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The Sickroom (2000)

by Shayna Krishnasamy(Favorite Author)

3 of 5 Votes: 4

languge

English

genre

review 1: Starting on a positive note, the story itself was really good and for this I would have rated the book 4 stars.However, as another reviewer has said, it reads like a rough copy and if this book has done anything for me then it has made me realise the value of an editor. I was constantly irritated by grammatical errors, incorrect use of words such as 'their' instead of 'there', 'wretch instead of 'retch' and an obsessional use of parentheses. Whole paragraphs would be within parentheses and then sentences within them. I am not a grammatical expert by any means but I didn't feel that any of them were used correctly. The author appeared to be using them to indicate future happenings but it was just confusing and irritating.The only reason I persevered with the book was be... morecause I had paid for it and once I'd got about halfway through I was able to get into the characters enough for the writing to be less of an irritation. Because the story itself was good I have given it 2 stars otherwise it would have been a 1.
review 2: I love reading up-and-coming Canadian authors, and this one didn’t disappoint! What I liked most about the story was the tone. It was full of melancholy. I think the author really captured that moment in late childhood when you don’t really know who you are, or what you are, but you know you’ll have to decide soon. It’s a sad time in life for some – the end of childhood – and this is what the story focuses on. I liked Macon, the little cousin with a gift for painting, and the world she and Jacob live in for that one summer. This is one passage that I especially enjoyed because of the juxtaposition of Macon's elation and Jacob's betrayal:"The plan was a success. Together, later, we celebrated with a stack of toffee crunches Aunt Vera had baked the day before, five each. She told me she would start painting the next morning, and the way she said it, so eager, made my insides ache. She didn’t know that I hardly cared, that I’d found a faster, better game to play. She didn’t know yet—as she filled her bulging cheeks with sweets, high with sugar and triumph—that I’d already left her behind."The ending is a little tragic and very real. Time fast-forwards six years and you see the characters thrown together for a short time, now grown-up. I liked how Macon was painted as an apathetic teenager, while Jacob is drunk and silly. It was a nice contrast to their relationship when they were younger. All in all, I highly recommend this novella! less

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