"Thou art too damned jolly. Sail on." Herman Melville in Moby Dick
Current book-selection rotation: B, M, J, A, K
Saturday, April 9, 2011
The Peach Keeper - Sarah Addison Allen
After researching Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble for new book releases I chose this book because the story line appeared to be interesting. I enjoy reading stories set in the southern states and this fit that niche for me.
I asked DushoreLady to open up this post, though I'm not sure we're all done with "Sister's Keeper"? I got this book last week and have started and will be posting some comments in a few days. No rush for anyone else, though. This is just me being impatient to start the next book. :-) Plus, I plan on sending it to E when I finish, since Easter is coming up soon and she'll be able to start reading again.
First off I want to apologize for being so absent lately, I've had a lot n my plate with my grandpa and then Harold's surgery, plus a business trip, but everything is calming down now and getting back to our version of "normal" so I'll be able to do some serious reading!
That being said, I started and finished Peach Keeper yesterday. I have Sister's Keeper here too, but read them out of order because Peach was shorter and also due back to the library first.
Overall I liked this book. At heart I'm a sucker for a happy ending =) I also love a touch of magical realism - though it seemed a little like an afterthought in this book. If you think of others in the genre, Like Water For Chocolate, Chocolat, etc., they tend to lean a little more on the magic, so it almost creates a separate world where magic DOES exist; this book was too based in reality for me to really believe that Tucker Devlin was the Devil incarnate, or that the caterer could create love potions.
Additionally, I liked the theme of reconnecting with high-school classmates after several years. I think the book was very perceptive of how those relationships have to be re-formed and reformed. If you don't see someone for a long time, you kind of expect them to be exactly the same person you used to know, but obviously people change and grow.
Throughout the book I kept picturing Paxton and the other club members as the high-society ladies from The Help. Anyone else get that feeling?
I liked Agatha the best, the staff at the home hiding her teeth on her was great!
Some nit-picky things I didn't like: -- Walls of Water High School Joker? Seems like they could have come up with a better name for the prankster, like "pumpkin jack" haha. -- Sophia's sudden opening up to Paxton on pg 235. This seemed way out of character for her. -- Chapter 18, The Peach Keepers. I thought it was strange that this was the only chapter narrated from 1936. I think it would have been more consistent for present-day Agatha to have narrated it, perhaps after getting a little tipsy at the Gala.
I did like Paxton making lists all the time, and I wish we had been able to see more of them. Would have given some more insight into her character.
Willa and Colin subplot was ok, but for some reason I didn't root for them as much - maybe they just weren't as flawed?
Great! I don't feel so bad about starting it now, since at least I haven't finished already! :-) I'm five chapters in and enjoying it. It wasn't at all what I expected (for some reason I was expecting more of an international downer like A usually chooses- not sure why).
A few comments up to this point:
I LOVE how Rachel tries to categorize people based on how they take their coffee. I do this all the time with little things. What is in their grocery cart? What does their coat say about them? Can I tell something about a person by whether they eat their grapefruit with sugar or salt?
On p. 18, Allen writes about the trees with leaves such a bright yellow in the fall that "birds nesting in the trees would get confused beause they couldn't tell what time of day it was, and they would stay awake for days until they dropped out of the branches with exhaustion." Does this really happen? I have a hard time believing it, but maybe it is one of those strange-but-true things?
P. 24: I have a feeling that waking up red from the scratchy lace of your wedding dress in your dreams is a good indicator that you might be afraid of commitment. Just a guess.
Same page: I LOVE when the women start telling secrets. This reminds me of the book "Blue Castle" by L.M.Montgomery (one of my all-time favorites) in which the main character finds out she only has a year to live and starts saying what's on her mind. I just love this whole idea. What would we say if we had the chance or were compelled, as in this case? What fun.
I also like the magical realism, but like that it IS an afterthought. Allen treats it like a common occurence, nothing special that merits more discussion. I think it makes it more believable that way. Like this you don't have to believe in a whole separate realm of magic, just little hints of magic in everyday life.
I'm sure I'll ruin something for you if you haven't finished, so read further only at your own risk.
Like A, I enjoyed it. The ending seemed a little too happy and moralistic, but I can live with that. I don't think Tucker was the devil incarnate, just a bad, bad man with magical powers. I mean, really, is he even up to Voldemort's level? As far as we know, Voldemort hasn't raped anyone, but he definitely could have and just seems all over eviler. I digress, though. Maybe because HP and Deathly Hallows #1 releases on Friday, but back to this book.
I did like that they killed him (does this make me a bad person?) and then came together as friends and took care of the problem. We women know how to take care of problems, don't we? Reminded me a little bit of "Fried Green Tomatoes", well, except that they didn't BBQ him and serve him to customers...
I did not connect them with the high society ladies of The Help like A though, but I see the connection now that you mention it.
The reuniting of friends from high school is a bit like the genesis of this book club, don't you think A? Getting to know each other again, learning the little idiosyncracies that developed as an adult. But still easier than making a new friend, I think.
A few other points to finish with: - the whole Sebastian thing drove me crazy for most of the book. Is he or isn't he gay? I had finally decided on not gay right before I read the part about Sebastian on p. 160-164. Okay, maybe gay. But then, on p. 241 "I needed to stop being what everyone thought I was." Not gay? AND WHY DO I CARE SO MUCH. Good grief. I was glad to have that resolved.
- This black and yellow bird. Is this supposed to be Tupper? Because it seemed to be acting against Tupper's interests (for example, trying to get Willa to see the connection between him and her father p. 139), so maybe one of the pissed off birds acting against Tupper?
And for a last comment: - p. 109 "That's the fairy tale. You meet, you fall in love, you kiss and NEITHER OF YOU IS REVOLTED BY IT." :-)
I just finished reading this book. I read Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen last week. There is definately similarities in her books. One being the magic. Although in Garden Spells, it definately is better described and woven throughout the story.
The caterer in The Peach Keeper is the main character in Garden Spells. I liked how the the main character from Garden Spells was used in The Peach Keeper. If you liked The Peach Keeper, you will like Garden Spells. I definately favor Garden Spells over this book.
That said...I really did like this book. It took me all of 2 days to read it and that is even with me having a house full of kids.
This is the first book that I have read on my Kindle. Unfortunately, it did not have page numbers and I have not figured out how to work the bookmark function yet. Therefore, I am not sure how I am going to quote anything.
The opening of the book was intriguing. The after effects of Paxton taking the letters to the post office was amusing.I got a chuckle over several people going to the doctors office for infected paper cuts. Who does that?
Antoher of my favorite parts was when Willa maced the jerks that were about to attack Paxton. I agree. I would definately have difficulty turning away from another endangered female.
I find it funny that Coling and Paxton continually arrive on Willa's doorstep uninvited continuously throughout the book. With the invention of cell phones, text messaging, Facebook,etc. nobody comes over uninvited anymore. I kind of miss that. Everyone expects you to respond immeadiately to messages, phone calls, etc. Everyone is busy all the time. If you don't respond right away, the moment is gone and there is no spontaneity. I thing this adds to the "magic" of the book.
Agatha was also my favorite character out of the book. One of my favorite quotes from her is "I haven't talked nonsense a day in my life!" I found her spunk amusing throughout the story.
The whole Sebastion is he gay or isn't he drove me nuts to. I felt relief when that was finally resolved.
Finally, M- Tucker has nothing on Lord Voldemort. Voldemort is true evil : )
T, I'm glad you mentioned the previous book being about the caterer. Though I liked Peach Keepers, I think I would have enjoyed it more if I had read Garden Spells first.
I totally agree with you about nobody "just dropping by" any more. I really miss that too - unless it's my drunken sisters looking to eat icecream on my couch. (love ya Josephine!) I love my cell phone, don't get me wrong, but I prefer to read books that are set "pre-tech."
Sebastian's sexual preference drove me nuts too. What's up with that??
PS - I know for a fact J finished this book before I did, where is her post? =)
Well, I think I was actually the first one to finish this book and then am the last one to blog it. (Had some computer troubles, then some trouble with finding the time). So FINALLY...
Overall the book was OK. I liked the "mystery" part of it but that all seem resolved too early. I didn't really care for all the love interest.
I really couldn't believe they were moving a tree and all the coordination of efforts involved to do that. It just seemed totally impossible to me. The root ball alone! Let alone the branches and could it survive? Maybe my image of the tree was "too big".
I did enjoy the part about the wrinkle releaser and what that had to say about Paxton (I think that's who it was).
And I liked the "coffee associations" made by Rachel.
One other thing. The "club" made me sad since it had started as a way for friends to get together and bond and then had become a "Keeping up with the Jones" kind of thing and just trying to impress each other. I didn't like that.
joychina you are NOT the last person to post your comments after reading this book... and I won't be either because Beth can start reading the book tomorrow.
One of my favorite lines in the book is on page 64 - "The rolling mountains looked like kids playing under a big green blanket."
Allen has a good way of describing things so that you can actually picture it in your head.
After having traveled south, seeing the Blue Ridge Mountains, live oak trees, and the little southern towns like Walls of Water this book felt like cozying into a familiar chair and being reminded of fond memories. Somehow it made the story all the more enjoyable.
The subtle hints of magic and not so subtle superstitions were interesting. They kept me from settling into the story a little too comfortably.
My sister is a "maker of lists" so that part especially made me grin.
This book reminded me, too, of Fried Green Tomatos.. the sticking together of friends in bad situations.
I am surprised that Melissa didn't say "see, I told you we should read "Garden Spell". So now that people have commented on Garden Spell should we just go ahead and read it or wait for it to be a pick
BTW - I am relieved that my very first book pick turned out to be ok
B - Yes, your first pick was light years better than Moby Dick or Shirley! ;)
As the club grows I find myself wondering about the criteria I use to pick books - up until this point there have been only two: Huh, looks interesting OR I've always wanted to read that. But now I wonder if I should start looking at things that will spark discussion or have more mass-appeal. Anyone else thinking about these things?
For now, I'm going to stick picking things as I have been.
Also, I want the new members to know that we don't have to vote on every pick, you can just mandate a book if you wish!
See, I told you we should have read "Garden Spells". :-)
A, I've also been putting some thought into books to choose. I have a master list of books I want to read, but then I've been trying to read books that might spark some discussion or that have caused some controversy in the past. I'm not sure this is any better way to pick then to just pick books that look good, especially since this usually means that I am picking older books. I also like to switch up genres, though there isn't too much worry with each of us liking different types of books...
11 comments:
I asked DushoreLady to open up this post, though I'm not sure we're all done with "Sister's Keeper"? I got this book last week and have started and will be posting some comments in a few days. No rush for anyone else, though. This is just me being impatient to start the next book. :-) Plus, I plan on sending it to E when I finish, since Easter is coming up soon and she'll be able to start reading again.
First off I want to apologize for being so absent lately, I've had a lot n my plate with my grandpa and then Harold's surgery, plus a business trip, but everything is calming down now and getting back to our version of "normal" so I'll be able to do some serious reading!
That being said, I started and finished Peach Keeper yesterday. I have Sister's Keeper here too, but read them out of order because Peach was shorter and also due back to the library first.
Overall I liked this book. At heart I'm a sucker for a happy ending =) I also love a touch of magical realism - though it seemed a little like an afterthought in this book. If you think of others in the genre, Like Water For Chocolate, Chocolat, etc., they tend to lean a little more on the magic, so it almost creates a separate world where magic DOES exist; this book was too based in reality for me to really believe that Tucker Devlin was the Devil incarnate, or that the caterer could create love potions.
Additionally, I liked the theme of reconnecting with high-school classmates after several years. I think the book was very perceptive of how those relationships have to be re-formed and reformed. If you don't see someone for a long time, you kind of expect them to be exactly the same person you used to know, but obviously people change and grow.
Throughout the book I kept picturing Paxton and the other club members as the high-society ladies from The Help. Anyone else get that feeling?
I liked Agatha the best, the staff at the home hiding her teeth on her was great!
Some nit-picky things I didn't like:
-- Walls of Water High School Joker? Seems like they could have come up with a better name for the prankster, like "pumpkin jack" haha.
-- Sophia's sudden opening up to Paxton on pg 235. This seemed way out of character for her.
-- Chapter 18, The Peach Keepers. I thought it was strange that this was the only chapter narrated from 1936. I think it would have been more consistent for present-day Agatha to have narrated it, perhaps after getting a little tipsy at the Gala.
I did like Paxton making lists all the time, and I wish we had been able to see more of them. Would have given some more insight into her character.
Willa and Colin subplot was ok, but for some reason I didn't root for them as much - maybe they just weren't as flawed?
Great! I don't feel so bad about starting it now, since at least I haven't finished already! :-) I'm five chapters in and enjoying it. It wasn't at all what I expected (for some reason I was expecting more of an international downer like A usually chooses- not sure why).
A few comments up to this point:
I LOVE how Rachel tries to categorize people based on how they take their coffee. I do this all the time with little things. What is in their grocery cart? What does their coat say about them? Can I tell something about a person by whether they eat their grapefruit with sugar or salt?
On p. 18, Allen writes about the trees with leaves such a bright yellow in the fall that "birds nesting in the trees would get confused beause they couldn't tell what time of day it was, and they would stay awake for days until they dropped out of the branches with exhaustion." Does this really happen? I have a hard time believing it, but maybe it is one of those strange-but-true things?
P. 24: I have a feeling that waking up red from the scratchy lace of your wedding dress in your dreams is a good indicator that you might be afraid of commitment. Just a guess.
Same page: I LOVE when the women start telling secrets. This reminds me of the book "Blue Castle" by L.M.Montgomery (one of my all-time favorites) in which the main character finds out she only has a year to live and starts saying what's on her mind. I just love this whole idea. What would we say if we had the chance or were compelled, as in this case? What fun.
I also like the magical realism, but like that it IS an afterthought. Allen treats it like a common occurence, nothing special that merits more discussion. I think it makes it more believable that way. Like this you don't have to believe in a whole separate realm of magic, just little hints of magic in everyday life.
****SPOILER*****
I'm sure I'll ruin something for you if you haven't finished, so read further only at your own risk.
Like A, I enjoyed it. The ending seemed a little too happy and moralistic, but I can live with that. I don't think Tucker was the devil incarnate, just a bad, bad man with magical powers. I mean, really, is he even up to Voldemort's level? As far as we know, Voldemort hasn't raped anyone, but he definitely could have and just seems all over eviler. I digress, though. Maybe because HP and Deathly Hallows #1 releases on Friday, but back to this book.
I did like that they killed him (does this make me a bad person?) and then came together as friends and took care of the problem. We women know how to take care of problems, don't we? Reminded me a little bit of "Fried Green Tomatoes", well, except that they didn't BBQ him and serve him to customers...
I did not connect them with the high society ladies of The Help like A though, but I see the connection now that you mention it.
The reuniting of friends from high school is a bit like the genesis of this book club, don't you think A? Getting to know each other again, learning the little idiosyncracies that developed as an adult. But still easier than making a new friend, I think.
A few other points to finish with:
- the whole Sebastian thing drove me crazy for most of the book. Is he or isn't he gay? I had finally decided on not gay right before I read the part about Sebastian on p. 160-164. Okay, maybe gay. But then, on p. 241 "I needed to stop being what everyone thought I was." Not gay? AND WHY DO I CARE SO MUCH. Good grief. I was glad to have that resolved.
- This black and yellow bird. Is this supposed to be Tupper? Because it seemed to be acting against Tupper's interests (for example, trying to get Willa to see the connection between him and her father p. 139), so maybe one of the pissed off birds acting against Tupper?
And for a last comment:
- p. 109 "That's the fairy tale. You meet, you fall in love, you kiss and NEITHER OF YOU IS REVOLTED BY IT." :-)
I just finished reading this book. I read Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen last week. There is definately similarities in her books. One being the magic. Although in Garden Spells, it definately is better described and woven throughout the story.
The caterer in The Peach Keeper is the main character in Garden Spells. I liked how the the main character from Garden Spells was used in The Peach Keeper. If you liked The Peach Keeper, you will like Garden Spells. I definately favor Garden Spells over this book.
That said...I really did like this book. It took me all of 2 days to read it and that is even with me having a house full of kids.
This is the first book that I have read on my Kindle. Unfortunately, it did not have page numbers and I have not figured out how to work the bookmark function yet. Therefore, I am not sure how I am going to quote anything.
The opening of the book was intriguing. The after effects of Paxton taking the letters to the post office was amusing.I got a chuckle over several people going to the doctors office for infected paper cuts. Who does that?
Antoher of my favorite parts was when Willa maced the jerks that were about to attack Paxton. I agree. I would definately have difficulty turning away from another endangered female.
I find it funny that Coling and Paxton continually arrive on Willa's doorstep uninvited continuously throughout the book. With the invention of cell phones, text messaging, Facebook,etc. nobody comes over uninvited anymore. I kind of miss that. Everyone expects you to respond immeadiately to messages, phone calls, etc. Everyone is busy all the time. If you don't respond right away, the moment is gone and there is no spontaneity. I thing this adds to the "magic" of the book.
Agatha was also my favorite character out of the book. One of my favorite quotes from her is "I haven't talked nonsense a day in my life!" I found her spunk amusing throughout the story.
The whole Sebastion is he gay or isn't he drove me nuts to. I felt relief when that was finally resolved.
Finally, M- Tucker has nothing on Lord Voldemort. Voldemort is true evil : )
T, I'm glad you mentioned the previous book being about the caterer. Though I liked Peach Keepers, I think I would have enjoyed it more if I had read Garden Spells first.
I totally agree with you about nobody "just dropping by" any more. I really miss that too - unless it's my drunken sisters looking to eat icecream on my couch. (love ya Josephine!) I love my cell phone, don't get me wrong, but I prefer to read books that are set "pre-tech."
Sebastian's sexual preference drove me nuts too. What's up with that??
PS - I know for a fact J finished this book before I did, where is her post? =)
Well, I think I was actually the first one to finish this book and then am the last one to blog it. (Had some computer troubles, then some trouble with finding the time). So FINALLY...
Overall the book was OK. I liked the "mystery" part of it but that all seem resolved too early. I didn't really care for all the love interest.
I really couldn't believe they were moving a tree and all the coordination of efforts involved to do that. It just seemed totally impossible to me. The root ball alone! Let alone the branches and could it survive? Maybe my image of the tree was "too big".
I did enjoy the part about the wrinkle releaser and what that had to say about Paxton (I think that's who it was).
And I liked the "coffee associations" made by Rachel.
One other thing. The "club" made me sad since it had started as a way for friends to get together and bond and then had become a "Keeping up with the Jones" kind of thing and just trying to impress each other. I didn't like that.
joychina you are NOT the last person to post your comments after reading this book... and I won't be either because Beth can start reading the book tomorrow.
One of my favorite lines in the book is on page 64 - "The rolling mountains looked like kids playing under a big green blanket."
Allen has a good way of describing things so that you can actually picture it in your head.
After having traveled south, seeing the Blue Ridge Mountains, live oak trees, and the little southern towns like Walls of Water this book felt like cozying into a familiar chair and being reminded of fond memories. Somehow it made the story all the more enjoyable.
The subtle hints of magic and not so subtle superstitions were interesting. They kept me from settling into the story a little too comfortably.
My sister is a "maker of lists" so that part especially made me grin.
This book reminded me, too, of Fried Green Tomatos.. the sticking together of friends in bad situations.
I am surprised that Melissa didn't say "see, I told you we should read "Garden Spell". So now that people have commented on Garden Spell should we just go ahead and read it or wait for it to be a pick
BTW - I am relieved that my very first book pick turned out to be ok
B - Yes, your first pick was light years better than Moby Dick or Shirley! ;)
As the club grows I find myself wondering about the criteria I use to pick books - up until this point there have been only two:
Huh, looks interesting OR I've always wanted to read that.
But now I wonder if I should start looking at things that will spark discussion or have more mass-appeal. Anyone else thinking about these things?
For now, I'm going to stick picking things as I have been.
Also, I want the new members to know that we don't have to vote on every pick, you can just mandate a book if you wish!
See, I told you we should have read "Garden Spells". :-)
A, I've also been putting some thought into books to choose. I have a master list of books I want to read, but then I've been trying to read books that might spark some discussion or that have caused some controversy in the past. I'm not sure this is any better way to pick then to just pick books that look good, especially since this usually means that I am picking older books. I also like to switch up genres, though there isn't too much worry with each of us liking different types of books...
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