Moving But Will Disappiont Many
351221
This is an unusual book, set in the south Pacific.  The main figure, Tom Sherbourne,  born in 1890s, was with the Anzac forces at Gallipoli, which he survived unscathed and did so subsequently on the Western Front. He returns home to work at a lighthouse and on leave meets a young woman 8 years his junior. They marry on his second leave. After miscarriages and a stillborn a dead man and infant girl wash ashore.  Isabel persuades Tom that they should keep the girl as their own.
 After a few years they discover the biological mother of the child.
 The central issue is whether they should return the child to that woman.
  As the father of three adopted children, I found the book to be very moving, and I was not pleased with its outcome.

Dr.  Thomas P. Wolf, Ph. D.
New Albany, IN
4360718
I read this book. I grew up in East New York, and actually was the fourth generation there - my ancestors moved in the area around 1900. I was part of the "exodus to the suburbs the author describes as a child-- but this simply was not the case of it being white flight.due to racism My parents moved up the social ladder, and were able to purchase a large house in the suburbs for a growing family which was their dream out on Long Island -- they like many others wanted to live in the green suburbs, and would have moved whether or not the neighborhood changed demographics. .They were following friends and family with the move. My main problem with this book is that the author describes (in his words) the white working class residents, primarily Jewish and Italian, as universally racist. His argument is that the simple increase in the number of african american and latino minorities led to white flight which destroyed East New York. Sure, some of this happened, but there was a huge increase in living standards after the Second World War that built the suburbs, and the ethnic working class residents of East New York were not alone in their desire to leave older inner cities. . I know my parents and family were anything but racist, and when I lived in East New York, I had many black friends -- the area was far from a racial war zone that the author describes The tone of the book is condescending and patronizing -- I think the author of the book, if he were to spend time interviewing actual residents he would reconsider his conclusions and realize that many of the attitudes of the white ethnic residents were not monolithic racist as he describes
2064571
Too expensive.  They tend to shift and find that they need to be repositioned after walking.
262706
The Twelve Tribes of Hattie is about the Shepherd family's journey through the turbulent decades following the Great Migration. Hattie moved from racist Georgia in hopes of a better life in Philadelphia, only to experience a dissappointing marriage and the lost of her two twin babies. The chapters in the book is about the past and present lifes of Hettie 11 children and 1 grand child. Example of some of the stories are [1]. Her daughter Cassie is suffering from metal illness and need helps. [2]. Her son Six has the gift to be a preacher but he is scarred emotionally and throwing his gift away by not pursuing it. [3]. Her son Floyd is a musician forced to hide his homosexuality because of the stigma of being gay in the black community, plus he has nobody in his family to talk to about his feelings. The book is sad and depressing because Hattie pass down her hurt onto her children and they seems to can't get out of it. A lot of heart break was bestowe on Hattie and her tribe, which they never recover from.  The book have 15 charpters and focuses on the years 1925 to 1980.

I felt Hattie pain, she left Georgia with all this promise of a better life up north, only to end up detached, bitter, unreserved and to find out racism still existed up north. I think Hattie though by moving from the south to the north life  will become automatically be easy and that wasn't the case. Things were still tough for blacks and they were still treated badly and living in poverty. For the  lack of birth controll in those days Hattie keep having children she really did not wanted. When Hattie lost her twin babies She let that one incident , change her life for ever, and dictated how she was going to be for the rest of her life towards her children and herself. By holding on to the pain she was never able to make a motherly connection with her own children because she had a wither unloving soul. Hattie children never having experienece that closeness and love had a hard time believing in themselves and reconizing their gift because of lack of love. You could of  tell that Hattie was in a bad marriage, but the book really did not focus on hattie husband, which was little strange to me. I would of love to see his intereaction with his children, unless he was a worst parent then Hattie.

Lessons learn for me is sometimes you have to let go and move on because baggage will just way you down. Just because a tragedy happended to you in life, that don't give you the right to give up on life and walk around angry for that will not solve your promblems. What you say to your kids and how you treat them do affect how they turn out later in life. Sometimes we do carry around generational curse, but we can change it, by being self conscience and being present in the moment.

I recommend this book for anybody who is looking for a good read to touch your soul. This book is very rich in details, so it will have you feeling like you know the characters. I can't wait to see  what this author will do next.
4360759
Having moved over 17 times in 15 years, it's easy to purge.  Now that we've settled into a home & lived here for a while, it's easy to see that really "purging" belongings still needs to happen even if you aren't moving...
395066
since they are small and individual they move around too much. maybe be better to connect a few together for a more solid foundation.
2883192
The matriarch of the Turner family is ailing and failing so her 13 children need to decide what to do with her home.  The oldest and youngest are the primary focus of the book and so set the stage for this African American Detroit family.  The home has lost 50% of its mortgage value and items in the home need to be disbursed but the lives, loves and and growth of the Turner siblings make this story interesting and somewhat a failure also.  There are too many characters to really deal with here and the story in my opinion is spread too thin.  Still I think I learned more about the plight on African-Americans in poor cities like Detroit.  Getting a personal story helps me understand a part of America which is rarely covered from a personal level and rarely in fiction.
1363778
This is a sad story of a family that moved forward after the Holocaust. The first 9 chapters are confusing as they jump all over time. By chapter 10 it becomes more organized and easier to read. The writing is not the best and there is a lot of repetition and excessive use of the word per. It is a work of hope in the author`s search for a half sister lost in the chaos of the holocaust.
2154950
This book was very good but then it was sad because there are alot of young males out there that come from good homes with working parents but they start hanging out with the wrong crowd that encourage them to go the wrong way and those are the people in the streets they look up 2 the drugs,guns,money,girls and nice cars with all this comes a hidden price that they don't know and that is death.
3943460
A walk around the world is taken one step at a time and that is perhaps the problem with this book.  Perhaps the author had to keep her eyes so focused on the next step that we are left with a feeling she forgot to see the world.  The world is a beautiful place and I was hoping to see more of it through her eyes.  Instead, I found someone critical of those around her and unappreciative of those offering help.  Particularly irritating was when she wrote in a broken English of those speaking it as a second language.  One reason more people do not learn another language is they are afraid native speakers will mock them.  The author showed this to be true.  Many people went out of their way to help her on her journey, particularly the Lions Clubs.  The author, however, seemed to always show little appreciation for all they did and to find fault.  I admire her work for breast cancer education, but wonder if that was really a cause she supported from her heart. . . or if it was a way to ensure help others would help her on her journey.

The book is an easy read, but seems to jump over huge sections of the walk.  I am happy that I read the book and I admire her journey.  I only wish I had been left with a feeling that the world is beautiful, rather than a feeling that the walk was generally a pain in the rear.  She seemed very sensitive to hearing people criticize Americans, yet represented her journey as if all other cultures (except the Turks) are inferior.  That is the problem.
182297
It was a feel good movie. Too many people are put into senior centers before they are ready.
4847331
Child hood being transferd to the Next Generation
2562382
Our churches have lost it.  We need to gather in our own homes and pursue Him in a circle of friends.
2491061
Almost excellent.  Too heavy to carry along..would like more on neighborhoods
2480859
Very moving book. I am sorry to say l did not know about the things that happened in this country.  Things keep disappearing from history.  That shouldn't happen. If we don't know about it then it makes easier for it to happen again. Well written. Wil recommend to friends and family.
4070713
Unfortuantely, although I love the carpet, size, and the pricing wasn't bad.  I am already getting pulls in it.  I wouldn't recommend for high traffic areas.
2992434
Stay out. Back off. Sadly we needed to remind a few folk. The sign says it for us.