Christmas, Present

Rating:
Summary: TOUCHING, SAD, HOPEFUL HOLIDAY TALE........
Review: This touching holiday story begins Elliot Banner's struggle with what to get his beloved wife Laura for their anniversary (which one is it? Is it the important one?), and finally settles on tickets to Cirque du Soleil and dinner at their favorite restaurant. At the conclusion of what would have otherwise been a perfect evening, tragedy begins to unfold in the form of an intense headache experienced by Laura after their car becomes disabled. Laura seemingly irrationally insists upon going to the hospital, where after a series of diagnostic tests, the news is given to them that Laura is dying, and that what is happening within her brain is inoperable. The doctor says that she has perhaps 8-12 hours to live....and so the family begins to gather. Although the ending is sad, the conclusion inescapable....Laura leaves her family with what the reader will see as her final and most precious gift to them...hope.

Enjoyable and a tear-jerker, readers should enjoy this tale of hope and a "life will go on" message, delivered during the holiday season.



DYB

Rating:
Summary: Sad! Sad! Sad!
Review: This was a terrible depressing book. If you like sad stories, this is the one for you. I read half of it; skimmed the other half and threw it away. I'm sorry I spent the money on it.

Rating:
Summary: A gift for the present
Review: This year Jacquelyn Mitchard brings a special combination of seasonal tradition and fiction to her new novel, Christmas, Present. Ms. Mitchard brings to life the heartbreak and sadness of losing a family member during the holidays. The story is lyrical and moving, touching on one of the most basic of emotions-loss. A slim volume that will be read in mere hours, it begs to reader to ask, "What would I do? As the parent, spouse, a daughter, a sibling, mother?" Throughout the book, bits and pieces of the many friends and family who populate our individual worlds peak through. Everyone will go through this loss; in this there is no choice. How we choose to deal with it and the future is our choice. It is a gift this holiday to choose to read this book.

Rating:
Summary: Wisdom for any time of year
Review: What I love about this short novel is its truth. This is life the way it really is. The series of characters surrounding the dying woman are skillfully and unsentimentally drawn. Kids wonder whether they will have enough money to keep the dog, one daughter scolds her mother for dying, the husband criticizes his mother-in-law's unskilled mothering. This is anything but syrupy sweet. The book teaches us to be accepting and non-jugemental of all these well-meaning if flawed humans. And it teaches us to be grateful for the moments we have in this life. It reminds me of Thornton Wilder's "Our Town" or Jane Kenyon's "Otherwise." It will stay with you for a long time.

Rating:
Summary: Real priorities
Review: While reading this book, I kept thinking...what if I were Laura? The relationships in this book were deep, touching and very real. This is for anyone who has been a wife, a mother, a daughter....it will make you think about all we take for granted. A good quick read, I laughed and cried. Wonderful!