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Some Kind of Miracle: A Novel (Dart, Iris Rainer)
 
 
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Some Kind of Miracle: A Novel (Dart, Iris Rainer) [Hardcover]

Iris R. Dart (Author)
4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)


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Book Description

Dart, Iris Rainer October 21, 2003

Cousins Dahlia and Sunny Gordon were best friends growing up, bound by a shared love for making music that was as pure, powerful, and radiant as the California sunshine. When Dahlia's soulful lyrics combined with Sunny's soaring melodies, magic happened, and they promised they would stick together all the way to the top. But a darkness was already descending on Sunny, one that would ultimately plunge her into a nightmare of solitude and schizophrenia. And after their lives were torn apart, a quarter of a century would pass before the cousins would meet again.

After long years of fruitless struggle, Dahlia still dreams of making it in the L.A. music business, a dream that comes to rest on one song. A lucky break has brought a composition she and Sunny wrote long ago to the attention of a powerful Hollywood producer. Desperate for success, Dahlia must find her cousin in order to secure the rights to the song that will win her fame and great fortune.But the world Sunny Gordon now inhabits is a place of madness and despair, and her obstinate refusal to sign a contract only infuriates Dahlia and strengthens her resolve. There are no depths Dahlia will not sink to in order to get what she wants -- even if it means moving her tragically damaged cousin, demons and all, into her own home.

Yet selfish motives and greed are, remarkably, leading Dahlia somewhere she never imagined she'd go. For the first time since she was a girl -- and perhaps the first time ever -- she will have to put someone else's needs before her own, and her life will be unexpectedly transformed in the process.

And sometimes, even when real life reaches its cruelest and lowest ebb, miracles do happen ...



Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this show-biz drama by the author of Beaches, two first cousins and former best friends rekindle their friendship while struggling with questions of mental illness, genius and personal integrity. As teenagers, Sunny and Dahlia Gordon created an intense bond though a shared love of music. Sunny, five years older than Dahlia, is the wilder and by far the more creative of the two, and her talent inspires Dahlia to write lyrics. Their music is good, and their friendship singular, but when Sunny's eccentricities devolve into a dangerous mental illness and her well-meaning family can no longer cope with her, she is placed in a mental institution. The cousins lose contact with each other until 25 years later, when Dahlia is living in Los Angeles and earning a living as a masseuse while trying to sell her songs. Possessed of an ambitious pragmatism that allows her to slide easily into ethical lapses, Dahlia reconnects with Sunny, who is living in a halfway house in San Diego, in order to get a song out of her. From this point on, the women are together again, each helping the other find her way out of desperate situations. Dart keeps the story moving at a fast clip with generous helpings of weddings, funerals, sing-alongs and spontaneous disrobings of the (gorgeous) Sunny. These made-for-the-movies moments are balanced by Dahlia's acerbic wit, making this an entertaining if formulaic read.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

She may not write the songs the whole world sings, but budding songwriter Dahlia Green has had one bona fide hit and is on the verge of a second. Trouble is, she can't take sole credit for the song that has caught the ear of a Hollywood producer; this she shares with her cousin, Sunny, a schizophrenic who has been out of Dahlia's life for 25 years. Getting Sunny's signature is the ticket to Dahlia's dreams of stardom, and like other visions of a golden life, will be nearly impossible to obtain. As Dart turns to the heady world of entertainment for her familiar themes of love, family, and friendship, she shines the spotlight on the recording industry and a love of music that offers both her unsettled young women characters a means of escape. Despite the predictability of its conclusions, Dart's latest novel unexpectedly excels at shedding light on the dark subject of schizophrenia. By transforming Dahlia's selfish ambition into selfless empathy for her cousin's illness, Dart again demonstrates her considerable talent for showcasing sympathetic characters facing serious situations with grace and aplomb. Carol Haggas
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 304 pages
  • Publisher: William Morrow (October 21, 2003)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0066209536
  • ISBN-13: 978-0066209531
  • Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,576,912 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

6 Reviews
5 star:
 (1)
4 star:
 (4)
3 star:
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Average Customer Review
4.0 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars 4 STARS, January 8, 2004
By 
This review is from: Some Kind of Miracle: A Novel (Dart, Iris Rainer) (Hardcover)
Ok, so it isnt a Noble Prize winner but guess what?
ITS REALLY GOOD.
this is the first time in a while, that somethings captured my attention and kept me awake just because I wanted to find out how it ended.
I wont give anything away
but Ill just say this, if youre looking for a good, more or less feel good, kindof girly escape, (similar to Beaches in how it made me feel type book)
then go ahead and pick this one up.
its really well worth paying the hardback price for.
a really good engrossing, captivating read.
each character has good and bad points and are very endearing despite their human issues.
IM DEFINATLY NOT DOING THIS BOOK JUSTICE ,
IT WAS GOOD, READ IT .
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars a must read for any Iris Dart Fan, December 11, 2003
By 
"poohbear43" (Minneapolis, Minnesota, US) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Some Kind of Miracle: A Novel (Dart, Iris Rainer) (Hardcover)
Iris Dart is the author of Beaches and other books. She is my favorite author and I've read everything she has written. This book is a must read for any Iris Dart fan. It is a combination of Beaches and the movie, "A Beautiful Mind."

The book kept me wondering what was going to happen next and whether Sunny was going to be able to escape her delusional world, and I was not disappointed. Iris Dart did an excellent job describing the ups and downs of a person living with a mental illness and at the same time bringing her character to life by giving her likable and at times disturbing attributes. Iris Dart painted a realistic picture of the difficulties of living with a mental illness, especially the problems with noncompliance.

The only thing that I wish she had added in her book is the real side effects of the drugs that a mentally ill person must cope with, like the symptoms of parkinson's disease, such as the shakes and permanent neurological damage from long-term use of anti-psychotic drugs. Other than that, Iris Dart left a positive impression on the relationships and struggles a person with a mental illness has to cope with on a daily basis.

As always, I look forward to reading all of Iris Dart's books over and over and I look forward in anticipation for her next book.

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Won't disappoint a fan, February 22, 2004
By A Customer
This review is from: Some Kind of Miracle: A Novel (Dart, Iris Rainer) (Hardcover)
"Some Kind of Miracle" was really good. I love IRD and she didn't disappoint me with this book. While Beaches is my all-time favorite..this book takes a close second. I truly enjoyed Sunny.
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Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
ost of the guests arrived at about four, parking their cars up and down Moorpark Street, slowly trailing in, carrying bouquets of flowers or white bakery boxes tied with string. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Aunt Ruthie, Uncle Max, San Diego, Harry Brenner, Faith Hill, Marty Melman, Joe Diamond, Santa Claus, Dahlia Gordon, Laurel Canyon, Danny Kroll, Norman Burns, Rita Horn, Beverly Hills, Arthur Miller, Margie Kane, Marilyn Monroe, Sunny Gordon, Jamie Reiss, New York, Aunt Rita, Helene Shephard, Highland Grounds, Howie Penn, Jennifer Lopez
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