The Tiger's Child by Torey Hayden, reviewed by Heather19
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1Heather19
... Go easy on me, please, I don't usually put my reviews up for criticism. But this time I can't seem to step away from the book enough to write a concise review. I know it's long, and I know it's babbly. I'm more looking for, does it make sense? Are there sentences that are confusing?
........................
*spoiler warnings!*
I finished this book about a week ago. While I was reading it, I posted what amounted to two pages worth of ranting/babbling in my blog about it. So for the past week I’ve been trying to condense all my thoughts into a coherent review that isn’t *too* babbly. Consider yourself warned.
This book is the true-story sequel to One Child. That book ended on a hopeful note; Feeling that Torey really made a huge difference in this girl’s life, and hopefully after leaving Torey’s class she would be able to consistently progress and lead a better life. Which is why it’s hard not to wonder what actually happened to Sheila after the end of that book. That’s the question that The Tiger’s Child answers… And honestly, there were times while reading this book that I wish I had never started it, where I wished I didn’t know the answer to that question.
This book… I guess it shows that Torey isn’t the savior that the first book makes her out to be. I’m not putting the blame on Torey, because it was a huge blow to her, as well, to learn that she may not have helped Sheila or affected her life as much as she had thought. But for me, reading it… It was a letdown, honestly. Learning that this life-changing, amazing woman really may not have helped this poor girl much at all… Maybe, possibly, even made things worse. See, Sheila was used to the deprived, neglected life. It was all she’d ever known. Back then, she didn’t *know* that her life was so horrible, because it was all she knew.
In this book, Sheila is very confrontational towards Torey, basically accusing her of deliberately giving her a better life and then taking it away. And it was hard to read that, hard to realize that maybe that was exactly how 6-year-old Sheila saw it. For the first time in her life she had luxuries like attention, cleanliness, toys, LOVE… And she got used to it. She learned that there *was* something better out there for her. And then it was taken away. Torey left, moved on at the end of the school year, and instead of Sheila’s life continuing to improve, it fell back to the way it was. Except this time Sheila knew what it was to have those things, and knew just how horrible her life really was.
That’s mostly what this book is about, I guess… Sheila and Torey reconnecting, bringing up all those old memories and problems, and figuring out how things actually affected Sheila and how Sheila’s life had changed since Torey left. One thing that really surprised me, really upset me, in the beginning was to learn how little contact Torey had after she left Sheila back then. And how long it took her to track Sheila down; Sheila was thirteen years old when they finally reconnected. And to my surprise and Torey’s disappointment, Sheila remembered shockingly little about her time with Torey. It had been so intense, so life-changing for Torey (and supposedly for Sheila as well), that it was really shocking to find out that Sheila remembered next to nothing about that time.
I was completely and utterly shocked to find out that the reason Sheila was so angry with Torey so often in this book was because she had memories of Torey abandoning her… on the highway. I guess because of all the trauma of her childhood, Sheila’s memories had fused together or something, and she honestly remembered Torey being the one who abandoned her on the highway so long ago, when it was really her mother. That really speaks volumes about just how hard it was for her when Torey left.
I'm very, VERY glad to know that Sheila did turn out okay, despite all the shit that happened to her. To know that she's doing well and ended up working at McDonalds and becoming fairly stable. But all in all, this book was... sobering. All of Torey Hayden’s books are emotional and intense, but this one was a lot more… depressingly real. I don’t really know how else to say it.
........................
*spoiler warnings!*
I finished this book about a week ago. While I was reading it, I posted what amounted to two pages worth of ranting/babbling in my blog about it. So for the past week I’ve been trying to condense all my thoughts into a coherent review that isn’t *too* babbly. Consider yourself warned.
This book is the true-story sequel to One Child. That book ended on a hopeful note; Feeling that Torey really made a huge difference in this girl’s life, and hopefully after leaving Torey’s class she would be able to consistently progress and lead a better life. Which is why it’s hard not to wonder what actually happened to Sheila after the end of that book. That’s the question that The Tiger’s Child answers… And honestly, there were times while reading this book that I wish I had never started it, where I wished I didn’t know the answer to that question.
This book… I guess it shows that Torey isn’t the savior that the first book makes her out to be. I’m not putting the blame on Torey, because it was a huge blow to her, as well, to learn that she may not have helped Sheila or affected her life as much as she had thought. But for me, reading it… It was a letdown, honestly. Learning that this life-changing, amazing woman really may not have helped this poor girl much at all… Maybe, possibly, even made things worse. See, Sheila was used to the deprived, neglected life. It was all she’d ever known. Back then, she didn’t *know* that her life was so horrible, because it was all she knew.
In this book, Sheila is very confrontational towards Torey, basically accusing her of deliberately giving her a better life and then taking it away. And it was hard to read that, hard to realize that maybe that was exactly how 6-year-old Sheila saw it. For the first time in her life she had luxuries like attention, cleanliness, toys, LOVE… And she got used to it. She learned that there *was* something better out there for her. And then it was taken away. Torey left, moved on at the end of the school year, and instead of Sheila’s life continuing to improve, it fell back to the way it was. Except this time Sheila knew what it was to have those things, and knew just how horrible her life really was.
That’s mostly what this book is about, I guess… Sheila and Torey reconnecting, bringing up all those old memories and problems, and figuring out how things actually affected Sheila and how Sheila’s life had changed since Torey left. One thing that really surprised me, really upset me, in the beginning was to learn how little contact Torey had after she left Sheila back then. And how long it took her to track Sheila down; Sheila was thirteen years old when they finally reconnected. And to my surprise and Torey’s disappointment, Sheila remembered shockingly little about her time with Torey. It had been so intense, so life-changing for Torey (and supposedly for Sheila as well), that it was really shocking to find out that Sheila remembered next to nothing about that time.
I was completely and utterly shocked to find out that the reason Sheila was so angry with Torey so often in this book was because she had memories of Torey abandoning her… on the highway. I guess because of all the trauma of her childhood, Sheila’s memories had fused together or something, and she honestly remembered Torey being the one who abandoned her on the highway so long ago, when it was really her mother. That really speaks volumes about just how hard it was for her when Torey left.
I'm very, VERY glad to know that Sheila did turn out okay, despite all the shit that happened to her. To know that she's doing well and ended up working at McDonalds and becoming fairly stable. But all in all, this book was... sobering. All of Torey Hayden’s books are emotional and intense, but this one was a lot more… depressingly real. I don’t really know how else to say it.
2jimroberts
I don't think this is seriously too long (nearly 700 words); you have a lot to say and that's going to take up space. You could, though, shorten it by leaving out the first paragraph, "I finished this book ...", which isn't very useful to someone wanting to know about the book.
You could tidy up the next two paragraphs a bit, they seem a bit scrappy. They could get a bit shorter in the process too, there are words in there that aren't doing much. For example, to show the sort of thing I mean, my version of part the first one:
You could tidy up the next two paragraphs a bit, they seem a bit scrappy. They could get a bit shorter in the process too, there are words in there that aren't doing much. For example, to show the sort of thing I mean, my version of part the first one:
That book ended on a hopeful note; that Torey made a huge difference in this girl’s life, and she would be able to consistently progress and lead a better life. So it’s hard not to wonder what happened to Sheila after the end of that book.You also have "wish" which should be "wished", like it is a few words later.
3lorax
I'm unclear about whether the first, conversational paragraph ("I finished this book...") is supposed to be part of the review or not. Assuming that it isn't (if it is, I'd suggest dropping it):
The second sentence in the first paragraph ("That book ended on a hopeful note; Feeling that Torey really made a huge difference in this girl’s life, and hopefully after leaving Torey’s class she would be able to consistently progress and lead a better life.") is very confusing. Who feels Torey made a huge difference? Who is the "she" who will be able to progress, the girl or the unnamed feeler?
The most obvious interpretation, that you were the one doing the feeling, could be reworded as:
In the fourth paragraph, I'd mention the timeline (that they reconnect seven years later) before the part about old memories; the unqualified "old" makes me wonder how long it was (a year, five, twenty?) which was distracting.
The second sentence in the first paragraph ("That book ended on a hopeful note; Feeling that Torey really made a huge difference in this girl’s life, and hopefully after leaving Torey’s class she would be able to consistently progress and lead a better life.") is very confusing. Who feels Torey made a huge difference? Who is the "she" who will be able to progress, the girl or the unnamed feeler?
The most obvious interpretation, that you were the one doing the feeling, could be reworded as:
"That book ended on a hopeful note, suggesting that Torey made a huge difference in Sheila's life, and that Sheila would be able to consistently progress and lead a better life after leaving Torey's class."
In the fourth paragraph, I'd mention the timeline (that they reconnect seven years later) before the part about old memories; the unqualified "old" makes me wonder how long it was (a year, five, twenty?) which was distracting.
4readafew
the review starts very confusing and coalesces near the bottom. I would say you don't need the first paragraph.
the Second para
This book is the true-story sequel to One Child. That book ended on a hopeful note; Feeling that Torey really made a huge difference in this girl’s life, and hopefully after leaving Torey’s class she would be able to consistently progress and lead a better life. Which is why it’s hard not to wonder what actually happened to Sheila after the end of that book. That’s the question that The Tiger’s Child answers… And honestly, there were times while reading this book that I wish I had never started it, where I wished I didn’t know the answer to that question.
maybe something more like this?
This book is the true-story sequel to One Child, which ended on a hopeful note; the feeling that Torey really made a huge difference in this girl’s life, and hopefully be able to consistently progress and lead a better life. Which is why it’s hard not to wonder what actually happened to Sheila after that book. That’s the question The Tiger’s Child answers, and honestly, there were times while reading this book that I wish I had never started it, where I wished I didn’t know the answer to that question.
The rest isn't bad, it is coherent, but it could use at least one more run though to make it smoother.
ETA: no one else had responded when I started this post...
the Second para
This book is the true-story sequel to One Child. That book ended on a hopeful note; Feeling that Torey really made a huge difference in this girl’s life, and hopefully after leaving Torey’s class she would be able to consistently progress and lead a better life. Which is why it’s hard not to wonder what actually happened to Sheila after the end of that book. That’s the question that The Tiger’s Child answers… And honestly, there were times while reading this book that I wish I had never started it, where I wished I didn’t know the answer to that question.
maybe something more like this?
This book is the true-story sequel to One Child, which ended on a hopeful note; the feeling that Torey really made a huge difference in this girl’s life, and hopefully be able to consistently progress and lead a better life. Which is why it’s hard not to wonder what actually happened to Sheila after that book. That’s the question The Tiger’s Child answers, and honestly, there were times while reading this book that I wish I had never started it, where I wished I didn’t know the answer to that question.
The rest isn't bad, it is coherent, but it could use at least one more run though to make it smoother.
ETA: no one else had responded when I started this post...
5jseger9000
I agree with all the other posts on the changes suggested.
That first paragraph (I finished this book about a week ago...) should be dropped.
The paragraph starting This book is the true-story sequel to... is a much better beginning for the review. However I would change the sentence to add the author's full name at the beginning of the review: This book is the true-story sequel to Torey Hayden's One Child.
In addition:
In the second sentence, 'Feeling' should not be capitalized.
Second sentence in the third paragraph, I don't think there should be a comma between 'her' and 'as well'.
Near the end (the end of paragraph five and the beginning of paragraph six), you use the word 'shocked' in quick succession. You might wanna change one of those.
As for the length of the review, I think it is just fine. Though some of the sentences might be a little ramble-y, they work very well to explain how the book made you feel. I wouldn't worry about cleaning it up too much. To me, the review will lose something.
That first paragraph (I finished this book about a week ago...) should be dropped.
The paragraph starting This book is the true-story sequel to... is a much better beginning for the review. However I would change the sentence to add the author's full name at the beginning of the review: This book is the true-story sequel to Torey Hayden's One Child.
In addition:
In the second sentence, 'Feeling' should not be capitalized.
Second sentence in the third paragraph, I don't think there should be a comma between 'her' and 'as well'.
Near the end (the end of paragraph five and the beginning of paragraph six), you use the word 'shocked' in quick succession. You might wanna change one of those.
As for the length of the review, I think it is just fine. Though some of the sentences might be a little ramble-y, they work very well to explain how the book made you feel. I wouldn't worry about cleaning it up too much. To me, the review will lose something.
