’m halfway through and wow it’s so intense it makes me nervous! You have done a great job creating a weird claustrophobic atmosphere with the child thinking it’s normal. That in itself is very frightening!
Dawn wrote: "I’m halfway through and wow it’s so intense it makes me nervous! You have done a great job creating a weird claustrophobic atmosphere with the child thinking it’s normal. That in itself is very fri..."My favorite part of the book is the way we inhabit Mella's unique perspective on reality. The book does an outstanding job distilling what we see through her lens while giving us just enough information that we understand what we need to for the emotions of her journey to matter to us.
I really liked the story! For anyone who's loved a monster, your story is relatable because you captured the confusion and juxtaposition of the love/hate one feels towards an abuser. It was so unique to have the POV remain the child's for the entire story too.All the literary and movie references throughout were awesome as well! The ending was amazing and I actually had tears flowing.
The story also made me reflect on a few true crime stories where children were kept captive from society--and the TV and literature is what teaches them about the outside world. Ie: The Turpin children interview of Jennifer and Jordan--they spoke to Diane Sawyer about how much they leaned on movies and tv shows which probably was the reason they adapted to the outside world rather quickly. Edit/add: I enjoyed being inside Mella's head as the gears were turning when she ventured on to be the hero! The thought about stores on movies and detectives and other things were running in her mind as to what to look for as good things to help her. Thank goodness for those things. I think the very worst case of severe isolation where the child had absolutely none of that, was "the feral child" Genie Wiley and very sadly there have been some others
Erika, thank you. It always surprises me how much children can overcome. Even after what I've been through, so many others have been through so much worse. I wish that was something we didn't lose in adulthood as much as we do. The ability to accept what is happening around us and become stronger and better versions of ourselves because of it is such a gift and if we were able to do that as we got older, as we do when we are little, I feel like the world wouldn't be as scary as it is. It wouldn't be as cruel.
Andrew, wow friend, thank you. That is such a beautiful compliment.
Dawn, thank you. I appreciate that very much.
Angel wrote: "Erika, thank you. It always surprises me how much children can overcome. Even after what I've been through, so many others have been through so much worse. I wish that was something we didn't lose ..."You're welcome. I love how you explained all that! It sounds like you described the skill in DBT called "radical acceptance". It's something all adults should learn about, really, and consciously practice.
Erika, thank you for sharing! I'm going to look into that.
Angel wrote: "Erika, thank you for sharing! I'm going to look into that."You're welcome. Thank you for being here and chatting with us. I will be reading your Little Voices #2 very soon :)
Hello, Angel! I’ve heard so much about your book. I’m excited about your book and I’ve just purchased my copy. I’m going to start reading it on June 1st. See you in the future.
Zain! Thank you! Thank you so much! I hope you enjoy! ❤️
Hi! I just started reading it and though I’ve only read the first chapter, I am absolutely captivated by “Mella Moo.” The way it is written I can really hear a little girls voice in my head as I read. She is so innocent it’s precious.
Aww, Kat, thank you so so much! ❤️ That really means a lot.
Hi Angel, just finished and really enjoyed your novel! I felt right there with Mella Moo the whole time and don’t want to give away the ending but the anticipation was intense and so well done. I hope it’s appropriate to say I’m sorry you lived with your abuse since you talk about it at the end. The monsters that live in people are certainly real. Your portrayal of the fantasies people use to escape horror was spot on. Thank you for sharing and writing.
Dawn wrote: "Hi Angel, just finished and really enjoyed your novel! I felt right there with Mella Moo the whole time and don’t want to give away the ending but the anticipation was intense and so well done. I h..."Pay off of the anticipation made me cry. Perfectly executed in my opinion.
Just finished reading this. I am absolutely in love with Mella and how brave she is. There are not many books that scare me, but this was one where I was truly terrified of what might happen to her. I almost wanted to skip to the end to make sure she turned out okay! But I refrained and I’m so glad I did. I will definitely read the next book!
Hello, Dawn! Thank you so much for your kind words and I'm super glad you enjoyed. Honestly, I feel like many of us understand Mella's struggles and I'm so grateful that she can be there for so many.
Awww, Andrew! That's so kind of you to say! Thank you!
Kat, thank you so so much! That makes my heart super happy to hear and I hope you enjoy book 2 just as much!
This book is extremely intriguing and very interesting to read. I’m glad I read it because I fell in love with Mella Moo. 🙃
We’ll be starting this read on May 15th and going through the month of June. In the meantime, grab your copy of In The Tall Trees and please help me welcome to HA…Angel N. Van Atta!
https://www.amazon.com/Tall-Trees-Ang...