Tuesday, July 29, 2008

The Dead and the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer


For being a companion to an earlier book, this story stood remarkably well on its own. I liked how the family's faith played strongly into the story but yet I didn't feel preached at, and the characters felt alive and authentic to me. Equal parts thought-provoking and heartwarming and gut-wrenching. Not necessarily the best book I've ever read, but I'll give this one a Thumbs Up for now.

3 comments:

Patty said...

I was excited to read this one and thought it was good. Not as groundbreaking for me as the first one. I think I'll have to give it a NAY.

Deb Motley said...

I agree with Patty. I liked this well enough, but I was riveted by the first one. If I had read this first, would I have been just as riveted? Don't know. I give it a maybe.

kathy said...

I couldn't stand the writing and started nit picking from the beginning. The dialogue seemed trite liberally peppered with "said". I was annoyed with Uncle Jimmy for not telling the children straight off what was happening and leaving Brianna at home, ignorant of the pending disaster while Julie and Alex help empty Jimmy's shop. Then days pass and none of Alex's extended family checks in on the three children to see how they are doing.

I couldn't bear to trudge through the inevitable "suspense/horror" emotional rollercoaster of the impending apocalypse. I'm happy to hear a dissenting voice, but I think my dislike for the writing was more than just personal preference; it felt like an ill-wrought style unfulfilled. NAY