We thought we'd kick off our online book club with a book by a NC author. We also wanted to use one avail…more
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We thought we'd kick off our online book club with a book by a NC author. We also wanted to use one available from the Home Grown eBooks collection, which provides simultaneous-access eBooks.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.Guests On Earth is the story of Evalina and her experiences throughout her life. This life is highly altered by her stay at Highland Hospital and the people she met there. One of those was Zelda Fizgerald. I believe that in some ways the summary of the book given is a bit deceiving. It makes a big deal of the presence of Zelda in this book.
**Spoilers**
In the first few chapters, Evalina goes through some heart wrenching changes. From living with her mother who was an exotic dancer, to moving intoGuests On Earth is the story of Evalina and her experiences throughout her life. This life is highly altered by her stay at Highland Hospital and the people she met there. One of those was Zelda Fizgerald. I believe that in some ways the summary of the book given is a bit deceiving. It makes a big deal of the presence of Zelda in this book.
**Spoilers**
In the first few chapters, Evalina goes through some heart wrenching changes. From living with her mother who was an exotic dancer, to moving into a house bought by her mother’s lover, to losing her new baby brother, to finding her mother after she committed suicide, to living with the nuns, to moving in with her mother’s ex-lover, and finally ending up at Highland. You watch this story of the guests at Highland Hospital through the eyes of this child as she then grows into an adult. Her love of reading, playing piano, art, and flowers all come together to weave this tale that will take hospital patients and turn them into relatable beings. I both liked and disliked the fast pacing (to move ahead the years) by following through Evalinas letters. Maybe if the author had included some letters from Mrs. Carroll as well it would’ve revealed more of the story. Later when she returns to Highland and the rift is there, you could’ve gotten more of the reasoning behind it. While Evalina’s abroad following her heart, she winds up pregnant. The result of that birth and the child’s subsequent death leaves her catatonic. So, she ends up back at Highland. At this point, though, the hospital has been sold to Duke and the changes in the hospital itself definitely made me sad. The events leading up to the fire and the idea of what really started it was a good explanation. The loss of the lives was sad, and the end of that part for some lives felt abdrupt.
Overall, this is a well written piece. The connections for me to the state I live in, and an area I am very familiar with was great. I could visualize most with just how the author wrote it, but knowing the area gave me real life memories to attach to it. The prose and pace are good, and the characters definitely grow and change throughout. My biggest mark against giving it five stars is simply the ending. It felt open, and I had wanted there to be a neater bow tied up than it gave. I wanted closure for a life that had never really had any, but it seemed the author did make Evalina be at peace....more
