White Oleander: A Novel

Rating:
Summary: page turning poetry
Review: I'll never forget Astrid and her mother. What a magnificent feat to bring these people to the page. I'm an author of young adult books, myself, and plan to order Janet Fitch's Y.A. novel, entitled KICKS. She obviously knows about the heart of a teenager. And also looking forward to reading her next book. And the next and the next.

Rating:
Summary: I'm exhausted.
Review: I FINALLY got to the end of this book last night and I'm totally exhausted. I found Fitch's writing style refreshing.....at first. Her refusal to use common discriptions ran me down. I started looking/waiting for phrases that were more recognizable to get a handle on Astrid's reality. It seemed as though ALL the characters were "deep" and well in control of who they believe themselves to be. I think the goal of Astrid was to get to that point as well. By the end of the book she (Astrid) was still in process. This was the ONLY realistic point of this long, drawn-out novel. I would not recommend this read to anyone NOT on caffeine.

Rating:
Summary: Painfully Bad
Review: The author tried too hard... This is a book that parades as dark and deep, but lacks substance... -an irritating combination.

Rating:
Summary: PRETTY GOOD
Review: THIS WAS A GOOD BOOK. IT WAS A LITTLE TOO POETIC AND A LITTLE TOO GRAPHIC WITH THE SEXUAL DETAILS.

Rating:
Summary: A real page turner!
Review: This was one of these books that I was pretty sure I wasn't going to like; I tend to be a bit snobbish about the Oprah picks. However, this book was a wonderful read with vivid characterizations that have really stayed with me. The heroine really grows as the story moves along, and the way her understanding of her completely self-absorbed mother develops and changes is very interesting and realistic. Her travels through the child foster care system are pretty harrowing, but what really engaged me was that even as a young girl she was a strong character, even when she was a "victim" she somehow wasn't - she was a real survivor. She just rang true to me. I loved this book.

Rating:
Summary: Overstated
Review: A few well turned phrases and images kept me reading this novel. The end, chapter 32, should have been the beginning.

Rating:
Summary: White Oleander
Review: PLEASE! What trash! This book only merits one star because the author at least got it published. This book was a total WASTE and I mean WASTE of time. Is this what American literature is coming to?

Rating:
Summary: Descriptive, interesting book
Review: This book was "deep" and detailed, but definitely entertaining and thought-provoking. The characters are wonderful--interesting people. The writing is incredibly descriptive and the story is quite different and very interesting. White Oleander is definitely worth reading. The topics: a mother/daughter relationship and foster care are well-developed and unique.

Rating:
Summary: thirst quenching!
Review: What a wonderful read! This book is full of scenes that pull you in as a reader. The power of description has finally been used to its fullest. When Fitch describes a rose, you know exaclty what it looks like, smells like, and feels like. You know how the main character is feeling and you begin to feel like the character in a sense. Once you pick this one up, you will not put it down untill the past page....

Rating:
Summary: C. from Japan
Review: I thought this book was Great! I couldn't put it down. My husband got it for me for a Christmas present. He saw it said Oprah's book club on it and thought it should be good. And he was right. I was hooked the moment I opened it. It has started to be passed around to all my friends. Thanks again, keep them coming.