Customer Reviews

A Quiet Storm: A Novel

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A Quiet Storm is a vividly, riveting tale of how one family handles the issue of mental illness. I enjoyed the book and the way the author accurately portrayed the symptoms and life struggles of a woman with a mental illness. The book makes you laugh and cry. The book does an excellent job of portraying a family trying to maintain the status quo in the midst of a swirl of family secrets and betrayal. The relationship between the two sisters is masterfully written. As a mental health professional I have listened to the story of many clients who struggle with these issues as they try to make it from day to day.

The book is spellbinding. A great book for book clubs.
The author has a real gift for painting a word picture.
Though the book is fiction, the story could be one we hear of unfortunately in real life. This book is a must read.

My bookclub read this book... We enjoyed it. I think that Howzell gave a realistic portrayal of how medication is not always the "band-aid" or "cure-all" in mental disorders. She showed how the main character Rikki felt like [junk] while taking medication and how she acted like [junk] out while off her medication. She showed the struggle one goes through vividly. Howzell tried to wind an underlying "faith" in God throughout the story, always going back to it. You don't see that often unless it is a Christian book very often. I think Rachel Howzell Hall is promising and I look forward to her next book.

Stacy Moore was younger than her sister Arika (Rikki) by eleven months, not that you would know this by their behavior. As a young child she was charged with the responsibility to serve as her sister's protector. Their parents recognized that Rikki was special, but they refused to accept the obvious signs and eventual diagnosis of Rikki. They turned to religion and denial to cope with their daughter. Therefore Stacy was beating up "Stinky Pam", taking the blame for things she did not do, putting Rikki's needs before her own, everyone and everything. It was expected of her, it was ingrained in her, it was the only thing she knew to do. However, instead of being a help to her, she was an enabler.

Rikki finished college and married Dr. Matt Dresden. Even with her wild, unpredictable behaviors he tried to stick by her side and seek help for her. Most of the time, Rikki was in complete denial of her disease, having her mother's continual denial and Stacy saving her all the time, allowed Rikki to spin on in a manic/depressive state for years. Not even the doctors could help her. In the attempt to keep the secret and protect Rikki, the family paid the ultimate sacrifice, which could have been avoided.

This was a wonderful, compelling read about how mental illness can effect a family and relationships. It also showed how the reaction of the family can effect the recovery of the victim. True to many African American families, they more often than naught would turn to religion and denial, than to deal with the problem straightforward. As a reader, there were times when I would get so frustrated with the family, I had to take a break, but the story was so interesting it kept drawing me back. I would recommend this book to anyone who has a family member or a friend who suffers from any type of mental illness, and to anyone looking for a good read.

Jeanette
APOOO BookClub

A Quiet Storm is one of the most entertaining books I've read in a long time. It's a compelling portrayal of family life, told from the point of view of a young woman living in the shadow of her (nearly) perfect older sister. While it tackles the serious issue of mental illness, the author has crafted a tale full of warmth, wit and humor to which we can all relate. I highly recommend this book and am very much looking forward to reading Ms. Hall's next novel.

What a lovely tale! Rachel Howzell Hall did a wonderful job in "A Quiet Storm" weaving a story about the effects that mental illness has on a family. While people who have never experienced someone with a mental illness, may find some of the events to be a little "far-fetched", others who have will know all too well, how chaos can enter the family becuase of this illness. This is a MUST READ for all bookclubs, as it gives insight into just how far reaching mental illness can be.

**Review by Yasako**

Initially, I was afraid of this book. I wasn't sure how it would portray a very real problem. I have a family member that suffers from mental illness. In my life and culture, Black people refuse to face mental illness. They feel the need to place blame or minimize the severity of mental illness. We've all heard of that one family member who's just "a little off." That person is usually reduced to a two-dimensional character that people don't get to know. Alternatively, they're afraid that mental illness rubs off. I thank you Rachel. Thank you for bringing people into my world. My aunt is mentally ill, has been for most of my life, but I know she's a real person with feelings. The truth couldn't have been written better.

I was sad that this was Rachel's first book, because I was all set and ready to purchase another one. She described my teenage era to a "T", from the Levi's with fresh K-Swiss to the guys smelling of Polo cologne. On point. I am excited about what's to come in her next book.

This is an eye- opening, humorous, but at the same time serious story. One of my favorite lines happens when Rikki looks back at Stacey and says, "He was heavy." Loved it.

A gripping account of what it's like to be the younger sister of a charismatic young woman suffering from bipolar disorder. Rachel Hall has done a masterful job of showing us the many contrary emotions felt by her heroine -- the embarrassment, the guilt, and even the jealousy. Stacy is made to feel responsible for her sister's happiness and well-being by their widowed mother, who
is way out of her depth trying to cope with her troubled golden girl. Hall has a wonderful writing style, full of contemporary life and with believable dialogue from all the characters. (I especially enjoyed Stacy's pejorative "Bread and cheese!" when she's totally frustrated.) The sisters have some beautifully crafted moments of extraordinary affection and intimacy, counterbalanced by the scenes of utter madness and loss of control. You can't help but sympathize with everyone caught up in the web of this awful disease, but our hearts especially ache for Stacy, who even risks losing her husband when she insists on putting her sister's needs before everyone else's, including her own. Another unusual and interesting aspect of the novel is the emphasis on religion and the important part the church plays in the family's life, strengthening at times, and causing enormous rifts at others. I think readers will be intrigued by this glimpse into the lives of well-to-do members of the African American community in Los Angeles, and will end the book wondering if they and their parents would behave any differently if they found themselves in the Moore family's situation.

This story shares a story about a woman who experiences mental illness, something I've always known about. It's one thing to know about it and read about; it's another to actually read a fictional account of someone young and succesful who has it. A Quiet Storm is a good peek into this world. As a Black reader, I forgot AA authors can write stories without blinging and Prada and all that designer label name-dropping. A Quiet Storm is very refreshing, especially for a first novel. But could you make the next novel a little longer?

My sister loaned me this book on the pretext of "it should help the rest of the world understand mental illness better" and commented that she found Stacie's dilemma poignant because she spent her life taking care of her sister's messes. I decided to read it since it would perhaps give us something to talk about, book club like, and perhaps mend some fences in our relationship. I ended up being unable to put the book down and must have cried in 12 different places - it hit too close to home. I could have written it.
Fortunately, our lives have not been as "real world" tragically effected by mental illness; however, the feelings are very much the same. The suicide attempt, the hope when things go right, the "unsurprise" when things go wrong, the well wishers who think it's some behavioral thing, the Bible/God stuff, the family denial, the putting the mentally ill person before anything else . . . the shame - the guilt.
It read like a diary . . . easy/personal . . . and I liked the "not tied up in a neat bow" ending. Unfortunately, families who deal with mental illness feel like this a lot - when is too much too much, when should you get involved and when should you stay out, how do you communicate with someone who can't be reached . . . it may leave the average reader feeling like things are unresolved - but that is too true and too real for both the mentally ill and those who care about them.

A Quiet Storm is a book about the Moore family, comprised of two sisters and their mother, who try to hide a secret; Rikki, the older sister, has a mental disorder. Stacy, the younger sister, has given herself the responsibility to keep a constant watch over her sister to make sure that she does not hurt herself or anyone else. As the story begins, Rikki is being questioned by the police as to the whereabouts of her husband.

A Quiet storm, written by Rachel Howzell Hall, is an amazing story of how a family will go to great lengths to keep deep, dark secrets. This is also a story that strongly portrays the denial that goes on with trying to come to terms with a mental disorder that runs in the family. This is a story that grabs you from the beginning and takes you on a journey that you won't soon forget and the story concludes with the answer to the question "What happened to Rikki's husband"?

Rachel Howzell Hall should be commended for writing a story about a mental disorder since she managed to handle the topic with such compassion, sincerity, and wit. Excellent debut novel from an author to watch.