Reviews

Bottomland by Michelle Hoover

iggyebab's review against another edition

The writing style was distracting to me. I couldn't get into the story. DNF- page 91.

maggersann's review against another edition

challenging informative slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

I love a years-long family saga. Each character felt distinct but connected and I became very invested in the fate of the Hess family. The Iowa connection was especially great. 

kstep1805's review against another edition

5.0

I did not want to like this book. I’m not even sure why. I think because it was so sad from the beginning. At times it was confusing and normally I would knock a star off for that but it so transported me to the time and place of the book, my commute would disappear. I was sucked in, wanting to know what happened. It’s a tragedy and an inspiration. I loved it and I hated it. It ticks off all the things I require for five stars: setting the scene so I feel like I’m there, a story that makes me want to come back again and again, and forces me to feel deeply about the characters and the story itself. Impressive writing for a story that could have been rather vanilla.

scorpstar77's review against another edition

5.0

The Hess family wakes up one morning on their Midwestern farm to find the two youngest daughters have vanished. The door to their room has been jammed shut from the inside, and the window is open, and no one seems to have seen them leave. As the family begins to search for the girls, the family history unravels - from their parents' meeting one another as young German immigrants in New York to the town's treatment of the family as World War I begins to the death of the family matriarch, all of their stories are poured out to the reader in the process of revealing what happened to Esther and Myrle, and how all of those events inevitably led to the girls' disappearance.

This book has a part for nearly every member of the Hess family to tell their piece of the story, and once you put them all together, you get a near complete picture. The story begins with great tension, and then that mystery opens up other mysteries, until the entire bones of the Hess family life are laid bare.

Spoiler

The book is a testament to the bonds of family, a criticism of parents who try to control their children too tightly and families that keep too much to themselves, an exploration of how alliances and secrets develop (and dissolve) in a large family, a look into the psychological effects of experiencing war first-hand, and a celebration of women who break free of their bonds to live their own lives.

I was captivated throughout my reading of the book!

mscott's review against another edition

4.0

This book is the 2017 All Iowa Reads book choice. I was very pleased to read this book and did enjoy it very much. It was a story about family, the struggles they endure and the secrets they keep. Set mostly around World War I, it is the story of an immigrant family who makes their way to rural Iowa for a better life. The focus is on the disappearance of the two youngest daughters and how this turns the family upside. Very well written from the perspective of several different family members, you are drawn into the how and the why of the disappearance of the two girls. It isn't necessarily a hopeful or even happy book but one that feels real in its sadness. I highly recommended it!

cynthiaswanson's review against another edition

5.0

Truly one of the best books I've read this year. Every so often a novel comes along that has it all: a compelling storyline, characters you can't stop thinking about, and gorgeous prose. Throughout the reading of this book, while enjoying the beauty of the words, I was also on pins and needles -- not just about the story itself, not just about wanting to know what happened to those girls, but also with this thought running through my head: "Please, Ms. Hoover -- please, please, please do not let me down by having this plot fall apart." I'm happy to report that not only was I NOT let down, I was surprised and satisfied by the believable, bittersweet way it all came together. Highly recommended.

mslaura's review against another edition

4.0

Ratings (1 to 5)
Writing: 3.5
Plot: 4
Characters: 4
Emotional impact: 4
Overall rating: 4

thoughtsfromapage's review against another edition

3.0

My favorite part of this novel was the setting. Hoover did a wonderful job describing the vast, desolate land where the Hess family chose to settle in the 1880’s. Her descriptions of the winters, the lack of many neighbors and the isolation felt by each member of the Hess family were fantastic. Overlaid on this rural, lonely existence is the added issue that the Hess family is German. Once World War I is looming, this detail creates added problems for them in a town where the family has already chosen to stay to themselves.

What I did not like as well was the character development. I never felt a connection with any of the characters and did not feel I had a true sense about any of them.

The story revolves are two of the sisters who go missing, and most of the book is focused on where they went and why. I was not completely happy with the resolution of the mystery and the ending of the book.

I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

biblioventurer's review against another edition

3.0

I enjoyed the story, the setting, and the tale told from multiple points of view. I think my favorite of the narrators was Nan. I still have a lot of questions about what happened and what was merely imagined. I appreciated the author's writing style, but at the same time I was distracted by what seemed like an overabundance of sentence fragments.

iamcharlatte's review against another edition

4.0

I read this because of the Des Moines Public Library's year long reading challenge. It was a good read but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it.