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Loading... The Unfinished Work of Elizabeth D. (original 2012; edition 2012)by Nichole Bernier
Work InformationThe Unfinished Work of Elizabeth D. by Nichole Bernier (2012)
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. I won this book in a blog tour shortly before it's publication. I heard a lot about it on book podcasts and was interested in reading it but just never picked it up. I got sick last week (which I rarely do) and picked this book up to read because it felt like comfort food and it really was. It was such a beautiful book. I loved the way the story of Elizabeth in the journals is woven in with Kate and her story. It was a very interesting way to tell a story. It's a great story, well told, with interesting characters, deep feelings and thoughts on friendship, marriage and a healthy dose of self-examination. I was pulled in right away by the premise. I've always been curious about what people who are not famous, or public figures, do with their personal writing. I wonder how many make provisions for their words, thoughts, and perhaps secrets? Lots of food for thought on that alone. Nicole does a great job delving into her main character, Kate's dismay, shock and anger when given the awesome responsibility of how or if to disseminate her friend's journals. From my perspective: I'm writing a novel that also involves questioning how well we really know each other, and aspects of ourselves we hide or suppress, especially through the lens of marriage. Hence, I was very interested in how she handled the relationship complexities once Kate realized how little she knew her friend. This brings about insecurities in her own relationship, and I have to say I agree with Nicole's handling of the outcomes. It is has a satisfying resolution. A minor hiccup early on: Elizabeth's first journal entries are way too self-aware for a preteen/teen, and I found that distracting but once past that the book is real gem. Nicole writes beautifully with lovely descriptions of settings and scenes "...sun-bleached Valentine paper hearts drained to gray." An effortlessness that is really a testament to skill not simple writing. I wanted to love this book, but I found it frustrating. I kept feeling like it was so close to being a great book, but never got there. The relationships were really interesting, but didn't feel quite fleshed out enough to work; the mysteries surrounding the last months of Elizabeth's life were close to being page-turners, but never quite got there... And I hated the ending. Hated. So...an ok book, an easy read, but i think it could have been so much more. no reviews | add a review
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HTML:“A compelling mystery and a wise meditation on friendship, marriage, and motherhood.”—J. Courtney Sullivan, New York Times bestselling author of Maine Summer vacation on Great Rock Island was supposed to be a restorative time for Kate, who’d lost her close friend Elizabeth in a sudden accident. But when she inherits a trunk of Elizabeth's journals, they reveal a woman far different than the cheerful wife and mother Kate thought she knew. The complicated portrait of Elizabeth—her troubled upbringing, and her route to marriage and motherhood—makes Kate question not just their friendship, but her own deepest beliefs about loyalty and honesty at a period of uncertainty in her own marriage. When an unfamiliar man’s name appears in the pages, Kate realizes the extent of what she didn’t know about her friend, including where she was really going on the day she died. The more Kate reads, the more she learns the complicated truth of who Elizabeth really was, and rethinks her own choices as a wife, mother, and professional, and the legacy she herself would want to leave behind. Now with Extra Libris material, including a reader’s guide and bonus content Praise for The Unfinished Work of Elizabeth D. “An absorbing, bittersweet novel that examines the vast gray area between protecting and deceiving the ones we love.”—Vanessa Diffenbaugh, New York Times bestselling author of The Language of Flowers “Bernier’s excellent storytelling skills will keep you pondering long after the final page.”—Washington Post “Bernier masterfully eases open the doors that guard our deepest fears and, against a backdrop of a New England beach vacation, sweeps in fresh air and hope.”—Parade. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.6Literature English (North America) American fiction 21st CenturyLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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It was interesting to see inside what people hide from others but all in all it just made be sad to see four people trapped by circumstance into lives they didn't much like. ( )