The Daisy Chain, or Aspirations

(3 stars)

Diane Shearer

I’m not sure how I feel about it, honestly. There are parts where I was on the edge of my seat, parts where I cried my eyes out, and parts when I was bored stiff and could barely pay attention. It didn’t make me laugh. I like the May family very much, but they really are very goody two shoes. There is a natural tendency to dislike do-gooders, yet they are not the least Pecksniffian, each totally devoted to the welfare of the others. Even the paralytic manages to survive for seven years. In 1855? I doubt it. Also, you can’t dislike a family that suffers so many tragedies. I am a Believer, so I can appreciate that their faith is the foundation of their lives, their ability to rise above tragedy, their desire to make the lives of the people around them better, and I value the faith of the woman who brought these fictional characters to life. If you are not a believer I think you would find them all ridiculous, preachy, and boring. I can’t recommend the reading. There are a lot of them and only a couple are worth listening to. This is a book I would listen to at double speed on Audible, which you can’t do here, sadly. I might have given it four stars with a professional Reader. At least 3 1/2. Or maybe not. I doubt I will ever read this again, but I will probably never forget it either.

I quit

(3 stars)

berenike

Ms Goslin doesn't seem to understand what she's reading and all her emphasis comes on the wrong word. But I quit when the reader of chapter 5 pronounced Blanche Blan-shay.

(5 stars)

A LibriVox Listener

Very nice book, takes a little to get into it but there’s actually a lot going on