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The Elegant Gathering of White Snows (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: women walkers, tea store, Chris Boyer, Wilkins County Wisconsin, Associated Press April (more...)
2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (88 customer reviews)
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  • This item: The Elegant Gathering of White Snows by Kris Radish

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Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

When eight women in rural Wisconsin take off in the middle of the night for a journey of the heart, it touches women everywhere. The walking women are different ages and of diverse backgrounds, yet their friendship and unwavering mutual support have forged an immutable bond. They start their walk as support for Susan, who is facing an unwanted pregnancy, but all are walking for their own lost loves and lost dreams. As they walk, they talk about their lives, and the pain of the past is shed. The media picks up the news of their perambulation, and soon they become a national sensation that starts other women thinking about their lives, resulting in positive changes all over the country. The women are unaware of their influence, and their small community protects their privacy, so they can proceed without the intrusion of the outside world. A rallying cry for the empowerment of women, Radish's novel is also a celebration of the strong bond that exists between female friends. Patty Engelmann
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Product Description

Eight Women on a Journey That Will Change Their Lives as Lovers, Wives, Mothers, Daughters, Friends

Just after midnight in a small town in Wisconsin, eight women begin walking together down a rural highway. Career women, housewives, mothers, divorcées, and one ex prom queen, they are close friends who have been meeting every Thursday night for years, sharing food, wine, and their deepest secrets. But on this particular Thursday, Susan, Alice, Chris, Sandy, Gail, Mary, Joanne, and Janice decide to disappear from their own lives.

Their spontaneous pilgrimage attracts national attention and inspires other women from all across the country. As the miles fall away and the women forge ahead on their backroads odyssey leaving small miracles in their wake each of their histories unfolds, tales of shattered dreams and unexpected renewal, of thwarted love affairs and precious second chances.In luminous, heartwarming prose, Kris Radish deftly interweaves the women s intimate confessions into the story of their brave, history-making walk.

A breathtaking achievement, The Elegant Gathering of White Snows tells an incomparable tale of friendship and love, loss and liberation.
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 321 pages
  • Publisher: Bantam (June 10, 2003)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0553382411
  • ISBN-13: 978-0553382419
  • Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.1 x 0.9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (88 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #69,165 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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More About the Author

Kris Radish
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› Visit Amazon's Kris Radish Page
Front Cover | First Pages | Surprise Me!
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Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
women walkers, tea store
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Chris Boyer, Wilkins County Wisconsin, Associated Press April, Nancy Drew, New York, Sister Cynthia, Girl Scout, Grand Canyon, Sheriff Barnes Holden, Swine Man, Catholic Church, Mary Jean
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Customer Reviews

88 Reviews
5 star:
 (26)
4 star:
 (8)
3 star:
 (5)
2 star:
 (7)
1 star:
 (42)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
2.6 out of 5 stars (88 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
85 of 98 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars Good Idea - BAD Writing, January 25, 2005
Ms. Radish has a wonderful message, but her writing is so amateur that all you can't see the message for the soap box.

My book club picked this book and that's the only reason I'm still plodding through it. We picked it because of the premise of the book: women bonding, overcoming pain and loss etc., etc. But it's one of the most poorly written books I've read in a long time. Every page screams: "Where was the EDITOR of this thing??".

Want an example? Here you go: Page 5, 3rd paragraph: "As the women talk, they don't see themselves as separate entities even though they are each as different from one another as the proverbial fish is to the bicycle." HUH?????

Also, the book is over-run with unnecessary details that should have been "red penned": Page 140, 4th paragraph: "At the bottom of the bag are two bottles of wine, the same kind they had at Susan's house the day they left." Why do we need to know this?

There are hundreds of examples of what seem to be attempts at colorful language but result in a reaction of "huh?" : page 135, 5th paragraph: "The disgusting echoes of cars roaring past on the highway sounded as if a convoy was stalking the women walkers". DISGUSTING echoes????

With good editing, this book would have been half as long and maybe twice as interesting. Anyone who has ever read Alice Hoffman, Ann Tyler or Kaye Gibbons knows what I'm talking about. Their writing makes you CARE what happens to the characters.

To the reviewer who surmised that the negative reviews of this book were coming from young folks without much life experience: I'm 62 years old and have been around the block a few times, and I'm here to tell you that this book ain't the real world, baby.

I'm willing to suspend belief for a well-written book, but not for one that makes me wish I had a red pen in my hand to "cut and slash" and get to the heart of the matter.
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19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars Cringing through cliches, February 20, 2006
This is not the type of book I would have chosen to read. I reluctantly bought it when my book club chose it as their next selection. Even though it looked goofy and sentimental, I cautioned myself not to "judge a book by its cover".

Reading this book is excruciating. The cliches are so embarrassing and juvenile, the premise so stupid, the characterization so predictible, and the flashbacks so maudlin, that I would give up if I had not wasted eleven dollars buying this paperback.

There must literally be a dozen cliches to the page. All women are victims. Men are abusive, sex-crazed, needy. Even the physical types of the women are cliched. The tough, hard-working Lenny has to wear cowboy boots and Southwestern silver jewelry. She has long black hair. I could have guessed it all without even reading. The world-weary journalist has to be tall and big-boned, hence ugly. Very feminist, Ms. Radish.

I can scarcely get through a paragraph without groaning in disgust. A father who shrugs off the brutal rape of his daughter, little boys who get off on spying on their mother in her underwear- these anecdotes are so distasteful, so unrealistic, and so hysterical that I am only left to ponder what bizzare issues this author must have.

I have no empathy for the underdeveloped, boozy, dull, whiny, selfish, and stupid protagonists. In fact, I may hate them. Nancy Drew was a more nuanced character.

The prose, like the theme, is insipid. Worse, the writing is so unpolished that I wonder if this author ever took a Comp 101 class. Nearly every sentence contains an awkward redundancy. I feel like I am trudging through quicksand.

I am not sure what the author's purpose is, beyond an unsubtle lecture on "feminism". Probably Ms. Radish is very earnest in her desire to portray women bonding, escaping the patriarchy, and so on, but her writing is frankly awful. I have to wonder if this book went through more than one or two drafts. I also think that a well-written book should appeal to both sexes. I am very dubious that any man could make it through this tortuous and insulting manuscript.

This book is a real embarrassment, from the pretentious title to the facile plot and characterizations. The author displays an astounding superficiality in her treatment of themes and characters. Despite all this, I think the very worst aspect of this book is the author's transparent attempts to "inspire" with her twaddle.

I have never returned a book in my life, and I must have over 10,000 titles in my house. This will be the very first book I have ever brought back to the store. Yes, it's that bad.




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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars Bad idea, bad book, bad writing, exploitive - NO STARS, August 18, 2005
Our reading group chose for this book out of curiousity based on the synopsis. Several of us didn't even bother to finish it. NO ONE liked it. This is the first book we've read in over 4 years that we all universally disliked. There are 8 women in our reading group between the ages of 35 and 70. We determined that the author was exploiting all of the women's issues she could possibly fit into this book (date rape, loss of a child, unwanted pregnancy, lesbianism, depression)just to grab attention to this book. And then she wraps it all up and fixes everything by having these women go on some ridiculous walk for 4 days. I suspect any positive reviews for this book were written by the author herself or her publishers. Do not buy this book. If you want to read some lightweight stuff, read a good mystery or even a romance novel. This is junk. One of the few books I would happily throw in the trash without a second thought!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Women Bonding
Loved this book- really good women bonding- supporting each other and opening up about past trauma- which is really hard to do. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Support Women

1.0 out of 5 stars ZERO STARS
I'm 3/4 of the way through this book which I picked up at a Library fundraiser for $2. It was overpriced. Read more
Published 3 months ago by amihp

5.0 out of 5 stars Really liked it
My mom sent my sisters and I each a copy of this and the next title by the author. Perhaps this adds to the meaningfulness of the stories. Read more
Published 13 months ago by C. A. Davies

5.0 out of 5 stars I couldn't put it down...
Several years ago, I read "Dancing Naked At The Edge of Dawn." At the time, I had just gone through a divorce and felt a huge sense of "connection" with the book. Read more
Published 15 months ago by L. B.

2.0 out of 5 stars Would this book inspire me? Would I start walking with my friends?
Throughout the entire book I kept thinking could I just get up and go with my book group friends and start walking? Read more
Published 17 months ago by MS. T.

5.0 out of 5 stars A Walk I enjoyed
I enjoyed this book. I especially enjoyed the format of one chapter dealing with a walker and her problem and another chapter dealing with someone that was affected by the... Read more
Published 23 months ago by Marilyn

5.0 out of 5 stars Woman's book
This book makes you think about what you can do if you put your mind to it and how these women did what they thought was right. Read more
Published 23 months ago by L. McGinn

5.0 out of 5 stars Put this on you List of Books You Want to Read
Although this was the third of Kris Radish's books that I read, I found myself totally taken with her writing, her characters and the delightful story that she so beautifully... Read more
Published on September 4, 2007 by C. Garber

5.0 out of 5 stars A book about the Strength of Women!!
I purchased this book upon the recommendation of two friends of mine. Within the first 15 minutes I had laughed out loud and cried tears. Read more
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5.0 out of 5 stars loved it loved it loved it!
this is not the type of book i would buy but i agreed to read it for a book club and i'm soooo glad i did! Read more
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