The Wind Done Gone

Rating:
Summary: Alice Randall totally missed the point
Review: I couldn't get past the first few chapters but Ms.
Randall would have been better off creating her own characters rather than totally changing Margaret Mitchell's. While it is true that miscegenation did occur on some plantations it did not occur on all of them. But she mainly missed one of the main themes of Gone with the Wind and that is the theme of the strong southern women and weak southern men. Gerald O'Hara, like Ashley Wilkes would not cheat on their wives; they adored them and looked up to them.

Rating:
Summary: Hysterical Hypocrisy
Review: Well, fiddle de de and la de da. Here we go with yet another example of reverse discrimination thinly veiled as literature. What a waste of paper, ink, and the readers' time and money. Ms. Randall has a WAY overinflated view of herself and of the value of her work.

Rating:
Summary: The wind done gone
Review: I was reading the reviews on this book and was absolutely amazed at the range of feelings it illicited. The story was engaging to say the least. Who can not relate to dysfunctional families, families full of secrets and fears. Granted, most slaves were probably not murderers as mammy and garlic were, but this is a work of fiction not fact. Is the thought that slaves could be angry and cruel as well as whites surprising or scary. Cyndi was a woman searching for where she fit in her world, why is that so bland and boring? Cyndi had a difficult relationship with her mother, an affair with a married man and was denied the love of a father who never acknowledged her. In these times where many children are denied by their fathers, many people in marraiges have affairs and dysfunction is the norm rather than the exception, I'm surprised by the reviews which stated that the book was absolute garbage and had no merit. The book is not my favorite but it was enjoyable. The slaves as well as the white characters were multilayered. It debunks the myth that slaves were happy fools ready and waiting to serve the master. Thank You
Mrs Randall.

Rating:
Summary: Very disappointing!
Review: The concept of a novel about the black members of Scarlett O'Hara's family has enormous appeal. However, this novel fails miserably to even begin to satisfy that appetite. Ms. Randall sounds like she'd be an excellent and incredibly intelligent author, well suited to such a pursuit. Perhaps it's because I've just read CANE RIVER, an absolute delight of a compelling read, but I rather think not. I really have no idea why this novel fails so completely, but I'm glad I read it from the library and can joyously take it back and find something else good to read. I hope Alice Randall tries again; I'd give her another chance.

Rating:
Summary: The format damages the writer's intentions!
Review: I browsed through the bad reviews of this book believing that it was mainly cultural differences that caused such reactions, but now I don't think that was the case at all. I read this book without reading "Gone With the Wind" first. I didn't understand it but thought maybe because I hadn't read it's precursor that was the problem. It wasn't! The idea of the black side of the O'Hara family was a wonderful one. I think the writer had good intentions when she began formulating her plan for a book. However, the diary format does nothing for this novel. Not sure whether the writer was too lazy to do a full-blown story or if she really thought this was a good way to approach the novel. Cynara deserves her own story but not in the form of a diary! Diaries work well for some as in the case of Alice Walker's "The Color Purple." But Ms. Randall you are no Alice Walker, yet. I think you have the potential but this was not a story that could be rushed through as you have done.

Rating:
Summary: I just wish I could give this book zero stars!
Review: First, this book is no parody. It is a failed, wretched attempt at a "response" to the shortcomings of Gone With The Wind (GWTW), a 60-year-old novel that has already been quite thoroughly scourged for its now unacceptable portrayal of slaves and their lives in the South. It doesn't matter how many weeks this book spends on the NYT bestseller list, as a novel, The Wind Done Gone is almost unreadable. The language is florid throughout and intrusive on the reading experience, the overwhelming majority of the characters are, indeed, lifted wholesale from GWTW, but so poorly reproduced that they become cardboard. The storyline jumps from place to place and time to time like a jackrabbit on speed. We poor, unlucky readers have to spend so much time just trying to figure out where and when we are in the "storyline" that, after a while, reading this book just becomes an exercise in futility. It's like reading the diary of someone who's become unstuck in time because of Alzheimer's. And the sad thing is, the basic theme is a good one. What did the slaves at Tara and Twelve Oaks really think of the white characters in GWTW? The life of a slave in the South was a perilous and tortured thing, and I think the majority of people who read GWTW today probably take Ms. Mitchell's characterizations with a heaping helping of salt. However, GWTW doesn't need *this* book as a response to its failings. We have actual history to tell us the truth about life as a slave in the ante-bellum South. We have much better works, like "Jubilee" and "Celia" to instruct us. This could have been a much, much better story. This should have been a much, much better story. Instead, it is a squandered opportunity. It's a shame trees had to die for this book. But you, dear reader, can save your money. Go to the library, check this book out and read it. And if you really think it's a masterpiece, then buy it and read it. But if you decide it's swill, then you can spend your money on a better, more deserving, book.

Rating:
Summary: Thought Provoking
Review: Thought provoking insight into the "other side" of Gone with the Wind. The diary format made for a quick read, however, it limited the insight into characters other than the writer. If you liked Gone With the Wind (the book, not the movie!), you must read this.

Rating:
Summary: The wind done gone...and it took the thunder with it!
Review: I was terribly disappointed in this novel. It was extremely difficult to follow. Had some nice imagery. This was a project best left alone!!!

Rating:
Summary: Much ado about nothing
Review: For all the hoop-la surrounding this novella, I really did not get excited about it. It was rather disappointing. The author was a little inconsistent in time events. It was difficult to follow and the dialect fluctuated too much. Not at all what I expected.

Rating:
Summary: sad sad
Review: I was really hype about this book. but it really failed to even hold my attention for more than 5 chapters. maybe i'm missing something. but i don't think you should waste you're time. unless you are completly bored.