After completing "Divine Secrets" I can say I enjoyed it very much. I am also glad I do not have a character as colourful as "Vivi" in my family!!
I have never been to Louisiana but I found the references to the local food delicacies and Vivi's vivid sense of smell really gave me a sense of place, and of course I can relate to the heat we get days like that here.
The only time in the novel I felt I could relate to Vivi was when her children were small and she felt so overwhelmed. I had two under two and know very well the feelings of being covered in bodily fluids not your own and feeling isolated and so very tired. Luckily for me I had heaps of support and things ended well not like for Vivi and her poor children.
I truly enjoyed the spirit of the YaYa's and am always a sucker for fiesty women characters, especially older women, it gives me something to aspire to.
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I find it hard to relate to Vivi since I have no children. Her frequently manic character does keep the novel entertaining. Her crazy behavior reminds me a little of my mother and grandmother. They are two women who go to extraordinary lengths for their children. I find that I relate to Sidda a bit more than the other characters mainly in her need to know attitude. I love looking at old family treasures such as a divine scrapbook. I like hearing the stories behind each piece of memorabilia.
ReplyDeleteThe sisterhood dynamic is sweet and endearing. I thought of my own girlfriends and our relationships together. Although close, I cannot say we are anything like the YaYas. They had a spirit that was intoxicating. I love Caro. I think she is my favorite YaYa. I like her tom-boyish attitude and fighting spirit.
I’m surprised at how much I enjoyed The Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood. It was very heart warming. Like you, Nancy, this is not my typical choice in novel. But it is important to step outside your comfort zone now and again to try something new.
-Katie
I am trying to learn how to comment
ReplyDeleteSo am I!
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree with Katie more - good to get out of the comfort zone. I don't have children either, but we all have parents and Katie's were clearly memorable. Parenting was a big part of the book: Jack dies because of his; Vivi was seriously affected by her dreadful parents and the fact she didn't marry the boy she loved. Are we meant to think that Sidda and Connor's children will be perfect because Sidda has learned so much and she loves Connor who is so perfect? There again, Connor is seen only through the eyes of adoring friends. Perhaps this is another book/tragedy in the making?
On the whole, the male characters lacked depth.
It could be my British stiff upper lip parenting (again), but I had difficulty empathising with the Sisters. Partly it was the dialogue, which may have made them less convincing. I read "Gone With the Wind" when I was a teenager because my Mum loved it (parenting again) and believed in all the characters. I found the film credible, too. Perhaps it was the reality of the civi war background, or perhaps it was just because I was younger. I enjoyed the minor characters in "Divine Secrets", for example Melinda who was everything Vivi was not in the parenting department. (Though like Nancy, I found Vivi's breakdown when she was trying to cope with the young children much more realistic.) If I had a favourite Ya-Ya it would be Necie I wouldn't have wanted to go up the water holding tank either.
The different voices and the different ways in which the story was told kept me interested: letters, newspaper articles, objects, conversations, third person narrative. . . . The writing style, though irritating in places, moved the plot along.
I'm glad I read the book I would not have done so if it had not been suggested. Thank you.