White Oleander: A Novel

Rating:
Summary: Must Read, Excellent Book
Review: I am not an avid reader, and seldom could I finish a book to its entirety. My concentration is poor and it's just so hard to contain my complete attention. But this book changed me completely. Not only did I finished it in 2 1/2 days, Janet Fitch's beautiful way of writing kept me addicted to the story page after page. Upon reading the first sentence, I had no clue what the book was about, which deepens the intrigue even further.
If you intend to view the movie, I HIGHLY suggest reading the book first.
Loved this book!

Rating:
Summary: quite an accomplishment
Review: In some ways, it's your typical coming-of-age, rites of passage story: girl loses her mother and searches to be loved by others. But add in the plot and characters and it becomes a unique, atypical story indeed. Astrid always admired her mother, Ingrid, as a figure of beauty, and an almost ghostly idol, but certainly never as a maternal figure. The first of Astrid's many doubts about her mother comes when Ingrid kills her boyfriend and is sent to prison. Suddenly, Astrid is put in a foster home, the first of many. Each of Astrid's "mothers" impacts her, for better or for worse: there's Starr, the trashy Christian trailer-park mom with the older vet boyfriend; Olivia, the glamourous neighbour who awes Astrid; Claire, the seemingly perfect struggling actress with a crumbling marriage; and Amelia, the foreign woman who runs a group home and mistreats its occupants.
Astrid stumbles through about four years of her life without a permanent mother, while she understands more and more the motives of her real one. It's a tough journey to encounter with Astrid, if only because it's so real and so honest that one tends to turn their head from the more shocking aspects of the book. The point, however, is that you do romp right along with Astrid and her experiences; you're right there with her to discover herself (and much more). It's beautifully written and the characters and settings all jump to life (which can be a good or a bad thing, depending on the character and setting). I recommend it, if only to have the difficult experience that is White Oleander. The book holds special memories for me, because I know exactly where and when I read it: in daily segments, at a college library. It was every day for six weeks one summer for about an hour where every day I would look forward to escaping the world and enter Astrid's. Plus most of it is set in Southern California, my home.

Rating:
Summary: A must read
Review: If you've seen the movie, trust me it did not do justice to this book! Some of the most interesting plot lines were not included in the movie. The book is very interesting, I could not put it down. With a touch of fatal attraction and mommy dearest the character of the mother will make you want to find out how while in prison she continues to control the life of her teenage daughter. A very good book.

Rating:
Summary: Had Potential....
Review: I spent 3 months trying to finish the last 100 pages of this book. In the beginning, I was intrigued. I really got into it & was eagerly waiting for the story to thicken. Well, I'm still waiting. I got tired of the main character, Astrid's, attitude & actions. I tired of her mother descriptive letters & her thinking patterns. I thought the book was good in the beginning, but towards the end, it became so dull, I placed my copy on the shelf to collect dust.

Rating:
Summary: Great book
Review: From page one, line one, the writing of this book wraps around you like a warm blanket, even if the story that it is telling is frightening. The main character is the daughter of a poet. Her knowledge of excellent metaphors and similes shine through the entire novel, proving what her mother emphasized while growing up. That was until her mother murdered her boyfriend and Astrid was placed into foster care. She went in and out of so many disturbing places. There was one family she felt incredibly close to, but her mothers pure cruelness ended that in a very sad way. To eventually end up on her own, but becoming emotionally successful.

Rating:
Summary: WHITE OLEANDER
Review: White Oleander, is one of the most captivating novels I have had the pleasure to read. Astrid, a stranded, young girl is left in foster care when her haunting and poisonous mother is put in prison for murder. As Astrid travels from foster home to foster home without the one thing she has grown to know and be, her mother, she realizes how trapped she really was. Astrid learns what it is to be frree and who she really is. I truly think that this is one of the most heartwrenching novels I have ever read. I think this novel gives you a better idea of how lucky we all are to have what we have.

Rating:
Summary: very good book
Review: White Oleander by Janet Fitch was a captivating book. By tying together themes from mother daughter bonds to love affairs, it had something for everyone. All 469 pages are worth reading. Don't by intimidated by its length, it'll be over and have you begging for more in no time.
The book starts out with Ingrid, an accomplished poet and her daughter living happily together. Astrid, Ingrid's daughter is a budding artist following in the shadows of her artist father who left her and her mother when she was young. The plot starts when Ingrid, who is accused of killing her boyfriend Barry, is sent to jail leaving her 12 yr. old daughter Astrid in the hands of social workers and foster homes. Astrid, throughout the course of six years, is passed through a series of foster homes. Each foster home brings with it a foster mother, who in some way, whether it physical, emotional or even spiritual leaves a mark in Astrid's life. Bullet shots to suicides, Astrid learns to adjust to her life and live with whatever comes her way. While being tossed around from foster homes, Astrid also sends and receives letters to and from her mother. Along with an occasional visit, the letters are basically the only connection Astrid has with her mother. Even through letters her mother tries to control her life. By the end of the book Astrid realizes she only wants to be independent from her mother. Astrid forms a strong bond with one of her foster mothers and thinks she's found her true home. But after ending in tragedy, Astrid is devastated and gives up hope. She returns to the group foster home where she forms a relationship with a fellow foster care child and artist Paul Trout. After She is adopted by a Latin woman, where she is forced to rummage through trash and sell all her expensive clothing bought by her recent foster mother, she still writes Paul letters and maintains a relationship of sorts with him. With Rena, the Latin foster mother, and two other girls whom she has adopted, Astrid is forced to work at flea markets and sell all her cherished items. Astrid let's go of all her hopes at this point, and learns to live with who and how she is.
Astrid is faced with starvation, bullet holes, dog attacks, cruel foster mothers, drugs and horrid social workers throughout the book. It was a very interesting book and kept me reading till' the last page. Its constant flow of action and drama was its alluring characteristic. Astrid's character was well detailed and developed. The plot was realistic and fascinating; it made you feel sorry in a sense for foster children. It makes you wonder if children really go through as much as Astrid does.
I recommend reading the book, even though the endings are different, before viewing the movie. The book is much more interesting and detailed and lets you visualize things your way instead of the director's way. Also, the movie depicts Ingrid as an artist instead of a poet, which sort of takes away from Astrid's artwork in my opinion. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a good dramatic story.

Rating:
Summary: A Haunting Tale of Finding Yourself
Review: This book is not for everyone... My best friend told me not to read it because it was "boring" and "slow" so i didnt pick it up until i saw it on the 60% rack. I must say that was one of the best decisions i have ever made... the writing may bore people who like a more strait foreward approch but, i found it wonderful and so easy to get into. The words of the author circle you like air and leave chills down your spine LITERALLY! I read the entire book outside on my porch during the course of a week and could not put it down (being outside really enhances the book)! Im going to read the book over this summer so i can feel the journey of astrid again.. this book is not one to miss!!!

Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully sad!!!!
Review: This was one of the most beautifully written books I have ever read. I felt like it pulled me in and then spit me out at the end, beaten and bruised; yet better for having read it.

Rating:
Summary: heartbreaking and inspiring
Review: really enjoyed this book - the pace, story, detail level and feelings were perfect. i followed the main character on her journey and enjoyed it.