The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint : A Novel

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Summary: The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint
Review: Edgar Mint is thoroughly lovable & this story is excellent.
The story revolves around a young boy growing up after being run over the head by the mailman, & then being shoved from a hospital full of adult friends to a boarding school/orphange where he is constantly tormented, to being adopted & "saved" by the Mormon cult & then finding the true meaning of his life.
The ending was a little rushed compared to the rest of the story, but overall I really enjoyed this book & laughed out loud at some of Edgars numerous adventures.
Edgar & in fact all of the characters in this book were believable & most were endearing. If you are hesitating reading this book, don't, it really is worth a read.

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Summary: #2 National Book for 2001
Review: This book was rated as the #2 best fiction book of 2001 (#1 was The Corrections)by both Newsweek and Entertainment Weekly. For me, however, it was #1. It is by FAR the best book I have read all year--in several years, for that matter. I believe that I will enjoy re-reading this book in years to come--I already have many "favorite" excerpts. Udall is hilarious!

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Summary: The Strength and Resilience of the Human Spirit Shines...
Review: ...in this awesome well-written, fast-paced story of the miracle boy, Edgar Mint, the half Indian child of a single alcoholic mother, who survives being run over by the mailman's jeep when he is seven years old....among many other catastrophes, not the least of which is surviving the state run Indian school from Hades! The characters in the story are so real you expect to come home and find them sitting in your living room on the couch where you last left the book....I laughed until I cried in several chapters and wept in others. This was one of the very best books I've read in many years....and Mr. Udall has John Irving beat by a country mile! If you only read one book this year, read this one.

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Summary: so damn good
Review: People are talking about John Irving and J. Franzen and Ken Kesey with this book. This book is better than any the three of these guys could write put together. I don't think I've read before a book this emotionally powerful and yet smart and funny and sharp at the same time. Don't miss this book. Buy it. Read it. Read it again. You will not be sorry.

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Summary: Wonderful
Review: I'll never forget the scene where a 10-year-old character named Brain (not Brian as I read for 10 or so pages) details to Edgar the horrible atrocities Apache indians perform on their enemies in warfare. Edgar, laying in bed in the youth's room, responds that he's only done *some* of those things. Brain's eyes than light up. After being privvy to Edgar's experience at this point in the book, the reader is left wondering if Edgar's admission is a terrible lie or a terrible truth?
Edgar's middle name begins with a P but we are never told what it is. I wondering if it is Pepper. Hope not.
Perhaps my favorite book read in the last 5 years.
At first I didn't understand why the character sometimes wrote in the third person for a paragraph or two throughout the book. Later, I thought this may be a reference to some indian hallucination---seeing yourself from outside. Read it and decide for yourself.

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Summary: Peaks at the beginning
Review: ....and relies a bit too much (and too late ) on circumstance. Just as Edgar lives his life backwards, the story wanes with time. But what a beginning, what original characters and what a unique tale this is.

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Summary: This book should be made a required reading at schools
Review: Wonderful book. With it, Mr. Udall reminds us of how fragile our life is, of how important for us the fortunate, who have parents and are loved, to treasure what we have.
Read it.

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Summary: A remarkable book that I hope more people will discover
Review: As I write my review of The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint on November 16th., its Amazon.com sales rank is 6,393. Should you enter a large bookstore you won't find it on the "hot picks" shelf or in the "best sellers" section either. The reasons that so many great books don't surface to the top are many and why so many gifted authors have day jobs as well. It is a shame that literary accomplishments like The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint by Brady Udall don't get the mass recognition they deserve because the marketing wasn't there or the promotional process was limited or the author had no previous best sellers. This is a wonderful and unforgettable book about a wonderful and unforgettable character. From the moment in the early pages when young Edgar is run over by the mailman, as event after event in Edgar's miraculous life unfolds and through to the closing chapters, you are in for a an inspiring reading experience that will at different times leave you utterly joyous, emotional, in disbelief, and everywhere in between. Udall's writing style is simple yet his words on paper are like colors on a canvas, he is a master storyteller. The only disappointing moment is in the closing pages when the last words are read because one wishes there had been another 400 pages more to enjoy.

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Summary: Why didn't this book win the National Book Award?
Review: This is a powerful debut novel and I can't understand for the life of me why Franzen's "The Corrections" is getting all the press and all the awards this year. Edgar Mint is one of the most memorable characters created in fiction in years, the kind that you keep thinking about long after the book is finished. It's full of lively, memorable characters and you can feel the love that the author has for his main character. It's hard to put down and well worth the read.

Rating:
Summary: don't bother with Franzen
Review: You want a thrilling story, great characters, writing that will make you want to dance? Don't read the boring, sickeningly overhyped The Corrections. Read this one. This is the one. This
is the book you will remember 10 years from now. This is the one
that kids will be reading in high school English 50 years from now. This is the one that will make you laugh out loud and break your heart. In the same sentence.