True To Form

Rating:
Summary: HEARTWARMING AND FUNNY
Review: Elizabeth Berg first introduced us to Katie Nash in her book "Durable Goods" and now in this book we meet up again with Katie who is now 13 yrs. old and her father has married Ginger whom Katie really likes. Ginger is a quieting influence in the family.........Since moving to Missouri because her father was transferred from a military base in Texas, Katie feels lonely once again, missing her best friend, Cherylanne. Katie did go back to Texas to visit once and the two friends keep in touch by letters.....Katie meets a new best friend named Cynthia, but Katie betrays her when she wants to fit in with the "in-crowd" at a new private school she now attends......Katie feels very badly about this and wants more than anything to have Cynthia forgive her.....Katie has learned not to take people she loves for granted because they could be taken from her as her sister was (she ran away to another state) or her mother was (by dying)...Through trial and error, Katie learns to forgive people, even herself........This story is about adolescence in a more innocent time during the 1960's.......I enjoyed it.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful!
Review: I have never read the two previous books on Katie Nash and I must say "True to Form" is definitely a keeper. Katie, now a thirteen year old teenager lived with her strict and serious dad and her stepmother. "True to Form" deals with Katie's daily lives, friends, relationships and how all these elements contributed to her becoming an adult. Katie was very expressive, and it was interesting to learn about her thoughts and ideas. She was not very happy when her dad volunteered her for a babysitting job of three young boys and also taking care of an elderly woman who lived nearby. In addition, Katie also missed her friend in Texas where she lived for some time before moving to Missouri.

I really enjoy this book because it reminds me a great deal of the times when I was growing up. The things that I enjoyed, the things that made me mad."True to Form" is beautifully written, eloquent and very mesmerizing. Berg, has this talent of making her readers feel like they really know the characters intimately. I am now eager to read her previous books on Katie. I highly recommend this book as it is very easy to read and not too long. It took me a day and a half to finish it.

Rating:
Summary: Exquisite!
Review: I've never had one favorite author until now. I've read all of Elizabeth Berg's fiction and she has never disappointed. This one, as well as Never Change, are two of the most memorable books I've ever read. Ms. Berg has the extraordinary ability to capture the true essence of her characters. She could easily be writing about my life right down to the dead-on dialogue. I am constantly astounded by how brilliantly she is able to accurately describe feelings that I never could put into words. This author is a true observer of the human experience right down to the most minute detail and it shows in her work.

I've shared this book with friends who all agree that it is outstanding. As a librarian, I've recommended it to my patrons, also. Katie Nash, the main character in this novel, is, by far, a character whom I will remember for years to come. I am an avid reader,therefore, I think that says a lot. Oftentimes, when one reads a lot, the characters, plots, and even titles begin to run together in the memory banks, but then one comes along that stands alone. True to Form is that novel for me.

I'm looking forward to more of Ms. Berg's work. I found out recently that she and I share the same birthday and I think that has to have something to do with why I relate so well to her books.

Rating:
Summary: True to Form is Ture to Berg-Excellent!
Review: In True to Form, we are delightfully reunited with little Katie Nash, the main character from two of Berg's other outstanding novels, Durable Goods & Joy School. Berg does not disappoint as she brings us back into Katie's life, reminding us of what it's like to be a kid again, and the thoughts and feelings that accompany the coming of age process. Through Katie, Berg shows us not only how much insight she has, but also how truly talented her gift is. Her writing is simple, yet powerful and moving. Her words will take you back to the days when life consisted of school, friends, and parents.

In True to Form, Katie Nash is a 13 year-old girl, trying to figure out who she really is and what she stands for.
Dealing with the death of her mother several years prior, Katie has been raised by a very stern father, who
has a difficult time showing emotion. Fortunately, he is now married to Ginger, who is a mother figure &friend to Katie. When Katie's dad announces that she has two jobs for the summer, babysitting the Wexler kids and helping to care for elderly Mrs.Randolph, Katie is less than thrilled. Little does she know how meaningful these experiences will prove to be. Thrown into the mix, Katie discovers what it is that makes a true friend, and the price of popularity.

In one of Berg's most powerful passages, Katie is describing her drawer, where she keeps things that are special to her. "...I have red lipstick that was my mother's, with the mark of her mouth on it. I have a rhinestone button I found outside, feathers from birds, pennies that mean good luck. I have a box of crayons that I never intend to use, I just like to look at them all perfect and read the names of the colors out loud, and I like to smell them deep, like I smell the test papers
that have just come off the mimeograph machine. I have some torn-out hairdos that I would like to get, if my hair will ever grow really long instead of acting paralyzed. Sometimes I think, What if I died and someone looked into my drawer? I wonder what they would understand about me. Probably not so much-for one thing
they would get the crayons wrong. I think, actually, that none of us understands anyone else very well, because we're all too shy to show what matters most. If you ask me, it's a major design flaw. We ought to be able to say, Here, look what I am."-So open up True to Form & learn who Katie Nash is. You might even discover a little bit more about yourself. I know I did.

Rating:
Summary: Written Truly and Surely
Review: Katie Nash, the effortlessly charming heroine of "Durable Goods" and "Joy School," is back in this novel about her thirteenth summer. And she's just as good as before!

As I read this book, I realized once again why I delight in Elizabeth Berg's writing and the character of Katie. I love how, in Berg's hands, the writing never feels forced and Katie's narration just seamlessly carries the novel. I love how Katie is so "truly" created, so warmly human, that you just want to grasp the pages of the book and pull her out for a chat. I love how Katie interacts with the world; doing the most ordinary things and recounting her adventures with such joy for life and a rare intelligence. Yet most of all, I love how Berg makes Katie someone who can pull all the truth in the world out of a simple act like eating a butterscotch-dipped ice cream cone.

For anyone who is mourning the fact that they will never find another heroine as achingly excellent as L.M. Montegomery's Anne or Betty Smith's Francie, read "True to Form." I think you'll find that Katie Nash can easily take her place with Anne and Francie.