Bloomability

When I was twelve, I read this book at least five times. Recently, as an adult, I picked it up again, wondering if I would still consider it good.
I was able to understand more of it as an adult, and critique it differently. As a kid, I knew Dinnie's family was going through a lot, and I got that her aunt and uncle convinced her mom to let her be in a different environment. I got the story, but I wouldn't say I -got- it until I was an adult.

Dinnie wasn't written as a naive thirteen-year-old. She was written as a terrified five-year-old, right down to word choices, right until the plane lands in Switzerland, where she is immediately, mysteriously bitten by the teenage virus. She describes things the way a purple-prose adult would, and show more it's jarring. There's a time and place for that, which is not this book. This book does also read quite a bit as "I see this setting. Look at how worldly I am." Leila was the most realistic, developed character. I disliked her immensely. Dinnie's siblings and home life are walking cliches, and the fact that her father tends not to hold down jobs for longer than six months--describes me, but for different reasons, and it is a huge reason why I won't start a family. Yes, I am judging the dad and siding with the mom's relatives. The fact that her home and family life is a sole chapter in a relatively thick book makes me think the author sneezed it at her audience so she could rush to her dream vacation of Switzerland for the rest of the book. The climax and honestly, only interesting part of the book, was jammed into the last sixty pages and so, so out of place. Such a severe situation should've been treated entirely differently. The book had a weak ending.
At least I read it again. I know this is intended for children, but it's all over the place in terms of tone, voice and pacing. show less

Bloomability by Sharon Creech was one of my favorite books as a child. I had all but forgotten it until recently, only recalling that it had made an impact on my adolescence. Once I picked it up to reread as an adult, it was like I was a kid again. I understood the narrator, Dinnie, and her confusion with life. Her family dynamic is complicated, so you'd think that having her aunt and uncle whisk her away to a middle school in Switzerland would be an adventure and relief. But Dinnie knows about adventure, and what she needs is stability and opportunity to just be herself. And that's exactly what she finds, in the last place she'd expect.

I really love this book. The characters are vivid, the setting lovingly described, and the story interesting and original. Its not an overly complicated book, but is well written and fulfilling to read.

I feel like I relate more to the protagonist of this book than the others in Sharon Creech's stories. Not really for situational reasons but in terms of personality and way of thinking. The main character, Dinnie, has a lot of fears and doubts but also a capacity for wonder and joy that I love reading about and find personally cathartic. A firm 5 stars.

This is the account of a young girl's year in Switzerland at the American School where her uncle has become headmaster. From a family with a father who travels from job to job, opportunity to opportunity, Dinnie has lived in dozens of places. In southern Switzerland, she finds intense friendships and a community that values application. It suits her.
Dinnie self-describes being in a bubble, and to some extent, the entire presentation is encapsulated, descriptive certainly, but at an emotional distance. It mutes any impact the story can have. And the inserted précis of dreams are ever so apropos, not a credible chaos one.

Sweet, predictable, somewhat formulaic- kid goes to Switzerland, adjusts, makes friends, is sad to leave, grows in understanding, becomes more mature. Still, charming in parts, and quite readable.

Kidnapped!The kidnappers are actually her Aunt Sandy and Uncle Max, but that doesn't matter to Domenica Santolina Doone, better known as Dinnie. She feels as if she's being taken out of the country against her will. Certainly no one asked her opinion. Dinnie is used to change-with her family constantly moving from state to state while her father searches for one new "opportunity" after another. But when her aunt and uncle whisk her away to an international school in Lugano, Switzerland, Dinnie feels that this might be one "opportunity"that isn't right for her.Suddenly Dinnie's surrounded by kids from many different cultures, backgrounds, and beliefs. Home, and her first life, seem so far away. Can she adapt to a new country, a new home, show more and new friends? Or will it just be easier to close herself off-just survive-and never realize all the "bloomabilities" that are possible? show less

I read this after my 10 year old had read it, and then suggested it to me because she had enjoyed it. It is aimed at a younger audience (the main character is 13 years old) so it is a quick read, but I really enjoyed it. The books follows a year in the life of Dinnie, a girl with a family that moves around a lot, as she is sent to boarding school in Lugano, Switzerland for a year. It is a wonderful book of adolescent discovery, but what I enjoyed were her experiences traveling and studying abroad and how it shaped who she was. It spoke to me, as someone who studied abroad in college (and made me jealous that I didn't get this opportunity even earlier in life!) and it has opened the way for some fun conversations with my 10 year old.