Helpful Score: 2
The topic of this book was fascinating, but the execution of the idea was not. My entire book club did not like the way the book was written, even if we did not mind the subject itself.
In essence, the book is about a girl named Rachel, who we follow from childhood to the grave. She is afflicted with leprosy as a small child and sent to live on the island of Moloka'i, home to the Hawaiian leper colony. She forges relationships with other lepers on the island as well as the nuns who take care of the lepers. In addition, she marries and has a child while on the island.
Some problems with the book:
It took me FOREVER to get really interested in the book because the author interrupts the action in the story for long (and I mean pages long) explanations of things that the reader can either figure out for himself or should have been woven into the narrative.
The research of the author is obvious. It is almost like he typed "1896" into Google and and read what occurred during that year. So, the events of that year made their way into the story. They were not subtly placed into the story either. An astute reader could see that the writer was basically checking them off a list. "Must include these 5 things that started in 1896."
There were a few turns of coincidence that strained my credulity. (Not that as a reader you should never have your credulity strained, but these turns were ridiculous.) The most obnoxious example? A male leper who wants to be a woman. Lo and behold! At one point of the narrative, he grows breasts and has other biological changes. Never mind that there are no other lepers in the story who have this side effect. Everyone else has noses falling off and faces sagging in, arms contorting, and nerve damage--and the one character who wants to be a woman has the side effect he wants!
The side characters (read nearly all of the lepers) are completely interchangeable.
There are a few redeeming qualities to the book: the theme of wanting to travel/have freedom; the Hawaiian culture; some questions about God.
But overall, this book was one I definitely could have passed on.
In essence, the book is about a girl named Rachel, who we follow from childhood to the grave. She is afflicted with leprosy as a small child and sent to live on the island of Moloka'i, home to the Hawaiian leper colony. She forges relationships with other lepers on the island as well as the nuns who take care of the lepers. In addition, she marries and has a child while on the island.
Some problems with the book:
It took me FOREVER to get really interested in the book because the author interrupts the action in the story for long (and I mean pages long) explanations of things that the reader can either figure out for himself or should have been woven into the narrative.
The research of the author is obvious. It is almost like he typed "1896" into Google and and read what occurred during that year. So, the events of that year made their way into the story. They were not subtly placed into the story either. An astute reader could see that the writer was basically checking them off a list. "Must include these 5 things that started in 1896."
There were a few turns of coincidence that strained my credulity. (Not that as a reader you should never have your credulity strained, but these turns were ridiculous.) The most obnoxious example? A male leper who wants to be a woman. Lo and behold! At one point of the narrative, he grows breasts and has other biological changes. Never mind that there are no other lepers in the story who have this side effect. Everyone else has noses falling off and faces sagging in, arms contorting, and nerve damage--and the one character who wants to be a woman has the side effect he wants!
The side characters (read nearly all of the lepers) are completely interchangeable.
There are a few redeeming qualities to the book: the theme of wanting to travel/have freedom; the Hawaiian culture; some questions about God.
But overall, this book was one I definitely could have passed on.
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