Rating: 
Summary: An interesting, though disjointed read!
Review: The book was slow moving and somewhat confusing. I had to reread several pages for clarification. The pages overflowed with strange, but interesting characters and their connections were not always clear. Was there symbolism in the dream about a walking, talking, slit pig? That still has me baffled. The end was a shocker, I would never have guessed it. All in all, the book was ok. Ms. Haynes did a good job blending the different southern cultures. A good book of 400 pages usually takes me one week, this one took over a month. This was my first read along with Oprah, I was determined to complete it!
Rating:
Summary: This was long winded and dissappointing
Review: I was very dissappointed in oprah this time. Usually her picks are great.This one was long winded, and difficult to follow.At times I skipped several pages as nothing was happening.The book vclearly did not hold my interest.
Rating: 
Summary: A waste of my summer reading time!
Review: I found the characters in this story along with their names (Even) a problem. I had to go back and read pages to get a feeling for it! Oprah should have picked a better summer read.
Rating:
Summary: Not so hot for a summer book.
Review: I got 200 pages into this book and donated it to theL.A. County Library. Maybe someone else can finish it. I tried. Ireally did. But I have to say . . re: the Oprah books, I am still reeling from White Oleander. And living in the L.A. area, I am noticing, maybe for the first time, how we are swimming in Oleander bushes/trees (of all colors) and it is a beautiful sight right now.
Rating: 
Summary: Enter a World and Get Lost in it for Days
Review: Having read through most of the reviews that come before mine, I'm surprised at the number of people complaining about having to re-read sentences--as if this isn't a demand fiction should make. What I am amazed about is that this is Haynes's first work. Having grown up in Canada and only knowing the South through literature, I was very pleased with this work as it opened up an experience to me that I haven't really had before. The writing is lush and quirky and contrary to what other reviewers have said, the characters are interesting and, for the most part, well-developed. True, there are some mysteries about them, but isn't this a part of good characterization? While I cannot think of a specific Victorian novel to compare this work to, I can say it is an old-fashioned book. Like a Victorian novel (say, George Eliot's Middlemarch, for example) the novel is big and places demands. Middlemarch it is not, but it is a good book indeed that allows the reader to enter a world and a town. Also, like an old-fashioned novel, the characters are connected in ways one at first does not suspect. Unlike much modern fiction, Mother of Pearl suggests a world that is cohesive. People are related and connected and impact on each other. How much this reflects "reality", I don't know, but I personally find it satisfying in a novel. For a reader who is willing to do a bit of work or for one who favours a old-fashioned story--where there is indeed a story--this book should not in any way be a disappointment. I admire Melinda Haynes's talent.
Rating:
Summary: Don't waste your time or your money on this book.
Review: I will tell anyone that will listen not to buy this book! Further, I would suggest not to waste time reading this book when there are so many others that are more worthy of the time it takes to read a novel. The characters never fully "evolve" and, I found myself wondering the whole time how they would all eventually tie together. The book starts flat and ends the same way. In my opinion, the most amusing character (very small part) was the goat!
Rating: 
Summary: One of the best books I've ever read
Review: Mother of Pearl grabbed me from the first sentence. Melinda Haynes was of developing her characters along with her story that made the reading exciting from the start to the finish. Her descriptions of places, colors, feelings all made me feel a part of the story. I loved the characters and hope she writes a sequel using them again.
Rating:
Summary: If I hadn't been stuck on a plane I wouldn't have read it.
Review: The characters were unreal and the details were untrue. Where on earth did Two Sun live before she dropped into this book? About the time I started liking Joleb, he ends up in the quarters turning on a faucet. I grew up in Mississippi, and if there was a faucet it didn't work after a flood. Research was lacking throughout.
Rating:
Summary: Too many characters with trite names.
Review: Oh Oprah - where did you find this one? I am glad I borrowed this one from my public library - I would have lamented the waste of cash had I purchased it. Is Melinda a southerner? Did she live in the 50's? Where did she get such affected names for her characters -Valuable and Even? Toni Morrison (known for her "naming" of characters) she's not.
Rating:
Summary: Mother of Pearl--a great summer book
Review: I enjoyed reading this book. The author is a true wordsmith. She has a way with words that blows me away--descriptive, funny and compelling.I look forward to other books by this author.
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