awesomeness :)

Feb. 26th, 2009 at 4:19 PM

"When summer comes to the North Woods, time slows down. And some days it stops altogether. The sky, gray and lowering for much of the year, becomes an ocean of blue, so vast and brilliant you can't help but stop what you're doing - pinning wet sheets to the line maybe, or shucking a bushel of corn on the back steps - to stare up at it. Locusts whir in the birches, coaxing you out of the sun and under the boughs,and the heat stills the air, heavy and sweet with the scent of balsam."

Wth a first paragraph like that, you already know the book is going to be really good. Oh, this is one of my favorite books of all time. i read it a long time ago. Then I re-read it again and realized I've never done a review on this. Let me tell you one thing...this is an amazing book. Like I said, it's one of my absolute favorites.

A NORTHERN LIGHT

The story is beautifully and amazingly told - the choices that Mattie has to make, the events that are happening around her. She felt real to me, like she's an actual person that exists beyond the pages of the book itself. I actually felt like that for all the characters. You know it's a good book when you love all the characters. Well, all the "good" characters.
The story starts kind of in the middle, I guess, where they found Grace Brown's body in the lake, and Mattie remembers the stack of letters Grace had previously given her and instructed her to burn. Later though, it is revealed through those letters the fact that Grace had been murdered as opposed to simply having drowned in the lake.
What I love though, is how Jennifer Donnelly (that would be zeh author) ties the story of Grace Brown into the life of Mattie Gokey. Mattie wants to be a writer, to go to college in New York. But it all seems impossible because of her duty to her family, their farm, and a certain promise. I felt like I was living in her life along with her. It's just the way the words are - it draws you in. Whether it be scenes on the farm or activities at the Glenmore....they all seem so real, as I've already said.
And I love Weaver. I think he might be my favorite character. He's very intelligent (although sometimes does some very stupid things). He's logical (as long as someone doesn't insult his race) and practical. I like his Mama too. She's so sweet. I feel like I personally know all of these people.
I wish I could have met Lawton though....that would be Mattie's older brother. He never actually shows up in the book, but they say alot of things about him.
I was rather pleased with the ending. When I was reading through it for the first time, I kind of wanted her to stay with Royal, but after I finsh the book I'm glad that she chose to go on.

Ahhh....it's a perfect book :)

Music: still listening to Celtic Woman...