Customer Reviews

Garden of Angels

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

After Darcy Quinlin finds out her mother has breast cancer, she is deeply saddened and in disbelief. She is also loosing her sister, Adel, to Barry Sorensen, a soldier in Vietnam. Above all that, there is J.T. who pushes her around especially when she falls hard for Pastor Jim's brother-in-law, Jason, who just moved to Connors. Darcy needs comfort and someone to talk to about boys, feelings, and school problems and her mother can't be that person. Neither can Adel because she is moving far away with Barry. Her mother did leave a beautiful garden that Darcy takes care of and it helps her through her many situations now and to come.
I liked this book because it was different from other Lurlene McDaniel books. In this book the girl doesn't have cancer, like in many other books, it's her mother. Also, this book is set in the 1970's during the Vietnam War.
I would recommend this book to teenage girls who like sad, loving stories or like other Lurlene McDaniel books.

When we hear the word "cancer", it's a word that frightens many of us because cancer can just appear like that to any individual. In Garden of Angels by Lurlene McDaniel the small hometown of Conners, Georgia. Darcy's Quinlin's world is changed forever when her mother goes to the hospital in Atlanta for some harmless tests. Her diagnosis is breast cancer. Between many tests and treatments of chemotherapy, and learning to grow up, Garden of Angels will be a book that you will never want to put down.
In Garden of Angels, Darcy doesn't comprehend why her loving, caring, and nurturing mother has to suffer with breast cancer. Lurlene McDaniel brings inspiration to this book by helping kids to understand to never give up because you can't choose what life "dishes out" to you. Lurlene also brings out realistic events through Darcy so kids that have a parent with breast cancer can learn and understand more about it. Hopefulness is expressed in this book by Darcy keeping her mother's gardens alive so that one day when her mother fully recovers, she can plant and enjoy her gardens once again. Lurlene McDaniel really expresses real children's feelings about having a parent with breast cancer through her character, Darcy.
Lurlene McDaniel, the author of Garden of Angels has written over thirty highly praised novels. Over twenty-five years ago, after her three-year-old son was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes, Lurlene had stated "I saw firsthand how chronic illness affects every aspect of a persons life." "I want kids to know that while people don't choose what life gives to them, they do get to choose how they respond". Lurlene McDaniel currently lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where she is working on her next inspiring novel. Darcy Quinlin, the main character in the book, Garden of Angels is frightened by her mother's cancer. But in the end Darcy discovers that "We are all connected by love and hope for the future, there is no end.

In this book, a girl's life goes out of control when her mother is diagnosed with breast cancer, her sister gets engaged to a soldier and she meets Jason. Her family is very religious so, all these changes aren't to hard for her to deal with until her mother becomes deathly ill, her sister's husband Barry gets his leg blown off when stepping on a land mine and Jason decides to go back to Chicago. This story will fill your heart with love for the characters and also sympathy.

This, in my oppinion, would have to be one of Lurlene McDaniel's best books. It's a story about a girl named Darcy Quinlin and her struggle through her freshman year. She faces many difficulties, some the same as all of us, but some different. For one, she hasn't matured as fast as many of the girls there, so she feels a little bad about her lack of curves and bumps, and she is having trouble sorting out her emotions for the bad boy, Jason Powalski. These are problems we all deal with growing up(as females) but she also has to deal with her mother being diagnosed with breast cancer. It is a hard struggle for her, and she has much difficulty dealing with all these emotions at once. This story is written to take place in the 1970s so it will add a bit more to the story with the wording and what is happening. If you like other Lurlene McDaniel books, then you will love this one.

Do you think we care much about breast cancer today? Do you think many are aware of one lump on the breast that could cause the death of someone you love? Think about it... This is what happened to Lurlene McDaniel and her mom. She believes that many cares less about breast cancer because many just depends on the recent technology that probably would fully cure the cancer. Do you? This is why Lurlene McDaniel wrote this tragic book about a girl who lost all her desires.

Many teens who faced this situation before may understand what I'm writing in this review. After reading this book, I've became one of them. In this book, protagonist Darcy Quinlin has faced many hardships in her life. Some of them are her love towards one guy named Jason, and her mother experiencing breast cancer. But there is only one hope inside her. Her mom's garden holds all of the memories of the past and every time you visit, you won't forget about the memories you missed. Her mom is the president of the garden club, making her garden the largest in town. But soon enough, she experiences breast cancer. Will she succeed? Darcy also experiences what true love meant to her when she stumbles in Jason. Darcy's story has become a very great blend in the 1970's, which soon become Garden of Angels by Lurlene McDaniel.

In this book, you'll find a mixture of love and sadness, making Garden of Angels a great book to read. Lurlene McDaniel has the talent to thoroughly express Darcy's feelings. After reading this book, many great points arose and quenched my brain, making it a life-valuing lesson. While reading, I hadn't thought about it. At first, I read the inner flap of the book cover and thought, "Oh, it's just a sad story about one girl who has a mother fighting cancer." But after reading the author's letter in the first couple pages, I have a feeling about how people deal with cancer. Like I said before, they depend on the technology and hope it cures the victim.

Some points came to me like, "Wow, it's so obvious, nobody ever thinks about it!" which is somewhat pretty amazing. One valuable lesson is that desire doesn't get you far. When Darcy sees her mom suffering from her cancer, she wants her mom to be alive. Eventually, she understands and thought to herself "Why am I letting my mom live in a world like this, where she is suffering from cancer and here I am forcing her to stay."

Now, you're probably reading this review and wondering how I get these points. Well, due to the writing style of Lurlene McDaniel, she clearly supports my point. She also writes like a fourteen-year old person because she made Darcy have a crush, and made her listen to gossips from her best friend. But there is one part I like best about her writing. She compares all her writings to a flower, which give you a better mind of how Darcy feels.

I don't really have the urge to read books, but my older sister kept repeating great comments (which I really don't remember) which caused me to hold the book in my hands. Some other books Lurlene McDaniel wrote are Journey of Hope, Time Capsule, and Somewhere between Life and Death. I guarantee you will also like Lurlene McDaniel's writing as much as I do. Remember, desire doesn't get you far.

This was me very first book that I read by Lurlene Mcdaniel. I wasn't sure who she was, but my friends say that she is GREAT. And, they were right. I am a 14yo who HATES to read. But, this book caught my eye. Lurlene Mcdaniel is now my favorite author. I also read "Telling Christina Good-bye" in which I read within a week (which is GREAT for me). I couldn't let that book down. "Garden of Angels" reminded me of when both my grandparents got cancer. My grandpa had it all over and my grandma had it in most places. So reading this book, I could understand what she was going through. I recommend this book to anyone.

this is 1 of my favorite books of all times
it is very touching and heart warming
it made me cry....

. Garden of Angles is about a garden of flowers. The flowers symbolize the family and the way they grow. Each flower grows at a different speed, just like in the family they each grow at a different speed and they learn to deal with their feelings. It takes times to overcome a loss like they did but over time all of them grew like the flowers in the garden and went on with their lives. Even though caner is a very terrible thing, this book does not try and soften the pain of cancer. This shows how families can survive and get through really tough times. Each character channels their greif and hurt toward a positive manner.

This, in my oppinion, would have to be one of Lurlene McDaniel's best books. It's a story about a girl named Darcy Quinlin and her struggle through her freshman year. She faces many difficulties, some the same as all of us, but some different. For one, she hasn't matured as fast as many of the girls there, so she feels a little bad about her lack of curves and bumps, and she is having trouble sorting out her emotions for the bad boy, Jason Powalski. These are problems we all deal with growing up(as females) but she also has to deal with her mother being diagnosed with breast cancer. It is a hard struggle for her, and she has much difficulty dealing with all these emotions at once. This story is written to take place in the 1970s so it will add a bit more to the story with the wording and what is happening. If you like other Lurlene McDaniel books, then you will love this one.

Hey,
I'm 13 and was looking for a good summer read. It was short, small, and the summary looked appealing. The book includes romance, sadness, and friendship. The main character starts out at the age of 13 or 14 in the mid 70s. It talks about her crush, her sisters marriage, and her mother's diagnoses' of breast cancer. It's a great book and you can't put it down!! I recommend it for all ages, even my mom is reading it!