Tuesday, May 12, 2009

My first unfinished book of the year...


I've read a lot of great books so far this year, but I finally found one that wasn't holding my attention. Since I received the book for review, I did want to mention it and link to other reviews.

The Four Corners of the Sky by Michael Malone

Description:
On her seventh birthday, Annie's con artist father left her behind at his boyhood home, then he raced out of her life. Years later, Annie, now a top Navy jet pilot, returns home on her 26 birthday. But everything changes when Jack calls to say he is dying, and needs her to fly to St. Louis to bring him the airplane he gave her the day he left. And if she does, he will give her the one thing she always wanted, that he always lied to her about the name of her mother.

The Four Corners of the Sky is a novel of love, sacrifice, and the inexplicable bonds that hold families together. Michael Malone brings these rich characters to life as only he can, evoking the unspoken motivations that drive people to define who they are and break out of those bonds when the call of love comes.




This is a large book (560 pages) and the amount of detail just overwhelmed me. I felt like the story just wasn't moving forward as it was bogged down in background info and details. I made it about 200 pages in before I set aside, and almost all 200 of these pages were about one afternoon. I think the story would have worked better for me if the book was about half the size.


8 comments:

Sandra said...

You certainly gave it a good chance to grab you. I rather enjoy lots of detail myself so I may try it. Thank you, it's always nice to see an honest review.

Sandy Nawrot said...

200 pages is a valiant effort, I'd say. Hey, this happens. I'm actually pleased when it happens now and again, just to prove to myself that I am discriminating!

(Diane) Bibliophile By the Sea said...

You certainly gave it a good attempt. I usually do the 50 page test. Too much detail tends to bog me down as well.

Cindy said...

You gave it a good effort. I would've stopped sooner! Thanks for sharing :)

Rebecca @ The Book Lady's Blog said...

I'm sorry it wasn't working for you, either, but I'm glad to not be the only one abandoning this book. I gave it 150 pages and then I gave up. On to better reading, right?

bermudaonion said...

Sorry this one didn't work for you.

Luanne said...

Melissa:

I finished it and posted my review, but.... definitely didn't work for me either.

Anna said...

I definitely agree there was a lot of unnecessary detail, and it did slow things down. Still, I finished it and overall I liked it. Definitely didn't love it, though.

--Anna
Diary of an Eccentric