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Book Review

Publisher's Note:

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Curtis Sittenfeld, author of American Wife and Prep, returns with a mesmerizing novel of family and identity, loyalty and deception, and the delicate line between truth and belief. From an early age, Kate and her identical twin sister, Violet, knew that they were unlike everyone else. Kate and Vi were born with peculiar “senses”—innate psychic abilities concerning future events and other people’s secrets. Though Vi embraced her visions, Kate did her best to hide them. Now, years later, their different paths have led them both back to their hometown of St. Louis. Vi has pursued an eccentric career as a psychic medium, while Kate, a devoted wife and mother, has settled down in the suburbs to raise her two young children. But when a minor earthquake hits in the middle of the night, the normal life Kate has always wished for begins to shift. After Vi goes on television to share a premonition that another, more devastating earthquake will soon hit the St. Louis area, Kate is mortified. Equally troubling, however, is her fear that Vi may be right. As the date of the predicted earthquake quickly approaches, Kate is forced to reconcile her fraught relationship with her sister and to face truths about herself she’s long tried to deny. Funny, haunting, and thought-provoking, Sisterland is a beautifully written novel of the obligation we have toward others, and the responsibility we take for ourselves. With her deep empathy, keen wisdom, and unerring talent for finding the extraordinary moments …

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Sisterland

by Curtis Sittenfeld

Reviewer: Lydia
Genre: Fiction
Recommended Age: 21+

Overall Book Review:

Author Curtis Sittenfeld sure has a way with words. Her characters in Sisterland are all in a state of denial to some degree, and it is interesting to see how they grow and come to realize they can’t outrun what some would call fate. Sisters and sisterly relationships play a big part in this book, and at times it seems the sisters (who just happen to be psychic twins) hate each other, but their friendship and bond runs so deep that they always come back together in the end. When an event is predicted by the twins, the town they live in goes into overdrive to prepare, and even the twin that doubts the prediction finds herself also preparing–proof that she trusts her sister despite the problems they may have with each other.

Despite the fact that this book has what seems to be an abundance of swearing and sex throughout, the story is worth the read. If you have a sister, this book will be sure to intrigue you and you will sympathize with the twins and their struggles. This book has hit the best-seller list, which indicates a potential good read–even for the sisterless!


Content Analysis:

Language/Profanity:  10 religious exclamations; 19 mild obscenities; 1 religious profanity; 2 derogatory names; 1 scatological word; 27 F-Word derivatives.

 Violence/Gore:  A teen girl throws a remote at another girl which injures the girl slightly; a character has an abortion.

 Sex/Nudity:  A 9th grade girl has sex with her teacher, no explicit details are provided; a woman cheats on her husband and has sex with a family friend; a woman has an illegitimate child; a woman discovers her baby will have downs syndrome if her pregnancy is carried to term and has it aborted; a husband and wife are told to have sex twice, with explicit detail.

Mature Subject Matter:

Psychics, Abortion, Natural disasters, Child abduction, Sex

Alcohol / Drug Use:

Adults drink beer and wine multiple times; teens and adults are mentioned smoking pot; adults drink cigarettes.

Overall Book Rating
Profanity/Language
Rating:
10
10
Violence/Gore
Rating:
3
10
Sex/Nudity
Rating:
8
10

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About the Reviewer

Lydia
Books and reading have always been an important part of my life. When I was very young, my grandma was the library director at our local public library. Years later, after she had retired, I became a librarian at the same library and worked there for several years before taking a part-time job at a local coffee shop, which gives me more time to do what I love, to read and to review books! A few of my favorite authors are Aimee Bender, Diane Chamberlain, and Curtis Sittenfeld however, I will read almost any book I come across! In my spare time you can find me reading (of course), volunteering at a wildlife animal rehab, or hanging out with my three house rabbits.

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