Search This Blog
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9ju65YCCs54/YQMZoGOG8iI/AAAAAAAAC1k/K_Y_yMvRqXgg6oz46uGeqMTnF1iSZK-_QCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Labels.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0QOJU_tWYWI/YQMVHDQ7tNI/AAAAAAAAC0A/r4sbttgjGLo3_fksNbowGVtNvimxLJO3ACLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Rating-System-Graphic.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hwbTXKa37IU/YQjTSGVTUCI/AAAAAAAAC6I/zmCAXAXQQlg0ReUrcBZhbPDPLkZHinzogCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Challenges.png)
August Reviews Link-Up
September Reviews Link-Up
October Reviews Link-Up
November Reviews Link-Up
December Reviews Link-Up
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
2024 Literary Escapes Challenge
- Alabama (1)
- Alaska
- Arizona (1)
- Arkansas
- California (5)
- Colorado (1)
- Connecticut
- Delaware (1)
- Florida
- Georgia (1)
- Hawaii (1)
- Idaho (2)
- Illinois (2)
- Indiana (4)
- Iowa (1)
- Kansas (1)
- Kentucky (1)
- Louisiana (1)
- Maine (1)
- Maryland
- Massachusetts (2)
- Michigan (1)
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska (1)
- Nevada (1)
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey (1)
- New Mexico (1)
- New York (5)
- North Carolina (4)
- North Dakota
- Ohio (1)
- Oklahoma (1)
- Oregon (2)
- Pennsylvania (2)
- Rhode Island (1)
- South Carolina (1)
- South Dakota
- Tennessee (1)
- Texas (3)
- Utah (1)
- Vermont (2)
- Virginia (2)
- Washington (2)
- West Virginia (1)
- Wisconsin (1)
- Wyoming
- Washington, D.C.* (1)
International:
- Australia (2)
- Canada (2)
- England (12)
- France (1)
- Indonesia (1)
- Ireland (4)
- Italy (1)
- Scotland (2)
- The Netherlands (1)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
2024 Build Your Library Reading Challenge
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
Friday, March 20, 2015
Overly Ambitious Southern Novel Just Okay
1:00 AM
(Image from Barnes & Noble)
When a freak bicycle accident takes her husband's life, Vidrine Bell snaps. Needing "time to think," she dumps her 11-year-old daughter in Louisiana, at the home of the girl's paternal grandmother. Liberty "Ibby" Bell has never seen anything like New Orleans, let alone the giant, crumbling mansion in which she's going to be living. Then, there's Frances "Fannie" Hadley Bell, Ibby's eccentric grandmother who's been in and out of the insane asylum for years. Queenie, the maid who "came with the house," warns Ibby never to bring up Fannie's past and never to ask questions if Fannie brings it up.
Intrigued by all the secrets swirling around the big old house, Ibby slowly learns about her family's history. Under the tutelage of Queenie and her outspoken daughter, Dollbaby, she also gets an education about how to get along in the 1960s South. As Ibby's friendship with Queenie's granddaughter grows, she gets a taste of the vicious racism of which some people are capable. Despite the friction, Ibby feels her new home and family growing on her. What once was foreign is now not just familiar, but also comforting. As her definition of family changes, Ibby wonders what will happen when—and if—her mother comes to take her away. Can she leave behind The Big Easy, with all its charms, secrets, and people she's grown to love?
Told in the alternating voices of Ibby, Dollbaby and Fannie, Dollbaby by Laura Lane McNeal oscillates between the past and the present. It tells a compelling story, made even more layered by the different voices through which it is filtered. The novel definitely rambles in a way that feels unfocused and over-reaching, like the author's trying to cover a little too much territory. Much of it feels cliché as well as predictable. While these things tarnished my enjoyment of the novel, overall, Dollbaby kept me reading. In the end, I didn't love it, didn't hate it, just found it okay.
(Readalikes: Reminded me a bit of The Help by Kathryn Stockett)
Grade:
If this were a movie, it would be rated:
for language, violence, depictions of illegal drug use, and sexual innuendo/content
To the FTC, with love: I bought a copy of Dollbaby from Amazon with a portion of the millions I make from my lucrative career as a book blogger. Ha ha.
2 comments:
Comments make me feel special, so go crazy! Just keep it clean and civil. Feel free to speak your mind (I always do), but be aware that I will delete any offensive comments.
P.S.: Don't panic if your comment doesn't show up right away. I have to approve each one before it posts to prevent spam. It's annoying, but it works!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments
(Atom)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cPsmI6fV-kc/YQMZqkNeYCI/AAAAAAAAC14/a2xgvRRYytsH3ehZMsNzwi4PVR45a96KQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m2maEbsnUgY/YQMVGk_UR7I/AAAAAAAACz8/6Tx47XZHT18GFtwsvZBNMOjeQvsoZk6qQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Profile-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LXBQqGKIH30/YQOYa2Zq9VI/AAAAAAAAC4E/B_31e6N16kwjS7Uhbpa2dEEw8EU0ZQVxgCLcBGAsYHQ/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yBdQ2JS_gQY/YQB2R73SsLI/AAAAAAAACwY/xTL5eHNKigIiAKoRhqsASUALTDSQImXzgCLcBGAsYHQ/Currently.png)
Reading
Homecoming by Kate Morton
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jKRGUyn8kjs/YQjOU0JIQII/AAAAAAAAC5U/6H9FjxgUH9wLONHpZWgQrK4C0YavH87PQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
Listening
The Good Neighbor by Maxwell King
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ec22DVIM-UU/YQjOcWbk1uI/AAAAAAAAC5Y/5hjtvhTyr-QRpMJC9jDsy-2bRYfUB1CNwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6j8N1OBcXfw/YQB2UtRazWI/AAAAAAAACwc/oUaRB_BwwwoCF4qqYl251gleJcKCQ5DfACLcBGAsYHQ/Followin.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kt1d5YgZW8U/YQjOjZTTisI/AAAAAAAAC5c/vkqebMnPUIUp-wA7EZiXJaHG51TJqE44gCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
Followin' with Bloglovin'
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cM5XjayVoeE/YQjOqY_3NhI/AAAAAAAAC5g/m1Yehkr7cHcdSlAc0cBw9SfaiMARUzbrQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DeEZ_W0hRcs/YQGFSAW1m-I/AAAAAAAACw0/OqEnYd4jT30aMmIEMxeIuy6Q2WA5c8vMACLcBGAsYHQ/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7Jac0BeZqPw/YQQtdapbKXI/AAAAAAAAC4Y/lefnXaWOZ40DjtltMTAkHB0solqEMSfDwCLcBGAsYHQ/Book-Bloggin-Buddies.png)
-
Bookish Quote of the Day!!!2 hours ago
-
-
-
Planning for the August 2024 Readathin9 hours ago
-
Conclave by Robert Harris10 hours ago
-
-
Love at First Sip15 hours ago
-
Verghese, Abraham "The Covenant of Water"15 hours ago
-
-
First Lines Fridays: July 26, 202419 hours ago
-
Daily Prompt, do you have a nickname?22 hours ago
-
-
-
-
-
-
Under the Shadows by Tony Mcfadden2 days ago
-
Review: Where the Crawdads Sing2 days ago
-
Lost Man's Lane by Scoot Carson3 days ago
-
Girl Plus Books: On Hiatus3 days ago
-
-
-
Sunday Post4 days ago
-
Operation: Happy4 days ago
-
Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth5 days ago
-
57. Beezus and Ramona6 days ago
-
-
I have been reading...1 week ago
-
-
-
What to read after ACOTAR2 weeks ago
-
-
-
July TBR??4 weeks ago
-
Reading Recap May 20241 month ago
-
-
-
-
-
-
What Happened to Summer?9 months ago
-
-
-
-
-
-
Are you looking for Pretty Books?1 year ago
-
-
-
-
-
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WlOsbigXPAo/YQjOwPZjmQI/AAAAAAAAC5o/X06IWM9W540rI8dcJ84eXjEKJxpU--6fQCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
Grab my Button!
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jkrtITgtnts/YQMVGT_JnzI/AAAAAAAACz0/tVsCbtU49pAw-eTZhbxIDVgmBCq1p50NgCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Blog-Button.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qblGIfaI_nU/YQBYilqciAI/AAAAAAAACu4/fLV-BLir1oEPvKKYMwiJjkGrUvuvqycAQCLcBGAsYHQ/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-43C9IRtcPII/YQjO-neQTRI/AAAAAAAAC5w/O7sznoKoOmYLdMqi1MNY9sf69XpkWrKDACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
Blog Archive
- ► 2021 (159)
- ► 2020 (205)
- ► 2019 (197)
- ► 2018 (223)
- ► 2017 (157)
- ► 2016 (157)
- ▼ 2015 (188)
- ► 2014 (133)
- ► 2013 (183)
- ► 2012 (193)
- ► 2011 (232)
- ► 2010 (257)
- ► 2009 (211)
- ► 2008 (192)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bjq74pdrNFQ/YQjSMFgJlJI/AAAAAAAAC54/Wbq-prBj1aYCl-vihijXSZ6zHv6DNKN_ACLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Sidebar-Divider-Image.png)
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UShGi8xkRrQ/YQjSavqjfxI/AAAAAAAAC58/wLq0szR5ZHomOWSjM7ly9hUr7iaynw3zwCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/Misc.png)
2023 - Middle Grade Fiction
2022 - Middle Grade Fiction
2021 - Middle Grade Fiction
![2021 - Middle Grade Fiction](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j53Rs_dfIi0/YUuWuzOzSvI/AAAAAAAArR4/J6vZReWKO2U_-1sxvyfw5FozVPSMOF3RwCLcBGAsYHQ/s600/Cybils%2BAwards%2BRound%2B1%2BJudge%2BButton%2B2021.png)
2020 - Middle Grade Fiction
![2020 - Middle Grade Fiction](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SeV8NCN0Ulo/YUuWkUfKiHI/AAAAAAAArR0/n90sz1FZ1vcqhb3cTDAUlONiPESx1WieACLcBGAsYHQ/s300/Cybils%2BAwards%2BRound%2B1%2BJudge%2BButton%2B2020.png)
Sigh. What's with all the lack lustre books for us lately. Well, with me anyway. Sorry this one was only so so. At least it kept you reading.
ReplyDeleteThe premise of this is definitely intriguing but the fact that it was predictable and unfocused is a bit disappointing. This is the kind of book that I think would have to be really special or I wouldn't enjoy it. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDelete