Customer Reviews

Selling the Lite of Heaven

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As an aspiring novelist and great reader, I am always interested in reading a debut novel. SELLING THE LITE OF HEAVEN did not disappoint me. A story of a woman who finally finds what she and her mother never thought possible---true love, she gets left at the altar for the altar by her too good to be true fiance. SELLING THE LITE OF HEAVEN is charming, funny and delightful, and kept me laughing all the way through. Good work Ms. Strempek-Shea!!

I've had my eye on this book for the past four years now, and finally I got the chance to read it with my local book club. I must say that this book was a pleasant surprise. It is light, sweet and endearingly funny -- with much more depth than I expected.

Selling the Lite of Heaven tells the story of a woman who has waited patiently for love. The only daughter of Polish immigrant parents, the narrator of this story wasn't allowed to date until she turned 18. Well, that time came and went, and still no prospects in sight. She spends all her time as a developer at the Fast Foto, going to church and living under the same roof as her parents, enduring the strict eye of her mother, despite her 32 years. But then there's Eddie Balicki... They fall in love, become engaged, and her prayers are answered -- until he breaks off their engagement to become a priest.

The chapters alternate between the past -- detailing the narrator's childhood, the citizens of her small-town Polish community, and meeting and falling in love with Eddie -- and the present, where she meets with customers who want to buy the engagement ring she has advertised in the Pennysaver. This story is so sweet, honest and heartfelt -- I could relate on many levels, especially trying to find someone to love, only to be disappointed in the end. I am looking forward to my book club discussion as well as reading more books by Suzanne. Kudos!

This is a literary masterpiece. It's hard to imagine that anyperson could live with a dominating mother and never rebel when herheart is broken. I was hooked on the realism of the author's description when the mother went into panic about the deposits that were already made for the reception and wedding. The deposits were more important than the anguish that her only daughter would suffer when her groom cancels the marriage to become a priest. A lot of mother's are like that and we still love them. Read the book and you'll understand why. This book is not for the casual reader who wants to simply enjoy a funny story in a Polish-American-Catholic setting. It is a gripping story that demands your constant attention to details. It makes you think and challenges your imagination. It's as good as Mark Twain's "Huckleberry Finn" and better than some of John Grisham's great novels. I read it twice and will do it again. Submitted by: Stanley J Strychaz West Hills, California

This is a beautifully written,simple, quick read about a Polish American family and the romance of the only daughter.Raised by a cold and unloving mother,the narrator grows up to be a very religious girl with absolutely no ambitions to move on in her life or to make something of herself.A plain looking girl,with no particular charm, she amazingly captures the attention of Eddie Balicki, one of the local boys who has returned to the small town after an absence of some years.Their friendship develops into a strangely pure love affair and they become engaged and plan their wedding.Just prior to the wedding,Eddie informs her that he can't marry her after all as he intends to become a priest.I felt so sorry for this poor girl as her wretched mother carped at her before her engagement and just as much during her engagement and now that it's been broken off, is convinced that it's her daughters fault! She just can't win with this mean minded, petty woman. A happy ending does eventuate but one can't help but wonder why some family member hasn't dealt with this awful creature long before this.

Hats off the Ms. Shea....I felt as though she were writing about my Mom....and my Babci....what a great and funny way to get to know the Polish American people...not only from Western Mass....but from all over the country.

I am stunned Oprah didn't pick this book. Or that Hollywood hasn't made this a movie. If you want to laugh and cry, good God, read this book. Like I said in the title, this is another Big Fat Greek Wedding waiting to happen

This is one of my favorite novels. I would never donate it to the library (although I just might buy an extra copy to donate). In fact, I've never lent it to anybody because I just don't want to lose it. I was raised Catholic (in a family where church attendance was required, including every holy day), so I really related to the dutiful main character. She was brought up to be nice; just as I was. She was raised to stay close by her parents, just as I was. She believed that she would find happiness by finding the polite, virtuous man that any Catholic mother and father would approve of. Deep down, I used to believe that as well. Finally, she needed to learn that she has a right to her own life, on her own terms, a prospect that many people raised in a similar environment find especially frightening. Selling the Lite of Heaven is inspirational for anyone who has grappled with these issues. I loved the ending of this book. If you relate at all to what I've written, and you're looking for an inspirational read, buy it.

At the time I read this novel, it struck me so clearly how all our lives can be intertwined. The narrator's descriptions of the early days of their romance made me tingle--especially when she is in his apartment during the ice storm! Their innocence was appealing as a dramatic change to most novels. I appreciated her struggle between shyness and family duty, between wanting to come into her own and being afraid of what that might mean.

My first journey with Shea, and I found this book to beabsolutely wonderful. The story was for the most part very sad, theway she builds her life around the ring and how she needs to find this "inanimate" object the "right" home, is quite depressing yet at the same time understandable. We've all held onto things too long. Great book overall, the most heartwrenching aspect would be, her being left for God. Who on earth could compete? You want to hate her ex-fiancee, but you just can't, cause ultimately he is doing the admirable thing. In a nut shell - quite sweet and sad, but Shea could do with a few less run-on sentences.

I have just read this book for the second time and have found it to be as charming a story as I did the first time around. It is the very simple story of a very unassuming daughter of Polish immigrants. The mundanity of her life is what makes the book so appealing. Having been raised by the most unbelievably cold and emotionless parents to lead a life totally devoid of any expectations, the heroine has finally found love and, she believes, a future that will be new, exciting and full of love. But no, ... she is left at the alter by a man who chooses to become a priest rather than marry her. The book tells both her love story and her attempt to sell her engagement ring - The Lite of Heaven. Its an unusual book, a simple book but totally charming and a fascinating insight into the Polish-American experience mixed with a great deal of Catholic guilt.