Customer Reviews

Boat of Stone

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This little known history of WW11 is written with extreme sensitivity by Maureen Earl. Her ability to knit fact with fiction, and her seamless story telling, passing back and forth in time, is executed with true grace and talent. I heartily recommend this book for all. It's high time this story was brought to light. Set in Europe, then on the ill fated ship, the SS Atlantic, the book tells the true story of the British imprisoning desperate refugees on a tropical island off the east coast of Africa. The amazing turns in this story are due to Ms Earl's exceptional writing. That we are able to laugh while reading this book is a credit to the author and the unforgettable Hanna Sommerfield, the main character of this remarkable book. Five Stars.

I was ready to write a full review, but to my delight see that other readers have done so. Which means that readers are discovering this wonderful book. All I need add is that this is one of the most moving books I have ever read. Powerfully written with skill and insight that blew me away. Bravo, Ms Earl!

A book of tremendous force. A tragedy expertly transformed into determination and hope, a powerful tribute to life, to love and courage. Intensely gripping, this book swept me into a world so real that I could smell and hear the backdrops.

I wept at the triumphant ending, at Hanna's indomitable spirit, her humor and her abiding love for mankind. Lady Crawford and Gerda are marvelous characters, as are all, but Hanna herself is outstanding.

I read this book after reading Maureen Earl's earlier book, GULLIVER QUICK. I was really not prepared for the power that I found in BOAT OF STONE. Ms Earl has written a book that is both important and enormously gripping. That the book is based on a real story only makes it more amazing. This is a book that will survive into the ages, a must read.

This is one of the most powerful and moving books I have ever read. For ALL readers, I recommend this amazing book. Beautifully written. Maureen Earl has achieved nothing short of a masterpiece.

Hanna Sommerfiled, the protaganist of this book is certainly among the most unforgettable characters I have ever read.

A book that had my jaw dropped, a book I could not put down. Maureen Earl has written a book of such power, such poignancy, and a book that everyone should read.

This is an important book, showing the triumph of human nature. The sheer grit of this story is amazing.

This is a story that stays with you. My family is familiar with the story because my husband's father was a passenger on the Atlantic and survived 5 years in the detention camp in Mauritius. The British were brutal in their treatment of the Jewish refugees trying to enter Israel. The author did extensive research in order to write this novel with such accuracy. Once you start reading this story you won't be able to put the book down until you've reached the last page.

With the troubled times in Israel at the moment, this book has even more impact. Although this book is set in the 1940's, during WW11 it is a timeless story written with courage and heart-wrenching honesty from the point of view of Hannah, a charactor as well, or better, defined and written as any charactor in fine literature.
A book that should also be given to sophisticated teenage readers as it teaches a chapter of history that is too often overlooked.
Recommended very highly.

I read this book becuase my wife was raving about it. I was equally as moved by BOAT OF STONE, but I found Maureen Earl's first novel, GULLIVER QUICK even better. When you've read BOAT OF STONE, read her first book. You will see a writer of considerable talent. Given that both books are so very different I look forward to seeing what Earl's next book will be. Clearly this is a writer of skill, and one to be watched.

The protaganist of this amazing book, Hanna Sommerfield, is a woman I will carry within me for always. The story, given that it is true, is made doubly interesting given that it is told by Hanna. This book had me riveted. Hats off to Ms Earl.