The debut novel by Stephanie Kallos is everything I want a novel to be, from the fully rendered characters to the twists and turns of plot, filled with all kinds of side-stories and satisfying details. I loved this book.
The story: Margaret, age 70-ish, discovers she is dying of a brain tumor. An awkward recluse who talks to the objects in her house, Margaret decides to take what little time she has left to change her life. She takes in a boarder, Wanda, who is also a broken person. The two women tentatively begin a friendship, accumulating a cast of broken people along the way. The backgrounds of Margaret and Wanda are revealed along the way, including a whopper of story that I didn't see coming with Margaret. I like to be surprised.
Kallos's writing is fantastic. Some may say she manipulates events too much to make everything tie together in a neat package, but I thought the story was fabulous. Some of the broken people were a bit stereotypical, but just a bit. Broken for You kept me up past my bedtime for several nights, and that's always the sign of a riveting book.
Comments
Saturday, February 2, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Posted by Carrie K.
I loved this book, too.
http://carrie.homeschooljournal.net
Saturday, February 2, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Posted by Anonymous
I got this from the library today as well as 2 other books you reviewed this month - The Horizontal World and The Stone Diaries. I won't be able to get to any of them for at least a week. First I have to finish Split Ends, then read a book that is due on Friday, then read the book for my 2/14 book club meeting, and THEN Broken for You will be next! I'll let you know how I like the 3 books when I'm done.
Eileen
CoffeeBean at SL
http://booksandhooks.blogspot.com
