Ship Sooner : A Novel

Rating:
Summary: A Tremendous Tale
Review: Every few years I have the good fortune to read a truly remarkable book. Mary Sullivan's most recent novel, "Ship Sooner," fits the bill. This novel is an exceedingly well crafted example of deft storytelling. The refreshingly original idea behind the tale -- a girl possesses remarkable powers of hearing -- is subtly and evocatively developed, holding the reader's interest until the very last page. "Ship Sooner" is a tremendous book that will stand the test of time, not only for its great story line and original underlying idea but also for its intriguing exploration of relationships between people from the angle of an "ordinary" person with an extraordinary power of perception.

Rating:
Summary: A Tremendous Tale
Review: Every few years I have the good fortune to read a truly remarkable book. Mary Sullivan's most recent novel, "Ship Sooner," fits the bill. This novel is an exceedingly well crafted example of deft storytelling. The refreshingly original idea behind the tale -- a girl possesses remarkable powers of hearing -- is subtly and evocatively developed, holding the reader's interest until the very last page. "Ship Sooner" is a tremendous book that will stand the test of time, not only for its great story line and original underlying idea but also for its intriguing exploration of relationships between people from the angle of an "ordinary" person with an extraordinary power of perception.

Rating:
Summary: Heartwarming and Heart Wrenching
Review: Everyone in a small Massachusetts town has secrets and they are all building up and beginning to make quite a racket in Ship's head.

When Ship was only two years old her father left, leaving her mother to take care of Ship and her older sister Helen. Her mom has a hard time talking about why he left.

Helen is going through teen angst and acting out all the time. Her mother's best friend Trudy is battling health problems and the fact that she's in love with the town priest.

Ship is stunned to have found out secrets about her sister while spying on her. And just when things are getting too disturbing for Ship to handle, her best friend Brian disappears. Ship's world begins to crumble all around her.

For a girl who can hear the flick of a lighter or the batting of an eye lash without being in the same room, suddenly she feels like she cannot hear enough. There are too many questions that need answering now. Ship Sooner sets out on a journey to find the truth and makes shocking discoveries on the way.

This is a heartwarming and heart wrenching story. Mary Sullivan will captivate readers with her lyrical prose and meticulous style. The residents of Herrington, Massachusetts that Sullivan has created are eccentric and well developed.

Rating:
Summary: A Must Read
Review: I could not put this book down once I picked it up! It is a story of a bright innocent child who is uplifting and sweet. I was immediately intrigued by this child and wanted to follow on her journey of betrayal, discovery, and ultimately unconditional family love. This is a story not only of an exceptional character but of relationships within families and neighborhoods- how things change, twist, and turn yet home is most important. The discoveries that the main character Ship makes in her world bring back the true rawness of life. The book will not only remind you of adolescence but also question your current views of neighbors and choices. I would definately recommend reading this book!

Rating:
Summary: A Must Read
Review: Mary Sullivan's "Ship Sooner" reads like the incredible journey. Ship is a young adolescent that has been blessed with exceptional hearing. Her hearing is so acute that she can hear what is whispered within houses and hear the sound of rain falling. As a result, she is bombarded with information that is often inexplicable. She regards information in the adult world with a naive innocence. The supporting characters are well-drawn in Mary Sullivan's amazing prose. Ship's mother Theresa is a wonderful earth mother who raises two daughters including Ship's extremely attractive older sister Helen. Trudy who is a friend of the family that battles cardiac problems is also a great character.

Subplot complications arise as Ship's best friend Brian hides a family secret. His attraction for Ship's older sister results in his being sent away to military school. Helen's indiscretions lead Ship to find a mysterious stranger in the woods. This is the part of the tale that I found most frustrating. It is clear to the reader that Ship's newfound stranger needs to be taken to a hospital for medical attention, yet she spends the last third of the book trying to avoid any adult assistance. In most of the major events of Ship's life, she internalizes the information without communicating to her single mother who is preoccupied with the business of baking pies and helping Trudy in her health struggles. Because of this, we have a youngster that seems to be emotionally at sea with no anchor of a friend or family member to confide in or rely on. She wonders about her father who she cannot recall and never finds that leaves an open unresolved feeling to the story's conclusion. Sullivan's excellent prose lifts the story to reveal the universality and perplexities of youth. Enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: Leads you into the true tragedies of a teenager's life
Review: Mary Sullivian captures the true image of what somebody who is different can feel. This girl, Ship Sooner, can hear more than what she should and this curses her in a way that any girl could be cursed. Mary Sullivian leads you into Ship's life full of tragedies and unexpected happenings. She allows you to feel what Ship feels in her descriptive manner of writting, by telling only the truth of what can be. This book will pull you in and won't let you out till the very end. It is deftly written by the hand of an author who can only write the very best.

Rating:
Summary: Surreal...
Review: Set in a sleepy New England town whose main industry is a candy factory, this is the story of the books title character, Ship Sooner, a young girl on the edge of being a woman who has a unique gift. Ship's hearing in supernally acute, and this is more often a curse than blessing. No secret can be hidden within her long earshot, leaving her isolated in her own world.

Somehow, one secret does elude her, until she stumbles across its result. Ship finds a baby near death, and is able to use her hearing to save the tiny girl. Here is someone unafraid of what Ship might hear, and the two girls form an unusual family. Though Ship feels more like the baby's mother than the woman who gave birth, the real mother might want her back and what will ship do then?

** Surreal is the best word to describe the rambling narrative. Flashbacks punctuate the chain of events from time to time, and their connection to the now of the story is not always clear. One point is made crystal clear; the gifted need as much or more than those who are disadvantaged. **

Reviewed by Amanda Killgore

Rating:
Summary: SHIP SOONER delivers!
Review: SHIP SOONER delivers! Here is a book full of heart; Mary Sullivan
draws you into the super-charged world of Ship, her life amplified by her amazing-- and amazingly well-rendered-- hearing. Ship knows all the secrets in her family and town; scenes of her most intimate spying carry a powerful erotic charge. Sullivan excells in scenes of primal power: Ship's hair catching fire at her birthday; Ship licking clean the body of the baby she rescues. I loved this magical and moving tale; Mary Sullivan is a spellbinder.

Rating:
Summary: SHIP SOONER delivers!
Review: SHIP SOONER delivers! Here is a book full of heart; Mary Sullivan
draws you into the super-charged world of Ship, her life amplified by her amazing-- and amazingly well-rendered-- hearing. Ship knows all the secrets in her family and town; scenes of her most intimate spying carry a powerful erotic charge. Sullivan excells in scenes of primal power: Ship's hair catching fire at her birthday; Ship licking clean the body of the baby she rescues. I loved this magical and moving tale; Mary Sullivan is a spellbinder.

Rating:
Summary: Spellbinding
Review: What an incredible job the author has done to keep the reader riveted to the end. The quirky cast of characters are a pleasure to meet as we move through their extraordinarily interesting lives. The writing is moving and engaging ... a fine second novel from a gifted pen.