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Wednesday, February 9, 2011

'The Weird Sisters' by Eleanor Brown

Short synopsis from TLC:
The Andreas sisters were raised on books – their family motto might as well be, ‘There’s no problem a library card can’t solve.’  Their father, a renowned, eccentric professor of Shakespearean studies, named them after three of the Bard’s most famous characters: Rose (Rosalind – As You Like It), Bean (Bianca – The Taming of the Shrew), and Cordy (Cordelia – King Lear), but they have inherited those characters’ failures along with their strengths. Now the sisters have returned home to the small college town where they grew up – partly because their mother is ill, but mostly because their lives are falling apart and they don’t know where to go next.


The fox, the ape and the bumble-bee, Were still at odds, being but three.
  Our father once wrote an essay on the importance of the number three in Shakespeare's work. A little bit of nothing, he said, a bagatelle, but it was always our favorite. The Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. The Billy Goats Gruff, the Three Blind Mice, Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog), King Lear-Goneril, Regan, Cordelia. The Merchant of Venice-Portia, Nerissa, Jessica.
  And us--Rosalind, Bianca, Cordelia.
  The Weird Sisters. [p.24] *

....Normally, Shakespeare and I don't mix, but I have to say that the references to Shakespeare were easy for me to understand and after my first few encounters with snippets from his work, I relaxed and allowed myself to ease into the story. I really enjoyed the way the author weaved the love of books and reading into her story. For those of us that are confirmed bibliophiles this book has the ability to tug at your heart strings. This was a family that I could live with..easily!!! Just the fact that books were left around the house in various stages of reading reminded me so much of myself. I have books everywhere with all sorts of things marking my spots!! I loved the family dynamics and the quiet reassurance and steady love of the girls' mother. Even though she's battling cancer, she is the strength and the backbone of this family. I found myself very engaged with the dynamics of the sister's relationship and how each one judged themselves by what the other two sisters thought of them. At times I wasn't overly fond of one of the sister's but I felt she redeemed herself by the end of the book. In the end, this book made me appreciate my small town roots and how sometimes change is good. It also confirmed the fact that my parents should have tried one more time so that I could have had a sister!! The best aspect of this book is the relationship between Rosalind, Bianca, and Cordelia. She captured that love-hate relationship that so many sisters have...beautifully!

Recommend? Yes...this is a worthwhile read that left me satisfied as I turned the last page. I think the author has a gift for language. Her story was vivid and captured my attention immediately and left me with great affection for her characters.

Rating: 4.5/5

About Eleanor Brown

Born and raised in the Washington, D.C. area, Eleanor has lived in St. Paul, San Francisco, Philadelphia, South Florida, and Oxford, London, and Brighton, England.  She works in educational technology and lives in Colorado with her partner, writer and new media superstar, J.C. Hutchins.
Eleanor’s writing has appeared in anthologies, journals, magazines, and newspapers.  The Weird Sisters, her first novel, will be published by Amy Einhorn Books on January 20, 2011.
Connect with Eleanor:
On her websiteblog, on Facebook, and on Twitter.

Please take a moment and check out the other blog tour stops for "The Weird Sisters."

Disclaimer:Thank you to TLC Book Tours for sending me a review copy. I was not compensated for my review. My thoughts on this book were in no way influenced by the author or publicist.They are my personal reflections based solely on MY experience while reading this novel


Published: January 20, 2011
Publisher: Amy Einhorn Books
Pages: 318
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
ISBN: 9780399157226
*uncorrected ARC was provided
 
© 2011, Staci of Life in the Thumb. All Rights Reserved. If you reading this on a site other than, Life in the Thumb or Staci's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

34 comments:

  1. Wowwwwwww! This sounds really good!! And I like that motto about the library card! :):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):)

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  2. I'm beginning to feel like the bridesmaid but never the bride when it comes to this book. Everyone who has read it so far has written a glowing review. I simply must find the time to read it soon.

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  3. Everyone has loved this one. Wish I requested this one now :)

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  4. This is on my must read soon list so I skipped to your rating (yay!) and will be back after I read the book!

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  5. I'm glad to know the Shakespeare references were easy for you to understand because most of his work is way over my head.

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  6. This definitely sounds like something I'm missing out on! There are so many fantastic reviews on this out there!

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  7. A book populated with book lovers. A reading match made in heaven!

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  8. I've seen lot's of reviews on this book but your good rating convinces me I've got to read it. nice review.

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  9. This is the one new book that I am so looking forward to reading! IT looks fantastic. I just need to clear some of the books I need to read first :)

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  10. I must be missing something with this book. I am two thirds of the way through and not loving it at all. From the reviews I read I thought for sure it would be excellent but I guess it isn't my cup of tea. The writing is excellent and I love the Shakespeare quotes as well but I cannot relate to the sisters at all. I'm committed to finishing to see where it ends up but I don't see my 2 stars changing. That's why we are all different :)

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  11. Shakespeare and I don't usually mix either, but I simply must read this book!

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  12. I forced myself to read some Shakespeare in years past and was surprised at how much I did not hate it and how much of our expressions come from it. Glad you enjoyed this one. I have requested it from the library.

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  13. That good? That's praise enough for me :) I do like Shakespeare, even if he has his faults

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  14. I've seen so many fantastic reviews of this book that I just couldn't resist buying it - I suspect I will be reading it very soon!

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  15. I'm almost positive I would never had picked this book up on my own but this one sounds like something I would actually like to read. Thanks for the review.

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  16. I'm so glad to hear that you enjoyed this one so much! I've read nothing but good reviews of it and cannot wait to read it for myself. Great review!

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  17. I love the title of this book and I love Shakespeare so I think I would really enjoy this book. It is quite obvious from your wonderful review that this one is a worthwhile read.

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  18. I keep seeing this around and it looks really good. I am going to have to give it a read at some point!

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  19. Okay, you sold me. I've heard lots of good things about this book. I just downloaded it to my nook. :)

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  20. This one has gotten some great reviews but for whatever reason I've held off on it.

    Switching gears a bit...

    I see that you are reading The Devil's Star. I am 20 pages away from finishing it. I am liking it a lot. How 'bout you?

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  21. Wow, looks like everyone is loving this one. Since it's an Amy Einhorn I will definitely be reading this one. Good review.

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  22. I have a weakness for books about sister. And I do love me some Shakespeare. I took a course in college devoted only to Shakespeare and I loved it. I will keep my eye out for this one.

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  23. Loved your review Staci, this is one that I probably would have overlooked but it's now on my radar. Your comments about the sister relationships/family dynamics really appealed as did this comment ... "I relaxed and allowed myself to ease into the story."

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  24. I'm glad you enjoyed this book, I did see a not so great review a few weeks ago.

    I hope you have a great weekend planned!

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  25. Once I found out that there were Shakespeare quotes in this book, I shied away from it and continue to do so. I know it has high ratings, but my first impression has stuck. :(

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  26. Great review! I'm so glad you enjoyed it and rated it so highly. Thanks so much for being on the tour!

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  27. I really loved this book - so glad it was one that resonated with you too! I can't wait to see what this author will write next :)

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  28. Lovely review and I must say I agree with you on the sister thing. There are times I wish I had one, because my brother are so not close. Sounds like a lovely warm read :)

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  29. I thought this was a good one too. I have two older sisters and could relate to some aspects of their relationships, but others escaped me because my sisters were so much older than me but close in age to each other. It's more like they were sisters and I was an only child.

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  30. I am definitely planning to read this one. Thanks for a great review.

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  31. I'm not much for Shakespeare either but I've heard so many good things a out this book that I can't wait to read it. Glad to see you liked it.

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  32. Great review. This was on my list but I was too late in requesting it. it sounds marvelous. You describe it well.

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  33. Great review! It seems that readers are really enjoying this one. I have a sister and I'm curious to see if I can relate to the characters' relationship in this book, as I find sisters in books are often best friends or worst enemies, no in-between.

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