White Oleander : A Novel

Rating:
Summary: White Oleander Deservs 5 stars!
Review: White Oleander definetly deserves 5 stars. This is one of those books where you just can't put it down. Astrid is the daughter of Ingrid, a poet and writer. Ingrid can't the pain of having a broken heart. When her ex-lover, Barry Kolker, ends his and Ingrids relationship, Ingrid posions him with oleanders. Now i can't tell you anymore because i just started, but read it. I know i'll re read it over and over again.

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic book
Review: I believe "White Oleander" is the best book i have read in my young lifetime. Janet Fitch has a nack for making the most ordinary days in time seem extraordinarily beautiful. This book, poignant and mature, is a must-read.

Rating:
Summary: In love
Review: One phrase to describe the way you feel about this bookduring the first 300 pages "totally in love" the last 150 pages is down hill. It's not bad but it is as gripping as the beginning. But all around reccomend this book to anyone one desprate to fall in love with a book.

Rating:
Summary: not my kind of book
Review: I thought the writing was a bit amateur and the plot a little too soap opera dramatic.

Rating:
Summary: Lyrical and compelling - a beautiful novel
Review: White Oleander is not your "usual" coming-of-age story. Never once are you asked to pity Astrid, the protagonist of the story. The story is compelling and lyrical, but not sappy. It is beautifully written in language that could appeal to many different people from many different backgrounds - women and men alike. Astrid's story keeps you interested. Astrid's experiences keep you emotionally involved. Janet Fitch has done an amazing job putting flesh on these intriguing characters. I loved this book - couldn't put it down until I was done. Beautiful book! Thank you Janet Fitch!

Rating:
Summary: one of the greatest novels i've ever read
Review: having heard so many wonderful things about this novel for nearly three years, i decided to crack into white oleander myself last week and i am speechless now. yes, this one of those few books that everything you are apt to read in the reviews is completely and positively true. after you finish reading the book, you will find yourself holding a book of kleenex in one hand and a cell phone in the other. after you had a great cry, you will be making quite a few phone calls to your friends, family, and anyone else you think might share your enthusiasm. you might even go the extent of recommending a group discussion be held for janet fitch's masterpiece. if you are oprah winfrey, you will simply dial the author with tears in your voice and ask her how is it that she writes so well. whatever you choose to do after reading the book, please know that will never forget astrid and this book will serve it's place in your memory for as long as you live. i have to admit that i am excited about seeing this film now and will be one of the first people in line when it hits the local cinema although i can't imagine the movie will begin to touch this EXTRAORDINARY book. janet fitch has fabricated a beautiful, intoxicating story which will remind one at times of oliver twist, the bell jar, and perhaps some novels by the late v.c. andrews although this book is far better than the books or writers i could mention. fitch has a writing style that i can't qui te place my finger on and i can only hope she continues to crank out more books like this one in the future. when reading this book, you can't help but to feel for the characters and you will definately be rooting for astrid until the last page of the novel. astrid's vivid, emotional rainstorm will leave you breathless and almost in state of shock as if you had lived through her experiences vicariously. unlike most popular fiction, white oleander is far more literary and poetic in it's lyrical vision than perhaps anything you are apt to find on the new york times bestseller list. this novel deserves to be placed in the modern classics section of your local bookstore quite frankly and this is a book i could see one day being required reading in high school or perhaps college. if you love great literature in a fresh unique voice, then pick this book up immediately. if you like reading what everyone else is reading, then pick this book up immediately. either way, you simply cannot go wrong. happy reading.

Rating:
Summary: Thoroughly enjoyed....
Review: I was recommended this book after discussing various books of this genre with a friend. I went out the next week to get it, and the moment I was on the first page, I couldn't put it down. The descriptions in the story are so vivid, so real, that you can almost feel like you are there. The characters, are so utterly believable, that you don't feel like it is a story - you feel like it is happening - and I am sure it does, all over the world. I was blown away by this story, the quality of the storytelling, the sheer essence of the story itself and I reccomend it to all.

Rating:
Summary: Fabulous and educational
Review: You won't be able to put this book down! You will recommend it to everyone you know.One of the best contemporary novels ever. You will learn all about poverty, Los Angeles neighborhoods and geography, state foster care, and most memorably you will learn about Kandinsky. This is an unforgetable book with unforgettable charcters.

Rating:
Summary: I was really dissapointed
Review: After reading how so many people LOVED this book and since the movie is coming out in two weeks, I couldn't wait to read it. I too could not put this book down and read it in 5 days. But I was so sad the whole time while reading it and I would have ended this book entirely different. I would have made Claire the same character but by having Astrid in her life, she would have become stronger and the person she longed to be. When Claire commited suicide, I was furious at the author. Claire could have also triumphed in this novel. An interesting ending could have been Astrid choosing Claire over her mother and dealing with those ramifications. Life is not always this tragic. There are wonderful people in this world that mold us and help us and are better for it. I feel like Claire was one of these individuals and taking her life made no sense to me. I also didn't like the crude parts in this book. It would have been just as good without them. I was really offended by some of it.

Rating:
Summary: Only The Most Perfect Book I've Ever Read
Review: This is a completely beautiful story. It is at once sad, enfuriating, and optimistic. Astrid, the protaganist, faces so many difficulties and challenges that the reader can't help rooting for her. She is treated so badly by so many people. This book is extremely moving, I cried throughout the whole thing. Fitch is an extremely talented writer, not only does she create a captivating story, but she does so in some of the most beautiful language I've ever read. She also reveals many insights into our world in general. As sad as this book is, I think that its ultimate message is one of hope. And it is really very uplifting in an odd way.