Slow but maintains an entertaining feline perspective—ultimately for cat lovers only.
Hamblen’s fiction debut narrates the adventures of one woman’s many cats—during life as well as after death.
Jane, the epitome of a cat lady, adopts kittens William and Tibby—two cats in a long line of feline companions who have known Jane as “Second Mom.” Like other books told from animals’ perspectives (A Dog’s Life by Ann M. Martin), this one features a creative, realistic portrayal of a cat’s-eye view of life. For example, William and Tibby quickly learn that domesticated life has many ups and downs. On one hand, nothing beats sardines and cream or the joy of hunting in nearby fields. But the cats must also brave trips to the vet and try not to upset “Hon” (Jane’s husband). It’s often entertaining to consider the cats’ point of view, as when they describe Jane’s cars as “the two beasts that lurked in the garage” or worry that “the vacuum cleaner was on the prowl with Second Mom in close pursuit.” One night, William gets hit by a car, ending his life. He immediately wakes up in heaven where he is greeted by Third Mom, another kind woman, and all of Jane’s previous cats. As William acclimates to heaven and his new companions, Jane continues to tend cat after cat as she ages, leading to her posthumous and glorious reunion with her eager family of felines. This book’s leisurely plot has moments of tension, such as when the cats get stuck in a tree or have mild tiffs, but most of these are not particularly fraught. Its heavy focus on cats’ day-to-day lives is something that will only be truly appreciated by those who love cats. Jane’s deep adoration for her feline friends sometimes comes off as awkward or cloying—she calls her cats “my little Tibby Wibby” and “William, my little glum-wum”—but there are also many heartwarming moments that stem from this adoration. Lastly, Hamblen effectively teaches Christian lessons about God’s love, having compassion, and the importance of growing in goodness “until we become perfect.”
Slow but maintains an entertaining feline perspective—ultimately for cat lovers only.Pub Date: July 17, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-64140-526-3
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
Review Posted Online: July 22, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Wacky plot keeps the pages turning and enduring schmaltzy romantic sequences.
Sisters work together to solve a child-abandonment case.
Ellie and Julia Cates have never been close. Julia is shy and brainy; Ellie gets by on charm and looks. Their differences must be tossed aside when a traumatized young girl wanders in from the forest into their hometown in Washington. The sisters’ professional skills are put to the test. Julia is a world-renowned child psychologist who has lost her edge. She is reeling from a case that went publicly sour. Though she was cleared of all wrongdoing, Julia’s name was tarnished, forcing her to shutter her Beverly Hills practice. Ellie Barton is the local police chief in Rain Valley, who’s never faced a tougher case. This is her chance to prove she is more than just a fading homecoming queen, but a scarcity of clues and a reluctant victim make locating the girl’s parents nearly impossible. Ellie places an SOS call to her sister; she needs an expert to rehabilitate this wild-child who has been living outside of civilization for years. Confronted with her professional demons, Julia once again has the opportunity to display her talents and salvage her reputation. Hannah (The Things We Do for Love, 2004, etc.) is at her best when writing from the girl’s perspective. The feral wolf-child keeps the reader interested long after the other, transparent characters have grown tiresome. Hannah’s torturously over-written romance passages are stale, but there are surprises in store as the sisters set about unearthing Alice’s past and creating a home for her.
Wacky plot keeps the pages turning and enduring schmaltzy romantic sequences.Pub Date: March 1, 2006
ISBN: 0-345-46752-3
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2005
A strict report, worthy of sympathy.
A violent surfacing of adolescence (which has little in common with Tarkington's earlier, broadly comic, Seventeen) has a compulsive impact.
"Nobody big except me" is the dream world of Holden Caulfield and his first person story is down to the basic, drab English of the pre-collegiate. For Holden is now being bounced from fancy prep, and, after a vicious evening with hall- and roommates, heads for New York to try to keep his latest failure from his parents. He tries to have a wild evening (all he does is pay the check), is terrorized by the hotel elevator man and his on-call whore, has a date with a girl he likes—and hates, sees his 10 year old sister, Phoebe. He also visits a sympathetic English teacher after trying on a drunken session, and when he keeps his date with Phoebe, who turns up with her suitcase to join him on his flight, he heads home to a hospital siege. This is tender and true, and impossible, in its picture of the old hells of young boys, the lonesomeness and tentative attempts to be mature and secure, the awful block between youth and being grown-up, the fright and sickness that humans and their behavior cause the challenging, the dramatization of the big bang. It is a sorry little worm's view of the off-beat of adult pressure, of contemporary strictures and conformity, of sentiment….
A strict report, worthy of sympathy.Pub Date: June 15, 1951
ISBN: 0316769177
Page Count: -
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Nov. 2, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1951
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