Customer Reviews

Mother's Journals:: Parts 1, 2 and 3

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

 

 

This is a book that will take you through your entire emotional spectrum. It is the story of three generations that progressed from abuse and unwarranted guilt, through anger and hate to understanding and continues on to a conclusion of love, happiness and most importantly, to hope.
The characters in this novel are all fictitious but the feelings and actions of the three main characters, Margery, her daughter Mary and granddaughter Ellen, are so believable that they truly do "come to life" for the reader.
Although Mother's Journals - Parts1, 2 and 3 come to a very satisfying conclusion I hope that Zada Connaway will continue with a Part 4 because now I am wondering how the future of Ellen's daughter, Bethany, turns out.

Zada Connaway's novel, Mother's Journals - Parts 1, 2 and 3, colorfully follows the path of an extended family traveling a road with so many twists and turns, it keeps the reader on the edge of their seat, unable to put it down.

When Mary finds that her mother endured several forms of abuse as a young girl and throughout her marriage, she's shocked. Childhood memories are vague, but they are brought to light when Mary finds the secret in the journals her mother left behind and carried to her grave. From there, life takes an unexpected turn, the torch is passed, and the characters start dancing on the pages.

Ms. Connaway has a gift for telling a story in an easy manner, drawing the reader in, all the while covering an unpopular, yet important subject. There are lessons to be learned throughout the story, and the feeling of hope is a constant.

Mother's Journals - Parts 1, 2, and 3 is a must-read, and has it all--it's well-written, fast-moving, and has explicit descriptions of passionate love scenes. Very entertaining. I recommend the book to all, and I give it a five-star rating.

Mother's Journals is the generational story of the Jakers family of Charabourgh, a small town in the Pacific Northwest. When Margery, the matriarch of the family, dies after a lifetime of sacrifice and toil, her grown daughter, Mary, discovers her mother's writings among her personal effects and becomes captivated by the revelations they hold.

A survivor of abuse who believes that she murdered her abuser, Margery struggled to raise her children and retain her dignity during the very difficult years of the Great Depression.

Margery's granddaughter, Ellen, is a successful businesswoman in the hotel industry who comes under the romantic spell of her new boss and quickly accepts his proposal of marriage. When a move to Southern California and a new baby create changes in their relationship, Ellen's husband Robert becomes disillusioned and controlling, displaying a temper and aggression that Ellen was unaware he possessed. Ellen is forced to flee to the safety of her family where she tries to regain her sense of self worth and start over.

Relatives long lost return to their small town and old wounds are healed as this family reflects on opportunities missed and mistakes made.

Mother's Journals is a story with much potential. Reading the content of Margery's journals was most intriguing and very well done. Some scenes are graphic and difficult to read, but are necessary in order to convey the horror of the abuse that Margery suffered.

Many young women will see themselves in Ellen's story of self discovery as she follows her immediate instinct to abandon her career in favor of staying at home to raise her child, only to find herself regretting that choice when her marriage deteriorates because of what she sees as her loss of ambition and hard edge.

Unfortunately, there are several abrupt character changes that leave the reader wondering, "What happened?" Relationships instantly exist and characters make decisions that make little sense given the circumstances at hand. With more plot development, these twists could have worked but instead, this reader was left scratching her head and filling in the blanks. Additionally, there were long periods of "telling" what happened when "showing", through dialog and action, would have been much more engaging.

Detailed scenes of intimacy place this book at the adult reading level.