elenajohansen's review against another edition
1.0
I couldn't make myself keep going. DNF @ page 50.
The three characters I got POV chapters from are all unlikable in their own unique ways, but unified in how they present their narratives as though nothing is ever their fault. And that's most of what's on the page--whining about how none of them have gotten a fair shake, how someone else is responsible for their misery, how they'd be better "if only" this, that or the other thing.
It's natural for most people to do some blame-shifting in their lives, I get that. But this was fifty solid pages of "I love my (son/husband/wife), but... (this is how they're awful and I can't stand them anymore.)"
Very little actually happens in each chapter. Viola's, at the start, has her in the hospital after an asthma attack, and her husband comes to see her briefly. His chapter, next, has him realizing he's forgotten his car keys in her room and stalling as long as possible before going to retrieve them, because he doesn't actually want to see his wife again. And their son Lewis, the third POV chapter's character? Near as I could tell, he's actually not doing anything at all but whining.
Fifty pages of miserable family-backstory exposition dump. I couldn't find a reason to get invested in any of these characters.
The three characters I got POV chapters from are all unlikable in their own unique ways, but unified in how they present their narratives as though nothing is ever their fault. And that's most of what's on the page--whining about how none of them have gotten a fair shake, how someone else is responsible for their misery, how they'd be better "if only" this, that or the other thing.
It's natural for most people to do some blame-shifting in their lives, I get that. But this was fifty solid pages of "I love my (son/husband/wife), but... (this is how they're awful and I can't stand them anymore.)"
Very little actually happens in each chapter. Viola's, at the start, has her in the hospital after an asthma attack, and her husband comes to see her briefly. His chapter, next, has him realizing he's forgotten his car keys in her room and stalling as long as possible before going to retrieve them, because he doesn't actually want to see his wife again. And their son Lewis, the third POV chapter's character? Near as I could tell, he's actually not doing anything at all but whining.
Fifty pages of miserable family-backstory exposition dump. I couldn't find a reason to get invested in any of these characters.
catherineelkhattabystrauch's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault, Incest, and Homophobia
hellkitty915's review against another edition
3.0
This book was enjoyable enough, but it's basically a retelling of the movie Soul Food. Siblings have problems, the matriarch dies, and then they all get their lives back on track and become a family again. *yawn*
But the book is funny in parts and Viola is a great character. All of the characters are well-written and their individual stories are very familiar in today's world. The chapters are hard to get into sometimes because the point of view changes each time and each person telling it is different. I would have liked their names in the chapter titles to make the transitions easier.
Good enough book but it's been done before.
But the book is funny in parts and Viola is a great character. All of the characters are well-written and their individual stories are very familiar in today's world. The chapters are hard to get into sometimes because the point of view changes each time and each person telling it is different. I would have liked their names in the chapter titles to make the transitions easier.
Good enough book but it's been done before.
tita_noir's review against another edition
4.0
This story is about the Price family. We get to meet them, warts and all, chapter by chapter. The first chapter introduces us to Viola, the matriarch of the family. Viola, in the hospital suffering from a massive asthma attack, is wearied and worried by her spouse and her offspring. In her first-person narrative voice that instantly evokes reminiscences of listening to my own grandmother's southern-black-English argot, we get to hear from Viola's perspective the strengths and weaknesses of her family. Because she sounds so real her impressions leap right off the page and into your own consciousness until you find yourself agreeing with Viola. Yes! Her husband is an ungrateful wretch who moved out with no warning. Yes! Her constantly-in-jail son is book smart but street stupid for allowing himself to fall into the trap that has snared so many other black men. Yes! Her oldest daughter is a [b:control freak|665738|Control Freak|Christa Faust|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1176923519s/665738.jpg|3254] who spends too much time looking out for others and not enough time looking out for herself. Yes! Her second daughter is too blinded by jealousy to really see how much her family loves her and Yes! Her youngest daughter has been too dependent on others and can't stand up on her own two feet.
But wait a minute. Before you get too comfortable with these characterizations, Ms. McMillan switches gears and allows the others to speak for themselves. In Cecil's chapters we see a man who has a wife who is astonishingly self sufficient, grown children who don't really need him anymore and a life that has seemingly passed him by. We see someone who still has an enormous amount of respect for his spouse but who feels useless in her world. In Lewis' chapters we meet a man who is incredibly intelligent but who has never had anyone pushing him to succeed. Instead his family pigeonholes him into the slot of a drunken failure, never seeing the man underneath the surface who has dreams and aspirations like everyone else. In Charlotte's chapters we hear from a woman who has always felt like the outsider in her family. Doing desperate, sometimes unkind things simply to get them to notice her. She longs for the approval of her family and constantly seeks ways to get it only to be defeated by bitterness when she feels she's come up short in some way. In Janelle's chapters we visit a woman who having been the petted baby of the family is trying to re create what she feels is the perfect family and is desperately trying to create an identity. She marries unwisely and realizes too late the price she has to pay for her naivete. And finally, Paris' chapters reveal the oft told story of the oldest sibling given too much responsibility too early. Having been put on a pedestal, Paris strives mightily to live up to the image of perfection she believes her family has of her. But at what cost?
I usually get all bent out of shape when a story is told with shifting P.O.V.s but in this case, the voice of each of these characters is central to this story. Ms. McMillan has no trouble moving from the clipped, "proper" tones of the uber-educated Janelle and Paris to the more blue-collar street slangy tones of Lewis and Charlotte. Each sibling and each parent is fully in charge of the space he or she inhabits. The care taken in crafting each character in this book is so subtle that it is easy to miss how sophisticated the storytelling in this book really is. There is a reason that Terry McMillan was the vanguard for the renaissance and current popularity of African-American popular fiction and this book is represents that reason. Ms. Macmillan is an engaging writer who writes absorbing stories. I recommend.
But wait a minute. Before you get too comfortable with these characterizations, Ms. McMillan switches gears and allows the others to speak for themselves. In Cecil's chapters we see a man who has a wife who is astonishingly self sufficient, grown children who don't really need him anymore and a life that has seemingly passed him by. We see someone who still has an enormous amount of respect for his spouse but who feels useless in her world. In Lewis' chapters we meet a man who is incredibly intelligent but who has never had anyone pushing him to succeed. Instead his family pigeonholes him into the slot of a drunken failure, never seeing the man underneath the surface who has dreams and aspirations like everyone else. In Charlotte's chapters we hear from a woman who has always felt like the outsider in her family. Doing desperate, sometimes unkind things simply to get them to notice her. She longs for the approval of her family and constantly seeks ways to get it only to be defeated by bitterness when she feels she's come up short in some way. In Janelle's chapters we visit a woman who having been the petted baby of the family is trying to re create what she feels is the perfect family and is desperately trying to create an identity. She marries unwisely and realizes too late the price she has to pay for her naivete. And finally, Paris' chapters reveal the oft told story of the oldest sibling given too much responsibility too early. Having been put on a pedestal, Paris strives mightily to live up to the image of perfection she believes her family has of her. But at what cost?
I usually get all bent out of shape when a story is told with shifting P.O.V.s but in this case, the voice of each of these characters is central to this story. Ms. McMillan has no trouble moving from the clipped, "proper" tones of the uber-educated Janelle and Paris to the more blue-collar street slangy tones of Lewis and Charlotte. Each sibling and each parent is fully in charge of the space he or she inhabits. The care taken in crafting each character in this book is so subtle that it is easy to miss how sophisticated the storytelling in this book really is. There is a reason that Terry McMillan was the vanguard for the renaissance and current popularity of African-American popular fiction and this book is represents that reason. Ms. Macmillan is an engaging writer who writes absorbing stories. I recommend.
jpatrich's review against another edition
2.0
Very slow to start. You didn’t get into the meat & potatoes until the very end, and even then it didn’t hold my interest.
kennanicole's review against another edition
4.0
This book was amazing and the movie did not do it justice. The cast was well done but the screenplay left much to be desired. The ending left me saddened but at least the family reconciled and got to the root of their issues.
technolass's review against another edition
5.0
This isn't a book I would have picked up on my own, but it was the book club selection for February. I was told that it was a fabulous book, and to be honest, at first I just wasn't feeling it. It wasn't a bad book by any means, but I guess I just wasn't really in the right frame of mind to read it or something. I didn't understand what the point even was. By the end though, I totally got it, and completely understand why this is such a fabulous book. If you've been putting it off, read it. If your family is struggling and you feel like it's fractured, READ THIS Book! That's all.
schmidtat's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
marcintheoc's review
5.0
The story of Viola Price and her family will stay with me for a long time. It's a brilliantly written novel and there were several passages that brought tears to my eyes. I feel that I truly got to know each and every one of the characters. Terry McMillan is one of those authors whose work always leaves me satisfied.
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