I’m chuckling to myself even as I type the title. It couldn’t be further removed from the type of books I normally request and read. But I do believe that to grow and develop as a reviewer variety is essential. I also think it is of value to voluntarily step out of a perceived comfort zone. I also believe in not just giving second chances but third and fourth chances too! I could state that I don’t like chic lit and romantic fiction. Yet this book looks like it is exactly that. And I’d be a fibber if I said it wasn’t. However it is injected with an acceptable dose of quirk and I will come off my literary high horse and say that there was much to enjoy in the story.
The entire tale is told through email, journals, and instant messaging platform called Boople with a parallel modern retelling of a well known fairy story. So it is likely to resonate with today’s social media, internet generation. But it’s not so hooked to the technology vibe that it loses touch with the crucial positive feature of the story and that is its humanity.
Crystal’s mum is lonely and on her own and relies heavily on her daughter which puts a strain on Crystal’s relationship. The mother is a resourceful woman hatching all manner of schemes. After a situation that sees Crystal moving back in with her mum we see her trying to extricate herself from the all encompassing demands of her mother by seizing an opportunity to utilise an android as suitable boyfriend material for her mother. I can picture some of you shaking your heads! But shake them some more for the author asserts that it is a true story!
What the book does is highlight the sometimes complicated relationship between mothers and daughters. It’s competently written with a narrative that moves. The various devices used work well and there’s a balance. It’s not all email or all diary narrative, its balanced and mixed nicely. It’s amusing. It’s a little predictable. It is enjoyable as a light, undemanding read. And if you’ve a mum in a comparable situation you may well see a little of yourselves in the story.
My thanks to Librarything for a copy of this book.
No comments:
Post a Comment