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Summary: Baldacci proves to be versatile!
Review: I'm a fan of his thrillers and was somewhat reluctant, but intrigued by this latest book. Before long I was transported to the awesome mountains of Virginia, just like Lou and Oz. I felt their joy, their fears, their pain. It was a breath of fresh air -- figuratively and literally. I'm grateful to the author for taking this leap and writing this story, a most inspired and inspiring read.
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Summary: Breaking out of the mold
Review: Completely different from the usual courtroom dramas, this new Baldacci is refreshing and unique. I grew to love Lou and Oz and sympathize with the difficult situation they found themselves in after a tragic accident. This book is filled with strong characters and even stronger roots - to the past and to family. This book kept me in my chair turning page after page, shocked and sometimes crying over the tragedies and desperation felt in the story but nonetheless hoping for the best and rejoicing in the love the characters felt for each other and the length to which they were willing to go to help a friend.Have to admit I was nervous to read something based on a true story, but Baldacci pulled this one off in style.
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Summary: Long Time Ago in The Virginia Hills. Wish You Well
Review: I just finished David Baldacci's WISH YOU WELL. It was not up to some of his writing. It was a bit stilted and the children (Lou and Oz) who were the main characters in this book were almost too good to be true. Their great grandmother, Louisa, was quite a strong person who took them in with their mother although the farm she worked hardly made enough for her and another of her strays, a young black man who turned out to be a 'jack of all trades', and a good one. The school was true for that time and was very well described right down to the boys and girls outhouses. The lawyer was unbelievable; he to, was too good to be true. The young redheaded boy was another one of the strong characters in the book and was religious beyond his years. But I will remember the books characters with fondness. They were close enough to the Virginian hill people I knew to rate it as a good book. I'll give it three stars.
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Summary: Are You Sure David Baldacci Wrote This?
Review: The one thing that kept running through my mind over and over as this book unfolded was this: Are you sure this book was written by David Baldacci? I mean, this is the same author who wrote such highly charged political thrillers as ABSOLUTE POWER and THE SIMPLE TRUTH, and thrilling suspense novels like THE WINNER. To say the least, this book is almost a complete 180 degree turn away from that genre. Taking place mostly in the Appalachian mountains of Virginia, the book follows the lives of two young children, the precocious, hard-headed, 12 year old Lou (Louisa) and her younger, much more timid brother Oz (Oscar). After a tragic car accident kills their father and leaves their mother almost comatose, they go to live with their Great-Grandmother, Louisa Mae, on her mountain farm in Appalachia. While the book generally follows the lives of the two children as they struggle to adjust to the primitive conditions and hard work of life on a farm, the character of Louisa Mae remains the center of the story. Close to 90 years of age, she works to take care of the two young children suddenly thrust into her life while at the same time working non-stop on the mountain farm that has been her home for her entire life. We also meet a host of other characters, from the black farmhand who works constantly on the farm and is a lot smarter than anyone gives him credit for, to the irrepressible "Diamond", an orphaned boy without a care in the world who becomes best friend to Lou and Oz, to the small-town lawyer with a poet's soul who works hard to defend Louisa Mae's farm from the Mining Corporation that wants to take over and destroy it, and who also acts as a father figure to Lou and Oz. Of course some of the usual Baldacci elements are there: Suspense, tragedy, humor, and the struggle of the weak against the powerful, which climaxes in a dramatic courtroom scene. But those elements are secondary to the rich character development that takes place throughout the book. The book's only possible flaw is the somewhat predictable ending. The book is also followed by an Afterword by the author, in which he laments the continued downward spiral of our society in general, and the disintegration of the family in particular. In these days of increased violence in our homes and schools, this seems particularly poignant. All in all, this book was thoroughly enjoyable, and I highly recommend it. NOTE: I listened to the unabridged Book-on-Tape version, read by Norma Lana. Normally, listening to a book on tape is not as good as reading it for yourself, but in this case, with Ms. Lana's sweet southern lilt (I don't know if it's real or not) and mastery of dialects, I think the book comes to life in a way it never could. If you can find the Book on tape version, I think you will find it very enjoyable.
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Summary: This book is gonna be my favorite books ever~!
Review: "Wish you Well" is one of the best books I have ever read. I could not stop reading this book. As I read more and more, it was hard for me to stop reading and do other things to do. I learned so many valuable lessons of nature, friendship among the Cardinals and Cotton, and love. My favorite character in the book is Cotton, who helps Lou's family like his own blood. One of the reasons that I especially like this book is the idea of a WISHING WELL. It was neat and flash. 'Wish You Well' reminds me the book, 'To Kill a Mockingbird' which I also enjoyed reading of it. I really love Dave Baldacci's writing skills. He has the power to grasp people's attention. If you decide to read 'Wish You Well,' you won't regret your decison. I promise you that! I truly hope you enjoy this wonderful book.
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Summary: No Doubt! :-)
Review: "Wish you Well is one of the best books I have ever read. I could not stop reading this book. As I read more and more, it was hard for me to stop reading and do other things to do. I learned so many valuable lessons of nature, friendship among the Cardinals and Cotton, and love. My favorite character in the book is Cotton, who helps Lou's family like his own blood. One of the reasons that I especially like this book is the idea of a WISHING WELL. It was neat and flash. "Wish You Well" reminds me the book, "To Kill a Mockingbird" which I also enjoyed reading of it. I really love Dave Baldacci's writing skills. He has the power to grasp people's attention. If you decide to read "Wish You Well," you won't regret your decison. I promise you that! I truly hope you enjoy this wonderful book.
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Summary: Wishing David Baldacci Well
Review: As an avid thriller reader, I didn't wanted to embark on the experimentation of Mr. Baldacci's newest novel. Although being a loyal fan and having all of his previous work I thought I'd give his new novel a try. And I must say that I am thoroughly impressed. This novel has been a satisfying shock to my thriller reading system,but I must say I looking forward to his next thriller.
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Summary: This is a book worth reading.
Review: Growing up in this region, I was pleased that the book treated the area and the people with the dignity that they deserved. I saw my ancestors, friends and family in every character. As much as I love the region where I was raised, I also acknowledge that, as with any community, there is a mix of good honest people as well as mean and spiteful people. This book tells a story of a family with a deep reverence for the earth and the land but most of all each other - this is what the book is all about! The characters in the story are part of the land - they do not take it for granted, nor does it always make their life easy. Regardless, every day brings some reward. Some who reviewed this book were disturbed because Mr. Bladacci did not create a happy ending for many of the characters in the book or made us always wonder what happened to them. I applaud this style. From my experience, many of the people in this area were impoverished and more likely than not, when the one or two neighbors that dared to care were suddenly gone you may never know what became of them. I also saw first hand what 'money' the coal mines brought as well as the lasting legacy of illness and poverty once the land had 'served it's purpose'. It's a sad desperation that promise of money and a better life. I loved the book and I recommend it highly to everyone. Perhaps if you cannot immerse yourself in something unfamiliar, the book will not have the same meaning. If you understand why I cried when I saw the movie "A Trip to Bountiful" then you will understand the the story that Mr. Baldacci tells - it's about a different time, a different people and a different respect for life.
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Summary: Wonderful read
Review: As a reader who also grew up in the region of Virginia David Baldacci writes about in this novel, we naturally loved the book. The characters were real and the story was true to fact.We loved all the characters and the setting was perfect. It is a fact one can learn to milk a cow in one setting,after all its not a hard chore its all in how you squeeze. Everyone should read this book, its a pleasure.
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Summary: A POOR MAN'S "MOCKINGBIRD"
Review: This would have been a fine book if Baldacci had not chosen to take Harper Lee head on. Lee apparently had only one book in her, but it was one of the greatest in the English language. The prolific Mr. Baldacci gets a little too closely in her face for comfort--a Depression-era story set in the South with a young female protagonist, a nobler-than-thou lawyer, a loyal sibling, a colorful sidekick, an evil redneck. . .he's just asking for the comparison, and his work, though well written and worth a read, just doesn't stack up.
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