Customer Reviews

The Night Gardener: A Search for Home

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As a member of a wide extended family, within whose ranks Ms. Sandor grew up, I found this book delightful in its woven tapestry of mysticism and real-life meditations on life's ebb and flow. Her stories evoke a gentle tug on one's spirit, while discussing things as disparate as gardening and fly fishing. I look forward to more of Ms. Sandor's work.

The final chapter of the book captured an image of my great-grandmother that had never been visible to me. I am the great-grandson of Francisca Rodgriquez, and my mother was a childhood friend of Ms. Sandor. As a child I would accompany my mother to visit my great-grandmother, but I have unfortunately never heard her tell me any ghost stories. Her warmth and presence have remained intimately with me. I see the volumes of history and experience in her hands and in her spirit. As a child, I used to play under the tables of her living room and laugh with her dog molly. As I have grown to the age of 19, I feel my maturity opening my eyes to her special place in my heart. It is only now, with the memoirs of Ms. Sandor to inspire me, that I wish to grab a hold of grandma's stories and ensure that as she turns 89 years old, her spririt, wisdom, and love live forever.

First the good points. She's an excellent writer. The stories are well-told, interesting, and her style is interesting. The personalities of many of the key characters remain obscure, yet we learn a lot about her father, Uncle, and a woman who helped raise her. I thought this was an interesting approach.

But the story is ultimately a sad one. For no apparent reason she leaves her husband to take up with another man. The writing starts to get very dramatic and maudlin. "The summer I fell in love and shouldn't have," is a phrase she repeats often. "But that is his story to tell," she writes about her ex-husband, as if he has the opportunity to write books explaining his side of the story. She ultimately wants to see a woman who once helped raise her, in part because this woman won't judge her.

The whole book left me feeling very sad. Sad for her daughter, he ex-husband, but not for the author, who did it to herself.