Customer Reviews

The Gerbil Farmer's Daughter: A Memoir

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am a person who doesn't get much time to read, but I put this book on my nightstand and read a chapter or two every night. It is just wonderful! Ms. Robinson has a delightfully wry sense of humor and she sure can turn a phrase to elicit a laugh. Her stories of growing up the picked-on, smart, "new" kid in a hick town in rural Mass. are touching and may resonate with many a reader. It really is a wonderful book!

The book reminded me at various times of Shirley Jackson's stories about home life, and also Sarah Bird's delightful book "The Yakota Officers' Club" about life as a military kid and the special difficulties of getting through normal adolescent rebellion within the confines of military life. And of course, the gerbils! As a member of the American Gerbil Society myself, I read the section on the AGS Show right away. Reading that section again AFTER reading the whole book made the story touching on a whole new level. I sure wish Kinky could have been there to win a ribbon in the ball race.

Definitely a must-read for anyone who's grown up with a somewhat non-standard childhood and who emerged with their sense of humor not only intact but enhanced, as clearly happened to Holly Robinson!

Having gerbils since the age of 8 and a very odd father myself, I can wholly relate to this wonderfully written memoir of growing up in a unique situation. I loved the novel from beginning to end and highly recommend it to any one who has grown up with an obsessive parent or raised gerbils. From the daughter of the writer behind the first "bible of gerbils" I adored in my childhood, comes a heartfelt and entertaining tale of her life and the impact these lovable rodents can have.

The Gerbil Farmer's Daughter is a fascinating memoir! It is often funny, yet also extremely touching in parts. Holly Robinson is such a wonderful writer- she "paints" with words.
I've had gerbils for many years, but one doesn't have to have owned gerbils to appreciate this book. It is also a fascinating "coming of age memoir, the story of growing up in a rather "unique" family. The book reads so well, it's hard to put down. Most definately NOT a children's book- be advised of that.
I highly recommend The Gerbil Farmer's Daughter! I think it would make a terrific film, too.

In every family there's a certain glue that binds one another together and in author Holly Robinson's family, gerbils sealed the deal. Her father had the passion for these small rodents and while her mother and siblings took views of gerbils on different levels, this became a family business where everyone seemed to have a job or two to do with them and no one was left out of the picture.

D. G. Robinson, captain of a U.S Navy ship, had a secret...in his spare time he became devoted to gerbils and made sure nobody in the Navy knew about it. That in itself, is a humorous start to "The Gerbil Farmer's Daughter" as he reminds his children that other people didn't need to know their "business". But the real joy of the book is becoming acquainted with the author and her family.

Holly Robinson writes about being uprooted from Virginia to Kansas to Massachusetts and delivers a poignant chapter on the death of her younger sister. She also has a keen eye for detail, well-paced humor and a crisp, upbeat narrative. Learning about gerbils is part and parcel to her book, of course, but it serves as a template for the larger discussion about family, friends and feelings. I highly recommend "The Gerbil Farmer's Daughter" for its warmth and humor.

I was walking past this book in the store...and had to do a double take. I mean...9 out of 10 times when you see "gerbil" now...it's associated with Richard Gere.

So I was nearly jumping up and down by the time I took it off the shelf and flipped through the book. I to was a gerbil girl...given my first gerbil...George Washington Gerbil...in 1977. And I was also given my cousin's worn and dog-eared copy of "How To Raise and Train Pet Gerbils" to go with him.

So the photos were as familiar as the little agouti fuzzies that STILL run around in a tank in my living room 30 years later. (No...not 30 year old gerbils...I just got stuck loving the little fuzzballs.)

The book is thoughtful and well written. I enjoyed it a chapter at a time until I finally just sat and finished the rest of the book. A lovely well-balanced memoir. Though...it COULD have used a few more photos of gerbils. That would have made it a six star book in my mind.

This was a fabulous book, could barely put it down! The story of the author's childhood was both funny for those of us who also grew up in that era and could identify with all the things that were considered soooo important back then, as well as sad for the bittersweet times of an unorthodox childhood in the 50s and 60s. There is suspense throughout the book, difficult to do in a memoir, but done very effectively here. I highly recommend this book, you won't regret it!!

I didn't know there were actually gerbil farms until I read this book. But while the uniqueness of growing up among thousands of gerbils was what first grabbed my attention, it was Holly Robinson's wonderful writing style and the moving story of her family that kept me reading and made this one of my favorite memoirs. She has a gift for describing the people in her family and allowing the reader to watch each person grow and change throughout the book. I loved watching her relationship with her father evolve as she was able to better understand him. This book made me feel like I was watching home movies of a family's struggles and triumphs with just enough narration to provide context and commentary while also allowing the reader to form her or his own views. Oh yeah--as a bonus, you will learn all about all the different kinds of gerbils (who knew)! I can't wait to read more from this author!

The Gerbil Farmer's Daughter is one of the most enjoyable books I've ever read. It delivers a funny and interesting account of a charmingly quirky family business. Robinson's breezy writing style will move you along and have you laughing out loud while taking a close look at familial relationships, family tragedy and a young woman coming of age.
I can't wait to see how Robinson will brandish her pen next - whatever the topic her wit is sure to please.

As an avid reader, I must say that "The Gerbil Farmer's Daughter" is an interesting and enjoyable book.

It is touching and so clearly evokes the emotions that surrounded this time period in the author's life. And while the circumstances were exceptional, the feelings certainly are not. While I read about this other little girl, I was also forced through self reflection, which is sort of therapeutic.

Plus, the story is just so exceptional and interesting. The beauty of the words simply adds to the enjoyability of reading it!

Holly Robinson writes with a passion that sweeps us along in this unlikely, and wonderfully comical and bittersweet, coming-of-age story. While reading it I wanted to have this fantastic girlhood. Oh gee, by the way, I go home from school to tend to thousands of gerbils. Not something on every teenager's lips.
This memoir has it all: a father who's properly improper in his yearnings; a mother who seems to float along (except when she isn't); brothers who are, well, brothers; and Holly, the daughter with the best sense of humor I've met in a long time.
I wanted it to go on and on and can't wait for her next book. Holly Robinson is the girl you really wanted to grow up with and have for a friend.
Oh, and I'm giving it to my granddaughter as well. She's almost 13 and girls that age always need heroines.