erin_janda's review
5.0
Having grown up with a few pen pals of my own, this book was dear to me. I love the way Brooks tells her memoir. It is absolutely beautiful.
dja777's review
4.0
It was interesting, but it was only her second book. I enjoyed her later stuff more, ESPECIALLY [b:People of the Book|1379961|People of the Book|Geraldine Brooks|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1348809332s/1379961.jpg|3020568], which is one of the best books I've read all year.
It was interesting reading about her growing up in Australia during the late 50's and early 60's, and I liked the way she wove in all her correspondence with her foreign pen pals.
I would recommend it, but not as strongly as I would her novels.
It was interesting reading about her growing up in Australia during the late 50's and early 60's, and I liked the way she wove in all her correspondence with her foreign pen pals.
I would recommend it, but not as strongly as I would her novels.
jennms_qkw's review
5.0
This was a sweet exploration of the past and present. A bit of a memoir.
It was on my TBR.
It was on my TBR.
lowlandsbeach's review
5.0
I loved this book. Probably as I am nearly the same age as the author, a lot of the late1950s 1960s to early 1970s childhood experiences resonated with me. Very readable, and so interesting to visit childhood penpals as adults.
cstefko's review
4.0
3.75 stars
Not the most riveting memoir, but very poignant at times. I would have liked to actually read some of the letters to/from her pen pals, but I get why she might prefer to keep them private, especially in the case of her longest-lasting penpal, Joannie, who (feels kind of weird and icky to use a spoiler tag for nonfiction but better to err on the side of caution, since it would definitely affect how you read the parts about Joannie). The section where she went to hunt down her remaining penpals was fun, even if the Israel stuff was... perhaps lacking nuance. I just love anything even remotely about Australia and Australians, and it was interesting to read the perspective of an Australia who has a love/hate relationship with her country.
Not the most riveting memoir, but very poignant at times. I would have liked to actually read some of the letters to/from her pen pals, but I get why she might prefer to keep them private, especially in the case of her longest-lasting penpal, Joannie, who
Spoiler
passed away after battling anorexia and depressionamyherbert's review against another edition
My favourite author, so of course I loved this book.
sushai's review
4.0
I chose this book because I'm heading to Sydney and wanted to get a sense of its history and culture. For that purpose, the book was perfect. The story of her finding her pen pals again as an adult sounded more interesting than it actually was. It seemed like she was in a rush to get the book finished. I would have liked more details. I think if she'd written in a little later in her career it would have been more polished, as I have liked her other books quite a bit.
bennse2's review
4.0
Geraldine Brooks has had a far more interesting life than I have had, and she showcases her world journeys through her family and personal history. Provides some solid historical background, interspersed with Geraldine's memories and experiences - so I'd highly recommend it to people who enjoy memoirs; history; letter-writing. I enjoy all of the above, so it was perfect for me!