Customer Reviews

One Whole and Perfect Day

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One Whole and Perfect Day is a pleasant story about a wish that Lily has that her dysfunctional family have "one whole and perfect day." Her grandmother is planning a party hoping to reconcile her grandmother and her brother. Her brother has a new Chinese girlfriend that no one has met. Her mother has promised not to bring home any more elderly people for the weekend, yet is tempted to break her promise. This story's main flaw is the happy ending that is too perfect and too coincidental to be real.

This was definitely an enjoyable read. It doesn't have an intense plot, or any gasp-worthy twists and turns. The title is perfect, because that's what the main extent of the plot is- family and friends trying struggling to be whole, and one girl who pushes for it so she can have her "perfect day."

What I really liked about it was the changing characters. Though it's written in 3rd person, each character has a story and purpose (except for one character- Jessaline. I didn't really understand how she fit) so there isn't really one main character. I also liked the age variations. With most young adult books, you only get a glimpse into the head of the teenage narrator, but these characters spanned from early teens to early eighties.

Everybody connects in a way. When I got into it, I was incredibly confused at why so many characters were being written such large parts, but it all fits. Everybody fits together, hence why the word whole is so perfect for the title. (Almost funny? Probably not. I'm lame, I know) Everybody's issues, which every character has some, intertwine so wonderfully that I appreciated their flaws so much more at the end.

I finished it fairly quickly considering it's not very long. It's not the kind of book that you'll get swept away in, but it's something that definitely will lift your spirits. I laughed a lot, and probably smiled throughout the entire thing. I recommend picking it up, and saving it for a rainy day when you're not feeling so awesome- it'll make you feel a lot better, I promise!

As another reviewer has noted, the ending of this book is not "realistic"...but that's perhaps one goal of the novel: Lily wants one whole and perfect day and she finally gets it in the end after a whole truckload of family dysfunction--a father who abandoned her even before she was born, an artsy-fartsy brother who can't stick to anything, a soft-hearted mother who relies on Lily to be the sensible one while she, a psychologist, rescues "lame-duck" elderly people whose families want a break from them, an apparently racist red-necked grandfather, and a grandmother with an imaginary friend! This is a delightful novel full of quirky characters and fine writing. All of the members of this extended family surprise each other in some way and have hidden aspects which briefly sparkle and shine forth. One does have to suspend one's disbelief to enjoy the novel perhaps, but if one does, the rewards are considerable. I think the book might be more appealing to older young adult females and women in general as it's character rather than plot-driven. This is one of the best written pieces of fiction I've read in some time. Reading it made me consider if I've ever had a whole and perfect day and what such a day would consist of for me.

Maybe it's because I'm a yank--and a man at that--but this is a painful read. What is the purpose of letting me into all these dysfunctional minds? Is this the vapid nothingness of today's young people? Boy I'm thankful I old, at least I will have one whole and perfect day when I realize I never have to read this book again.