Helpful Score: 7
I just finished reading this book this week. Some books are forgotten as quickly as the cover is closed, but this is one of the memorable ones. Set in 1963 in Mississippi, this book stars a spunky nine year old girl named Starla. Love her! She is fearless, bright, and perceptive. During her adventure of running way to find her Mama, whom she believes is a famous singer in Nashville, we see the culture that the Civil Rights movement was striving to change through her eyes. Starla is a character that will stay with me a long while.
Helpful Score: 7
Absolutely one of the most enjoyable novels i've read. It takes place in the south in the 60's during the racial riots when there is much danger with whites and blacks befriending each other. The srory is about Starla a 9 year old fiesty child with a huge heart and Eula a woman with an even bigger heart so used to living with only the crumbs of life. This story is mesmerizing. It took me through places I didn't want to go and was uncomfortable reading about, it took me places that made my heart swell with happiness, it took me places I sobbed and places I laughed and it brought me to an ending that left me wishing I didn't have to leave. The book is full of characters i've come to love and hope someday there will be a follow up so I'm able to catch up with them again.
Helpful Score: 5
I very much enjoyed this book -- a real southern charmer. It was set in the 1960s during the beginning of the Civil Rights movement. The characters were unforgettable. I loved Starla the feisty 9 year old girl who was smart, perceptive, and full of vim and vinegar. Even at such a young age she knew what was wrong with her part of the world and set about to make it better. Eula the black lady who befriended Starla was sweet and kind and in the end she helped Starla's dad become a better Dad. Porter, Starla's father was a good man. And even the characters I didn't like were still described perfectly and added a lot of depth to the book. I felt like I was there and knew each and every one of the characters personally.
The author really captures what family and friendship really means and brings us together by portraying what we love and hate the most during that time period in the South. I definitely recommend this book.
The author really captures what family and friendship really means and brings us together by portraying what we love and hate the most during that time period in the South. I definitely recommend this book.
Helpful Score: 2
This book made me cry, made me mad, gave me wisdom, taught me a few lessons through the circumstances of the fantastic characters...What a WONDERFUL book this was. This is the kind of book I would re-read in a few years just to remember the wisdom shared from the characters and the great story that it is. Total 5 star read...WOW!
