This book is about a shattered family who deal with grief in various ways. Bill, the father, has moved out, and has a new girlfriend. Maggie, his wife, is trying to hold together a household containing Aly, who is about to take her A-levels and is uncommunicative, and Stan, who has some minor special needs. Maggie's sister comes to visit; she suggests following up an advert from an older woman - Kate - who wants a family to look after. Kate turns out to be quite a catalyst...

I liked Aly very much, and was quite taken with Kate. Stan was rather unnecessary to the plot, but likeable enough. The subplots weave together nicely, and the ending is hopeful. There were a few quite moving moments, too.

However, I really couldn't feel anything for Maggie or Bill, and much of the story is from Maggie's perspective. There are regular switches of viewpoint, which come so frequently that it was hard to feel much empathy; I felt as if I were watching from a distance rather than being drawn into the family.

My other problem with the book is that there's too much detail about everyone's emotional state and inner thoughts, many of them already obvious from dialogue or events. So the middle part drags somewhat. It took me over two weeks to read it; it was pleasant enough, but all too easy to put down and forget about after a chapter or two in the evening.

Three and a half stars, really. ( )

Typical chick-lit - I wasn't really bothered about this one, I only read it because I was given a free copy. ( )

BETWEEN A MOTHER AND HER CHILD by Elizabeth Noble is a poignant Women's Fiction. It is based on the December 26,2004 Indonesian Tsunami where over 100,000 people died, including Jake Barrett,Maggie and Bill Barrett's eldest son. Ms. Noble brings to life the story of family,grief,loss,love and putting a family's life back together after losing a child. An emotional,compelling and heart-wrenching tale of a family's tragedy and grief. You will need tissues, be forewarned! Is the old adage time heals all wounds, you will need to pick up "Between a Mother and Her Child" to learn more on this story of courage,faith, and love. Ms. Noble is a masterful storyteller! Received for an honest review from the publisher.

RATING: 4

HEAT RATING: SWEET

REVIEWED BY: AprilR, Review courtesy of My Book Addiction and More ( )

Between A Mother And Her Child
By
Elizabeth Noble

My" in a nutshell" summary...

Maggie and Bill are living a lovely life with their children...Jake, Aly and Stan...until a disaster changes everything.

My thoughts after reading this book...

This family was begun with much hope and happiness. However...when their own personal tragedy happened...they really were not able to deal with it. Or rather they dealt with it but it tore them apart. This was a family trying to live an ordinary life...they had a young son with learning disabilities...a teenage daughter...and a son off on the adventure of a lifetime.
Then...really without warning...nothing in their lives was ever the same again.

This book is sort of about recovery...I won't tell you word for word and bit by bit what happened. Why would you bother to read it if I did? I will tell you that I loved these characters. Every page revealed to me more and more about each member in this family. I was not bored or impatient with this book. It was not too long for me. It was amazingly absorbing. I loved the sort of delicious way this author pulled me into this family's sorrow. Maggie, Bill, Aly, and Stan are all trying to deal with what happened to Jake. And then there is Jake...the oldest son...the golden child...the one that brought Maggie and Bill together...how does this family stay a family without him.

What I especially loved about this book...

I hesitated mentioning Jake because what happened to him was not immediately revealed in this story. All I knew was that a part of this family was gone. Maggie was obsessively cleaning. Bill had moved out. Aly was sullen. Stan was Stan. They were all so broken. The only one who seemed capable of moving on was Bill and even that was disastrous for his family...especially in the beginning.

Enter Kate. Kate had her own sorrows. She was someone who was there mostly for Maggie, Aly and Stan. Kate was able to listen without judging and this was what this family needed.

There were many personal stories. Liv...Maggie's sister, Scott...Liv's fiancé, Ryan...Jake's friend, Carrie...Bill's new love...and Kate...her sad story is so sad.

What I did not love...

This book might have been just a bit long but I really didn't mind that.

Final thoughts...

I loved this book. There were lots of lives involved in Jake's tragedy. I loved the story of the changes and growth and what everyone involved had to do to finally live a fulfilled and normal life again. ( )

This was a great book about relationships. Everyone appeared to have such great insight with regards to why they were acting or feeling as they were which, despite being totally unrealistic, was very refreshing and made for interesting reading. ( )