Review: Bill Warrington's Last Chance

Author: James King

Genre: Fiction (2010)

About:  Bill Warrington, an ex-marine in the early stages of Alzheimer's, uses his granddaughter to reconnect with his own children, who think he killed their mother.

Descriptive Words:  Dysfunctional family, Alzheimer's

Overall: It was okay. A bit too corny, but would make for a good Lifetime Movie Channel movie. 

Liked...Bill Warrington's realistic Alzheimers' symptoms of forgetfulness and memory loss and the way he used humor to try to cover them up. As the story progressed, so did his disease, which was sad but real. I also liked the easy-to-read writing.

Didn't like...the cheesiness of the story nor Bill Warrington's daughter Marcy (see below).

Source: Library

Why I chose: I saw it in People (or Oprah?) magazine and thought it looked good.

Recommend?  Probably not.

Rating: 3.5 /5

Other Reviews:  Some people on Goodreads complained that Bill Warrington was unlikeable because he was so ornery and rude. But this could have been caused by the Alzheimers' or by flashbacks from his time in the Marines, so I didn't have a problem with it. Personally, I didn't like his daughter Marcy, who was mean and disrespectful to her dad, often calling him "Billy Boy."

Review: Strangers at the Feast

Author: Jennifer Vanderbes
Also Wrote: Easter Island

Genre: Fiction

About:  Three generations of the Olson family gather on Thanksgiving in 2007. Hosting the dinner is single daughter Ginny, who will be introducing her newly adopted daughter from India. The chain of doom is set in motion when Ginny’s oven fails and they decide to move the gathering to her brother Douglas' house.  At the same time, 17-year-old Kijo Jackson and his best friend Spider set out from a housing project intent on carrying out a job. Their two worlds collide in a string of tragic events.

Descriptive Words: Dysfunction, tragedy, coincidence, misfortune, death

Overall:  Enjoyed

Liked 

• how well formed and slowly each character was introduced.
• how dysfunctional - bordering on unlikeable - each family member was - and just like watching MTVs Real World, I couldn't tear myself away. 
• how the story went back and forth between past and present and from character to character but in an organized, easy-to-keep-track way.
• that I couldn't put the book down because I wanted to find out about the impending "tragic events" that were mentioned but not disclosed until the very end.

Didn't Like

• the vague ending, and I'm not sure if it's the ending itself I didn't like or that the story was over! I don't like when books end and I think, That's it? It's over? Just like that? I like when I close the book and think, Oh, that was soooo good!  I've been critical of the last few book endings I've read.

Source: Library

Why I Chose: I was intrigued by the storyline and synopsis of "tragic events."

Recommend? Yes

Rating: 4/5