Rating: 
Summary: A Dickens of a tale.
Review: Can a growing girl be more of a parent to her child-like mom than her mom is to her?Is abortion sometimes a reasonable answer to teen pregnancy? Do parental alcoholism, immorality, neglect, and borderline insanity necessarily result in a permanently damaged child? Can a child, raised in an extreme emotional, physical and moral environment, form positive loving bonds with anyone? Is escape from an unbearable present into an artistic and intellectual safe haven necessarily more redemptive than escape into drugs, alcohol, and socially destructive behaviors? These and other disturbing social questions are gently and thoroughly explored in this masterfully crafted stealth social commentary wrapped in a surprisingly deceptive coming of age novel. In fact, a major reviewer suggests that it might be a YA choice: and so it might, but if only that, it will be to the detriment of all readers. Ms. Whiteford's impeccably translucent prose her discerning eye, and her philosopher's love of exploring large questions as simply as possible make this a book whose truths will be mined through many readings, the grateful reader gaining insight with each one. As Spinoza reminds us, 'All things excellent are as difficult as they are rare.' This must have been a very difficult book to bring into being as it is indeed excellent and the ability to tell such a tale with such simplicity is truly rare. Brava
Rating:
Summary: heartbreaking and funny
Review: I am on a high that is a blend of many deep emotions having just finished Merry Whiteford's third book, IF WISHES WERE HORSES.
I.W.W.H. is a smasher: difficult to put down for a start and plain impossible for the last two thirds. Terrific foundations are laid and then built on until a new structure, solid, original, and satisfying. The more specific Mildred and Star and Pig become the more their essences twang and resonate with my own. They are wonderful creations. Mildred is supreme, one of the finest pieces of sculpture created by pen that I have come across.
I was charmed by the sure yet so delicate artistry in the crescendoing creation of Mildred until I no longer wished her to walk into the room; she arrived here, vividly present. Star's coming to see Mildred as exactly who she is, - and who Mildred is, is plenty, and indeed enough - saves Star and allows her to grow up. By transcending Mildred's self deceptions Star becomes herself and being now separate from Mildred it is easy to love her.
Thank you, Ms Whiteford. NEXT PLEASE!
Rating:
Summary: If Wishes Were Horses
Review: I felt this book quite personally; I deeply indentified with Star and found her journey painful, moving and redemptive. I couldn't put this novel down and had to read it cover-to-cover straight through. I recommend this book to any serious reader.
Rating:
Summary: If Wishes Were Horses
Review: I felt this book quite personally; I deeply indentified with Star and found her journey painful, moving and redemptive. I couldn't put this novel down and had to read it cover-to-cover straight through. I recommend this book to any serious reader.
Rating:
Summary: If Wishes Were Horses
Review: I found this book to be smart and insightful. It paints a picture of characters that are flawed, human, slightly unpredictable but convincing. The story moves quickly and leaves the reader needing to see the resolution. I loved this book and would highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: If Wishes Were Horses
Review: I found this book to be smart and insightful. It paints a picture of characters that are flawed, human, slightly unpredictable but convincing. The story moves quickly and leaves the reader needing to see the resolution. I loved this book and would highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Whiteford's finest work yet!
Review: If Wishes Were Horses is about a teen-age girl, but it is a novel for everyone. The struggles are common human problems, but they are addressed with uncommon insight and care. The story is narrated by Star, a sixteen year girl living in a foster home with her brother and two other teenage boys. Star's mother is a prostitute, an alcoholic and an ex-con. She visits her children in foster care occasionally, and Star visits her mother in flashbacks. These visits reveal the embarrassment and abuse Star has suffered through her mother's neglect. They are more then sufficient to justify Star's total rejection of her mother, but this is not where the story goes. Star is resolute in her efforts to maintain her affection for her mother, and her efforts are rendered credible by Star's narrative. Star shows us how she sees her mother and other people in her life. We are spared pseudo-psychological analyses; instead we read of what Star sees in the people around her--their acts, their gestures, their comments. In these descriptions the affections of people who have been hit hard by life or lost their grip on life peek through. Such affection could be easily overlooked but is not. Star sees the love in her mother, and, through her poetic gifts she allows us to see it too. Star's ability to see those around her with generosity and honesty is at the heart of the story, and at the heart of the reader's admiration for her.
The reader, I think, will come to admire Star but will not see her as too good to be true. The plot is built around her slightly outlaw life with the other foster children and her unwanted pregnancy. Her efforts to solve the problems created by the pregnancy drive the plot and keep one wondering how she will resolve the situation. Her attempts at resolution lead to more problems that a less naive person might well have avoided. Star's gift is to see the capacity for love and affection in the midst of weakness and tragedy, and she applies that gift to herself as well.
Merry Whiteford has written an excellent novel. Star and her mother are characters who will linger with you. I find myself returning to the closing scenes of the novel with a fondness for mother and daughter and for what they can still mean to each other.
Rating:
Summary: Uncommon Love
Review: If Wishes Were Horses is about a teen-age girl, but it is a novel for everyone. The struggles are common human problems, but they are addressed with uncommon insight and care. The story is narrated by Star, a sixteen year girl living in a foster home with her brother and two other teenage boys. Star's mother is a prostitute, an alcoholic and an ex-con. She visits her children in foster care occasionally, and Star visits her mother in flashbacks. These visits reveal the embarrassment and abuse Star has suffered through her mother's neglect. They are more then sufficient to justify Star's total rejection of her mother, but this is not where the story goes. Star is resolute in her efforts to maintain her affection for her mother, and her efforts are rendered credible by Star's narrative. Star shows us how she sees her mother and other people in her life. We are spared pseudo-psychological analyses; instead we read of what Star sees in the people around her--their acts, their gestures, their comments. In these descriptions the affections of people who have been hit hard by life or lost their grip on life peek through. Such affection could be easily overlooked but is not. Star sees the love in her mother, and, through her poetic gifts she allows us to see it too. Star's ability to see those around her with generosity and honesty is at the heart of the story, and at the heart of the reader's admiration for her.
The reader, I think, will come to admire Star but will not see her as too good to be true. The plot is built around her slightly outlaw life with the other foster children and her unwanted pregnancy. Her efforts to solve the problems created by the pregnancy drive the plot and keep one wondering how she will resolve the situation. Her attempts at resolution lead to more problems that a less naive person might well have avoided. Star's gift is to see the capacity for love and affection in the midst of weakness and tragedy, and she applies that gift to herself as well.
Merry Whiteford has written an excellent novel. Star and her mother are characters who will linger with you. I find myself returning to the closing scenes of the novel with a fondness for mother and daughter and for what they can still mean to each other.
Rating:
Summary: A Heartbreakingly Wonderful Read
Review: If Wishes Were Horses is an absolutely beautiful story of difficult, sometimes tragic, relationships -- and the grace that can come from them. The central character copes with unspeakable loss, yet her toughness and street smarts are not what allows her to triumph in the end, as is so often the case in a coming of age novel; instead, the author deftly and magically creates a young woman whose sensitivity, intelligence, and generosity of spirit win us over. Merry Whiteford does not stick to cliches and worn notions about good parenting and healthy human development--she is willing to explore the gray areas of relationships that make life rich, complex, and real. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the lessons within it.
Rating:
Summary: Captivating, page-turner... By far her best!!!
Review: If you would like to dust of the cobwebs of your mind, be stimulated beyond casual thought, and excogitate the well-developed characters Ms. Whiteford creates... turn off the phone and settle back for an entralling adventure into literary excellence at it's best! I can't wait for more from this from this author!
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