Around Again

Rating:
Summary: clunky
Review: I came really close to liking this book. The characters in it are believable and, to a certain extent, sympathetic, the story moves at a decent pace, and there is a certain rural charm to it. The story takes place during many summers spent at a Massachusetts farm. Robyn Panek spends her childhood summers at her uncle's farm, running the pony ride there. It becomes a second home to her, so she is devastated when a new boarder at the farm does something that sends shockwaves through the little New England town. In many places, the hardworking yet laid back vibe of summer in the country shines through. The problem with the novel is not characters, and it's not locale, or plot. The only problem with the flow of the story comes from Shea's main flaw as a writer: clunky prose. I didn't read more than two pages at a time without halting at a sentence or passage, laden with just an extra word or two that threw the rhythm of the book off. Shea is not a bad writer: she knows what words to use. She just doesn't know what order to use them in, or when to pull back and trust her readers. This is a 310 page book that would be 250, 275 pages tops if every errant, overreaching word and passage was deleted.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: Suzanne Strempek Shea has a gentle, humerous, insightful voice that allows you inside her characters. In Around Again, this well-paced story makes you feel a part of it and never want to leave, as all good stories do. It fills your heart and tugs on the strings. It's very worth your time.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent book
Review: This was the first book I read by this author. I loved it. It's been a long time since the end of a novel made me cry. I've since read Shea's other books and have enjoyed them very much, but Around Again remains my favorite.