Hard to believe this happens

books:


	• The Kindness of Strangers Katrina Kittle Harper Perennial, 2007 - 400 pages average customer review:based on 31 reviews view larger image
	for more information click here

highly recommended

Like a trainwreck...

I started this book last night and finished it this morning. I literally couldn't put it down and had to tear my eyes away from the pages last night, to force myself to go to sleep. I could have done without the tidy ending; I think the tidiness of the ending took away from the believability of the narrative. If she hadn't wrapped it all up in the end so quickly, I think there could have been some pretty good sequels to this book.

This book is like a train wreck, or some car accident...you can't not look. Good read, please try this out.

for more information click here

Captivating

It is hard to explain exactly why, but from the moment I started reading this book, I immediately felt like I had an understanding of the characters and their past histories. Kittle creates characters that are so easy to imagine in your mind that you feel as though you are peering into the Ladens' house from a window, watching the story unfold. I really enjoyed how the author tied up many of the loose ends and provided answers to the questions in readers' minds towards the end of the book so you weren't agonizing over what happened to each character. Kittle is a truly gifted writer with a knack for crafting memorable, rich stories. This is one of my favorite books I have read in quite some time.

for more information click here

Hard to believe this happens

I liked the way the book started, and then looked back. The problem I had with the story was what happened in between. We went from one summer to present day. You never learn about the years of the main character Jordon growing up with his new family. I did appreciate that Sarah did not have a romance during the story. I think less should have been made about Sarah's romantic ideas and Nate her son's love life. This book is heart wrenching and makes you wonder about the families living around you. I pray no child suffers from his parents as this child Jordon did. This book is emotional and riveting.

for more information click here

Gargoyles in the Garden

Sarah, a widow and mother of Nate, 17 and Danny, 11 runs a thriving catering business. She is also a master chef and maker of wedding cakes and is held in high esteem in her suburban Oakhaven Ohio community.

Her neighbor, Courtney, an obstetrician has extended friendship to Sarah during her bereavement. Courtney's son Jordan, also 11 is friends with Danny and is Danny's classmate. Courtney tells Sarah that she thinks Jordan has Asperger's Syndrome, the spectrum partner to autism as he is sorely lacking in social skills.

But does he have Asperger's? Or is Jordan's behavior reflective of external circumstances rather than internal ones? A rainy day encounter with Jordan washes away all illusions that Sarah once had about Courtney. Shivering and disoriented, Jordan stands outside his house, although school has already started. Sarah offers to drive him until she realizes he is in no condition to attend. After a traumatic suicide attempt on Jordan's part, Sarah rushes him to the local hospital where medical personnel discover that the boy has been sexually abused. Ironically, it is the same hospital where Courtney works and where Sarah's husband died some two years earlier.

Layers of boils get lanced as more ugly secrets erupt, dancing out like a parade of skeletons in a closet. Not only has Jordan been abused, but so have other children. Courtney's mask of respectability has been torn off, revealing a cracked, twisted gargoyle in its place. Instead of being loving neighbors and parents, Courtney and Mark have been running a child pornography ring. Jordan, severely traumatized has developed some incredible coping skills.

As more layers of deceit get peeled away, Sarah re-evaluates herself; her neighbors and her judgment. Nate steps up to the plate for Jordan by encouraging Sarah to take him in as a foster child. Once the bandages and red tape are cut away, the family can heal and bond. The Ladens are clearly Laden with love and step up to the plate for Jordan. I especially loved Nate. One part that made me smile was how Nate and Jordan really got into venting their anger at Jordan's parents, who were truly monstrous.

This is an excellent book, a genuine page turner. The garden theme/persistent images is very effective. I highly recommend this book, especially for its realistic and sensitive treatment of a very painful topic. Katrina Kittle is certainly an author to watch out for. This book is outstanding.

for more information click here

Haunting and beautiful

Impossible to put this book down. As with "Traveling Light", Ms. Kittle takes on a difficult subject, but her writing is so beautiful and her characters so real, that the book is a real page-turner. I found myself caring so much about what happened to Jordan, but also to Sarah, Nate and Danny, that the book stayed with me long after I (reluctantly) turned the last page. I only hope Ms. Kittle is working on her next book and there are many more to come. She is a very gifted author.

reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

A young widow raising two boys, Sarah Laden is struggling to keep her family together. But when a shocking revelation rips apart the family of her closest friend, Sarah finds herself welcoming yet another troubled young boy into her already tumultuous life.

Jordan, a quiet, reclusive elementary school classmate of Sarah's son Danny, has survived a terrible ordeal. By agreeing to become Jordan's foster mother, Sarah will be forced to question the things she has long believed. And as the delicate threads that bind their family begin to unravel, all the Ladens will have to face difficult truths about themselves and one another?and discover the power of love necessary to forgive and to heal.

for more information click here

hot