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Summary: A Great book by Billie Letts
Review: This book has such odd-ball characters that are so down home that I couldn't put the book down. I loved this story and passed it on to my friends who loved it as well.
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Summary: Trite
Review: A long and drawn out story with very underdeveloped characters. This was a lengthy tale of a diner and the people who ate there. I kept hoping and waiting it was going to get better. I expected so much more after Where the Heart Is. I am in awe of how well everyone reviewed it. I thought it lacked the savvy of the first novel and I thought the character names and histories sounded a little too familiar. Reading this book made me feel cheated.
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Summary: major disappointment
Review: I was expecting a better book than this having read "Where the heart is". The characters were so underdeveloped and then details were thrown in about characters that were barely mentioned during the course of the book. This book was a big let down. It was one of those books that you read half way through and just want to stop because it is so unfullfilling. I cannot believe the good ratings this book has received from most people.
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Summary: Honkin book.....Read on through!
Review: Loved it, loved it, and so will you if you enjoy characters that are far from perfect with hearts as big as a Wal-Mart sign. The Honk and Holler reminds me of life in a small town where everyone meets at the local diner on a daily basis. Yes, all you city folks, places like this really exist where the lives of its inhabitants are entwined in a two-step of ups and downs.Caney, a Viet Nam vet who lives his life in a wheel chair and runs the Honk and Holler just seems to pick up strays and not just the four-legged variety. Starting with the moment Vena Takes Horse shows up with a three-legged dog, his life is sent spinning into a direction that will never be the same again. He is flanked and hovered over by Molly O who has decided to make Christmas "Merry" one way or the other, trimming the napkin holders with fuzzy haired Barbie dolls doing the splits. There are so many rich and interesting characters in this book that I miss them even now. How wonderful to find a group of people flawed yet caring enough to accept each other for the people they are. Billie Letts brings it all together nicely at the end with a wrap up that will warm your heart. I have to be truthful, I figured out the ending, but it was the road I traveled to get to it that I enjoyed so much. Certainly worth a read, you won't be disappointed.
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Summary: As Nutritious As Chewing Gum
Review: The Honk and Holler is a tired truck stop, run by a tired owner, and patronized by tired regulars. The place is spiced up when vagabond Vena Takes Horse appears (followed shortly by another refugee, Bui Khanh), but the story needs more than a dash of seasoning. The flyleaf reads, "the characters who drift in and out of the Honk..." That aptly describes the characters: they drift in and out. It makes for a jumble of a story and leaves the reader constantly wondering how their circumstances tie together. Other than the restaurant, there seemed to be no common thread. It's hard to avoid comparison of the solid, passionate characters of WHERE THE HEART IS with the stick figures of THE HONK AND HOLLER. If only Ms. Letts hadn't been rushed to follow up the Oprah success; perhaps she would have been able to add meat to their bones.
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Summary: An All-Around Great Story
Review: Such an easy book to get interested in and read! A comical group of characters with a lot of substance and serious under-tones. Billie Letts is such a terrific author. The story of a true "diner", not the "chain restaraunts" of today. The American "melting pot" of employees and patrons. Just a cute story with some strong messages. Definitely read this book.
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Summary: Master Storyteller
Review: A great book by a master storyteller. Once again Billie Letts has written a novel full of quirky characters and a great story.
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Summary: An Accidental Collection of Wounded Souls who Heal Together
Review: Each character in this novel is wounded in some way. Caney, the proprietor of the diner in which the story takes place, is a Vietnam vet running the diner from his wheelchair. But, emotional wounds loom large as Billie Letts weaves the tale and each character is revealed to us. Caney is physically wounded but emotionally wounded too. MollyO is wounded by the death of her husband and loss of her runaway daughter, Brenda. Vena is a drifter working through the loss of her beloved sister, Helen. Bui has immigrated to the U.S. from Vietnam and looses his purity and innocence as he is shot by a racist never do well, Sam. "Life", a regular at the diner who is there for all three meals, has suffered the death of his wife Reba, with whom he enjoyed an active love life chronicled in a notebook written by his wife. Life spends most of his time mooning for MollyO. MollyO is obsessed with her daughter, Brenda, who has been drifting trying to become a country western music star. All of these souls converge on the Honk and Holler Diner Opening Soon. One mistake Caney made is have the neon sign out front made up while he was drinking and he added the two words "Opening Soon" in neon when he really just wanted a temporary wooden sign reading "Opening Soon". Now, the diner is open 12 years and the neon sign stills reads "Opening Soon". This mistake, immortalized in neon, is akin to the choices and mistakes the characters make in their lives. Somehow, all those things stay with them as the Honk and Holler Diner serves as stage, meeting room, psychiatrist's couch, haven, and healing ground. In a way, the Honk and Holler does open up soon. MollyO and Caney are in the diner themselves and the other characters enter the fabric of the diner and Billie Letts' magic begins. Just as entertaining as "Where the Heart Is" even though this book was not made into a movie.
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Summary: Colorful characters and great writing
Review: I read this book in only three days and when I finished it I found myself thinking about the characters quite a lot. They seemed so real to me that I can't help but wonder what they are up to now! I loved Billie Letts first book and her second one did not disappoint me. I look forward to more books by this author.
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Summary: Worth reading!
Review: Billie Letts is adept at creating an interesting assortment of characters, engaging dialogue and unusual but believable circumstances. My husband and I both read the book and enjoyed a lively discussion of what we thought happened to the characters after the book ended. We frequently came up with different thoughts on this subject, but Billie's characters do stay on your mind long after the book is finished. We both wanted Galilee to come take care of us. Although she is a minor character, we loved the literary imagery of her scenes. When Billie writes you feel that you know the characters - they are complex and fully developed.
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