Rating: 
Summary: A Must Read and A Beautiful Book!!
Review: I can't remember being moved by a book like I was by this one. This was the first time I felt the need to write a review, and I have been telling every reader I know put this one at the top of his or her list. One cousin read my copy, then immediately bought one for herself and one for her mother. You will love Grandma Rose, and sympathize with her and with her family who face a difficult decision. If you have been faced with problems surrounding elderly parents and/or grandparents, you will identify with the characters, and will be moved to tears. I find it hard to believe this was a first novel. Lisa Wingate will have a hard time topping this one but I look forward to more. Please read this book. It deserves recognition.
Rating:
Summary: If you only read one book this year, READ THIS ONE!
Review: I COULD NOT put this book down. I stayed up all night reading, slept for three hours in the morning, then got up and started reading again. I bought a copy of this book through a Z-shop a few days ago, and since then I have been telling everyone they must read Tending Roses! I am buying copies for all of my daughters, sisters, and friends. This book has it all-- a wonderful story, charaters who are real and compelling, and beautiful family memories delivered by a grandmother to a granddaughter. When you read it, you will laugh often, and cry often, but you will be very touched by Kate and Grandma Rose. Both ornery, wise, and loving, Grandma Rose is a character I will never forget. I can not wait to see this author's next book. I love to read, but I have never, ever been affected like this by a book before.
Rating:
Summary: Messages for today's society
Review: "Tending Roses" was a book picked for an online book club I am in. It is not a book that I would have ever picked up on my own, so I am extremely glad that I am a part of this book club. Kate Bowman and her husband Ben and infant son Joshua have temporarily moved from Chicago to Hindsville, MO to prepare Kate's grandmother, Rose Vongortler, for an impending move to a nursing home. Grandma Rose has recently had a stroke and though she has physically recovered, her mental abilities come and go. Her daughter, Jeane and son Jack (Kate's father) decided a nursing home was best when Grandma Rose left the iron on and nearly burned down her house. While Kate is there, Grandma Rose has a few other household accidents. The focus of this book is how Kate comes to realize that though Grandma Rose is unable to care for herself, she still has much wisdom to impart - which she does by means of a journal that she places strategically for Kate to read. This book has many messages about us and our society - simplifying life, caring for the elderly and so on. It is a wonderful read and will certainly make you think!
Rating:
Summary: In my top 5 best ever read!
Review: I have read thousands of books and upon completition of this book, it was bumped into my top 5 best ever read. In fact I was so impressed with this book I went in and bought several copies to give out to other people. I also wrote the author to tell her how impacted I was by this novel. I told her I felt this was a book from her heart and it was beautifully written. I also ordered her other book and look forward to the two others coming out, although I doubt she can top this one! I read a review that said I would laugh and cry and they were absolutely right, although I cried more than I laughed, not because it was sad but because her words touched my heart. It is a wonderful read and I am telling everone I can about it. I ordered this book after I read all the other wonderful reviews. Don't hesitate, order it now!
Rating:
Summary: Feeling Blessed with the memories...
Review: As a reviewer of non-fiction research, I read very few fiction books, but this is a keeper that I will return to. Through laughter and tears Wingate took me back to my own childhood, my walk through adulthood...and my cherished memories of time on the farm, tending flowers, and learning from mom and grandma. An exceptional book for those who love life, family, and quiet times at home with loved ones.
Rating:
Summary: Tending Roses
Review: A thought provoking book. I promise you, if you open this book and start to read, you will savor every moment-cover to cover.
Not many books will take you on this kind of journey.
It's a great book for adults and teenagers. It should be on everyones reading list and should be considered for many an award.
I'm sure you will enjoy it, plus you will learn a thing or two about-- the beginning and ending of our lives, and all the good stuff that goes in the middle.
Rating:
Summary: This book allowed me to stop and smell the roses.
Review: Excellent!! I read this book straight through as I was traveling home from business. I immediately connected with the characters and the conflict of career vs family. Definitely a must for anyone wanting to get back to the basics in life. Looking forward to the authors next book.
Rating:
Summary: A thoughtful insight of life
Review: I am normally the one that recommends books to my mother ~~ this time, she recommended it for me to read. She told me that this would be the best bookclub read ever ~~ and she's right. This is definitely one of the best books I've read in quite awhile. It is inspirational, thoughtful and full of wisdom. I couldn't put it down ~~ and reading it also coincided with my uncle's death ~~ so it really made me stop and think about what this book is trying to tell me.
Kate comes home from the big city to her grandparents' farm ~~ to help her grandmother and to break the news to her that soon, grandma will have to go to a nursing home. Kate and her husband, Ben, expected to stay there for a couple of weeks ~~ till after Christmas, at the very least. Ben and Kate have an infant, mounting medical bills and other worries. Kate also feels isolated from her husband ~~ as well as perturbed about her grandmother's upcoming move into a nursing home. Coming home to the farm meant many things to Kate.
Her grandmother leaves out short stories for her to read at different times of her stay ~~ and they're like little pearls of wisdom ~~ my favorite is: "The best times of my life, the times that passed by me the most quickly, were the times when the roses grew wild." (You will find this quote on the backjacket of the book.) It struck a little too close to home ~~ here I am in the daily frentic rush of toddlerhood with two little boys and remembering loved ones that have gone on before us ~~ this book was read in the exact right time.
But even so, you don't have to read this book in the busiest time of your life ~~ this is a must-read for all women who wants to remember their most favorite times in life. This is a wonderful read ~~ sad and rejoiceful and thoughtful. It is a book that women will love to share with their friends and family. It's about a young woman growing up and reconnecting with her past, her grandmother and with her future as well as her present. It is just a delightful book!
11-5-04
Rating:
Summary: Lisa Wingate has a gift!
Review: Beautifully written from the first paragraph. This is truly a story that draws the reader in and keeps them entranced in the tale. Yes, I laughed and I cried, but I didn't put the book down until it was finished. The characters are absolutely delightful, and many were people whom I could relate to from parts of my life.
I was so touched, I recommended the book to both of my sisters. One of them read Tending Roses and loaned it to one of her friends. It's now being loaned to another friend. So, consequently, my book is on its own "book tour"!
Because I couldn't get enough of Lisa Wingate's eloquent writing, I had to run out and purchase her second book, Good Hope Road. It was absolutely wonderful too!
Now I'm off to read her third, Texas Cooking. Lisa, keep up the good work and thank you for providing us with wonderful inspirational stories.
Rating:
Summary: "maybe you should want less" says her grandma
Review: Beautiful and inspiring. Kate Bowman and her husband, Ben, and their baby Josh, go to stay with her grandmother who is getting senile and unable to take care of herself. They are to try and prepare her grandmother to accept the fact that she will have to leave the farm and go to a resthome. Kate's family have drifted apart and there are some hard feelings felt that need to be addressed among them and hopefully when they all come for Christmas things will get straightened out. Although Kate has gone to influence her grandmother, what she learns from her grandmother is more than she bargained for. Kate and her husband have accumulated many bills from an unexpected health problem of their baby and house, boat, etc. payments are due and they are fighting to keep their heads above water. When she confesses her problems to her grandmother, her grandmother replies, "maybe you should want less." Is this not true for all of us, in some form or another. How many of us think we have to have the big t.v.s, boats, swimming pools, cars, etc. and end up taking a loan out or use the credit card to buy them and then end up in debt and if we'd just not want as much how much better off we would be. We learn from reading the book that sometimes we don't see the real important things in life until it is too late. Stop and smell the roses and look around and see what we are blessed with and be grateful. It is sometimes the small things that end up being the most important. Family, friends and most important of all is God, through Jesus Christ, and the grace he has given us. As I say this, the book itself, is not a preachy book but one that will open up your hearts and make you think. Enjoy!
|
