Wednesday, July 11, 2012

WHAT I'M READING

FALLING IN by Frances O'Roark Dowell (2010)


About the book

Do you hear that?  The buzzing sound?  There it is again.  Bzzzzzz.  No?  Well, I really shouldn't have asked.  Most people can't hear it, anyway.  But, if you could, you'd think it sounds like you're teetering on the edge of the universe.  That's what Isabelle Bean thinks...and she's not that far from the truth.

Bzzzzzz.

You really don't hear that?

Well, it's actually not that great to have a buzzing in your ear.  It's distracting for one thing.  And when Isabelle starts listening to the buzz instead of, say, her boring teacher, strange things happen.  She gets sent to the principal's office (that's not so strange), but then, while awaiting her punishment, she tumbles into an adventure -- into another world that's a little bit different, a little bit Hansel and Gretel-y, a little bit like a fairy tale, which would be great, but...did I mention that Isabelle is an unusual dresser?  When she shows up in fairy-tale land wearing her favorite high, pointy boots, the fairy-tale people start thinking that Isabelle is a witch -- and not just any witch, but the witch!

From Edgar Award-winning author Frances O'Roark Dowell comes the unlikely story of Isabelle Bean -- an ultimate misfit, an outsider extraordinaire and not a witch!

My thoughts

This looked interesting, so I got it out of the library.  It took me awhile to get around to reading it and my enthusiasm for it had waned.  But I got my courage together and started in.  I didn't like it.  It was strange.  One of the weirdest books I had ever read and I just couldn't get into it.  I was at work, however, and lunch to boot.  I didn't want to leave the table to look for something else.  So I continued on.  About five chapters in I started to enjoy it more.  By the end of the book I was glad I had read it.  It's still one of the strangest books ever, but the story was intriguing.  I don't think it would be a book I would read again though.  I'm not even going to look for her other books.

3 comments:

  1. I can understand what you're saying.While I'm an animal lover,I am not exactly a 'cat' person.I got a book from the library titled
    "Cat Deck The Hall" by Shirley
    Rousseau Murphy.Looking for a change of pace,I thought a cat mystery might be it.Guess what? Talking cats!It seemed a bit bizzare at first but the plot was so interesting that after awhile the talking cats seemed 'normal'.
    I am waiting for the first book in this series to arrive to see how it all started. If you're a fan of cats,mysteries or both I reccomend trying one of the 'Joe
    Murphy' series. (Yes, Joe is the cat along with dulcie & Kit.)

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  2. I like the illustration on the cover of the book. It does sound intriguing. I have pushed myself to read books before...and then, sometimes it does pay off. Have you ever read any of Jane Austen? I have tried to read one or two of her books and could not get past the first chapter. It likes it's too wordy and fancy..and the funny thing is..I love really old fashioned books...but for some reason, I just can't get into Jane Austen. What do you think?

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  3. Bonnie, I know Jan Austen is a classic, but I just can't read her. Neither can my sister. So you are not alone.

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