Some were good. On Goodreads, I rated a book four stars more than any other rating, almost as often as one, two or three stars combined.
But only eleven books did I rate five stars.
Several of those were re-reads, some were parenting books and some were meant to feed my political or religious interests. A couple were no-brainer five stars, those books that I knew I was going to love before I ever opened the cover because the series was so perfect, such as Mockingjay.
A very few were genuine, knock-my-socks-off five star books.
One of those genuine, knock-my-socks-off, five star books was A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
, by Betty Smith. It was a simple, straightforward novel with a beautiful set of characters. It has been called "culturally historical," a description I find extraordinarily fitting. Smith wrote about a world she knew, a world she lived in and loved, and she brought it to life with a host of realistic characters. You can see the poor, dirty streets of Brooklyn during the dawn of the twentieth century, and you begin to understand the way those people lived in a way that history books and lectures could never convey to you.Nothing really happens in the story. There's not a grand finale, no big climax. There's not even a real ending, the characters just sort of... transition. Yet, you feel closure. You grow to love these characters, through all the ups and many, many downs of their simple lives, and by the end of the story you are just grateful to have been given a chance to watch a piece of their lives unfold.
There are, of course, lessons to be learned, perspectives to be gained and food for thought. But none of it feels preachy or condescending; Smith just told her story, and let you fill in the rest for yourself. If it spoke to you... great. If not... that's okay, too.
It definitely spoke to me.
If you are interested, you can read my fantasy cast for this novel.
You can read my review of this book on GoodReads.com
A blogging friend of mine posted a bookish meme, after reading it on another blogging friend's site. I can't not participate! This post was written as the first post in the 30 Days of Books.
The full list:
Day 01 – The best book you read last year
Day 02 – A book that you’ve read more than 3 times
Day 03 – Your favorite series
Day 04 – Favorite book of your favorite series
Day 05 – A book that makes you happy
Day 06 – A book that makes you sad
Day 07 – Most underrated book
Day 08 – Most overrated book
Day 09 – A book you thought you wouldn’t like but ended up loving
Day 10 – Favorite classic book
Day 11 – A book you hated
Day 12 – A book you used to love but don’t anymore
Day 13 – Your favorite writer
Day 14 – Favorite book of your favorite writer
Day 15 – Favorite male character
Day 16 – Favorite female character
Day 17 – Favorite quote from your Favorite book
Day 18 – A book that disappointed you
Day 19 – Favorite book turned into a movie
Day 20 – Favorite romance book
Day 21 – Favorite book from your childhood
Day 22 – Favorite book you own
Day 23 – A book you wanted to read for a long time but still haven’t
Day 24 – A book that you wish more people would’ve read
Day 25 – A character who you can relate to the most
Day 26 – A book that changed your opinion about something
Day 27 – The most surprising plot twist or ending
Day 28 – Favorite title
Day 29 – A book everyone hated but you liked
Day 30 – Your Favorite book of all time
