Emily H. (emilysheart) reviewed on
I am a librarian, so I get many books for free and/or cheap. This is how I came to own "The Mermaid Chair". It sat on my bookshelf for months until I stumbled upon it as I was looking for something to read. I thought the story sounded intriguing, but most of all I wanted to check out Sue Monk Kidd, since I had heard so much about "The Secret Life of Bees" (which I haven't read yet).
The book was easy to get into, since Kidd gets right to the point: Jessie Sullivan, a seemingly perfect wife and mother, had fallen in love with a monk during the winter and spring of 1988. How could this happen?
A few pages later it is also revealed that Jessie lost her father - a victim of a boating accident - when she was 10-years-old, and that her Mother (who she hasn't seen in years) had recently cut off her finger. And so the story begins...
I was immediately impressed with Kidd's ability to capture subtle beauties: eccentric personalities, a wandering dog that belongs to everyone and no one, thoughts on life, art, and freedom... I thought her quite a writer, yet I knew she could get better. At times she went a bit flowery, a little too "romance novel". It made me wonder if perhaps this was her first book. I was surprised to learn it wasn't. Still, it made me want to read more of her work, especially "The Secret Life of Bees", which I am sure I will get to soon.
The book was easy to get into, since Kidd gets right to the point: Jessie Sullivan, a seemingly perfect wife and mother, had fallen in love with a monk during the winter and spring of 1988. How could this happen?
A few pages later it is also revealed that Jessie lost her father - a victim of a boating accident - when she was 10-years-old, and that her Mother (who she hasn't seen in years) had recently cut off her finger. And so the story begins...
I was immediately impressed with Kidd's ability to capture subtle beauties: eccentric personalities, a wandering dog that belongs to everyone and no one, thoughts on life, art, and freedom... I thought her quite a writer, yet I knew she could get better. At times she went a bit flowery, a little too "romance novel". It made me wonder if perhaps this was her first book. I was surprised to learn it wasn't. Still, it made me want to read more of her work, especially "The Secret Life of Bees", which I am sure I will get to soon.
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