read in school, kind of cozy but kind of boring.

به قشنگی دختری با گوشواره‌های مرواریدش نبود
ولی داستان زنانه‌ای جذابی داشت

تغییر فضا بین شخصیت‌ها باعث شده بود حس غرق شدن توی داستان رو ازدست بدی
ولی خب دوستش داشتم

Inventive storyline and I enjoyed the friendship between the two girls and Simon. The cemetery setting was beautiful and the mothers of both girls reminded us that our moms are just humans with complex lives of their own. I liked the writing style and how the story was told by all of the different characters in their own voice. Jenny was a favorite for me. I also really liked the portrayal of Miss Black. Such an edgy, feminist vibe.

I hadn’t read any of Tracey Chevalier books before although I had heard of The Girl With The Pearl Earring. This book was at first a little off putting with the extremely short chapters and the fact that each chapter was dealing with a different character. Having said that I was blown away by this story and although it was a little dark in places the way it was written brought the 1900’s to life. It’s not an exciting narrative but, it’s historical and very well written and such a lovely story. I shall be reading her other books in time.

Well I thought it would be difficult to make another book as good as the The Girl with the Pearl Earring which was superb. Don’t get me wrong this was still a great book. Simple story focusses on two families and their daughters in the period from the day of Queen Victoria’s death to that of the King who succeeded her. Incorporating the Suffragette movement.

Short paragraphs alternate with POV’s of the main characters. Most of the action taking place within and about the local cemetery. The Author captures the feeling of the times well. As with the Pearl this is a sad book. I will look out more books by this author. They are modern day classics.

This book finished on day 1 of current ( yes another) Madeira holiday

I had to read this one for school, and surprisingly, I really liked it.

here is part of the essay I wrote about it for school (scroll further down for a less formal review :))

Falling Angels by Tracy Chevalier was easy to read - there were short chapters, and the novel was well paced.

In terms of plot, I did not find the story very captivating. The only part that I found thrilling were the deaths of Ivy May and Kitty. However, when it comes to how well the story was executed, it was extremely well done.

In my opinion, the main reason this book is such an interesting read, is the fact that it is told from multiple points of views. This is not a new concept, but it was a well thought out decision when it comes to narration. Multiple perspectives let the reader see the situation from numerous people´s views. It helps the reader get into every character’s head and understand them better. For example, when Kitty turns among others, Edith Coleman´s necklaces into a new one, we get to know what Kitty was thinking when she did this, and we also get to see Richard and Edith´s reaction first hand from their point of view.

Especially in an age such as the time of the suffragette movement, there were many opinions on topics like, for instance, the women´s liberation. Falling Angels has such a diverse cast of characters concerning thoughts on the suffragette movement, and using this format to showcase every single one, was an excellent choice made by Tracy Chevalier.

Furthermore, often, when there is only a single narrator, the reader is forced to automatically be on the narrator’s side, but when a book is told by multiple people, the reader is free to decide for themselves whose side they are on. The reader has more freedom in deciding whether turning family heirlooms into a new necklace is acceptable.

The reason why Falling Angels delt with the theme women´s liberation so well, can again be traced back to the author´s use of multiple perspectives. Letting the reader hear everyone´s opinion is, as I mentioned above, a great way to let every side of the story be known. In this book there are characters that support the suffragette movement so much they become obsessed with it - Kitty Coleman; There are characters that are against the movement and believe that a women´s place is the home - Edith Coleman; There are characters that don´t particularly care about women´s rights and are embarrassed to be associated with it- Gertrude Waterhouse; There are female characters that seek knowledge and want to study at university, but also female characters that love fashion and making mourning etiquettes; There are characters from every class and all kinds of backgrounds - The diversity is what makes all of these perspectives to interesting. Showing every side of the story is very important, and when it comes to serious topics such as women´s liberation, it is no different.

In conclusion, this book would have been nothing special without the multiple perspectives. The story was nothing out of the ordinary, but the multiple points of views made it unique in its genre; it stands out in a sea of historical novels.

A lot less formal review:

You see, I tend to just skim books I have to read for school, but this one I ACTUALLY read. At the beginning I thought "okay. where is the plot.", and I had absolutely no motivation to continue reading after the first 50 pages. But then of course I had to, and I actually started to enjoy it.

The last bit before the ending was the best part. It was brutal, complex, and I was devastated (unfortunately the book didn´t pass the cry test though).

The characters grew on me (most of them at least) and I loved their relationships.

If you´re looking for a book about the suffragette movement, look no more, this is it.

روایت شکسته‌بندی شده درباره‌ی دو خانواده انگلیسی در اوایل قرن بیستم. شخصیت‌ها ناپرورده و موضوعات اضافی زیاد.

I've read all of Chevalier's novels and have always thought of this one as my favourite. A reread didn't change that, so I've bumped my rating up. I loved the neat structure that bookends the action between the death of Queen Victoria and the death of Edward VII, and the focus on funerary customs (with Highgate Cemetery as a major setting) and women's rights is right up my street. The switching between first-person POVs makes it such easy and engaging reading. She hits the absolute sweet spot between women's and literary fiction. Any and all melodrama is excused! The title is literal re: grave furniture, but also refers to shooting stars and erring humans.

A favourite passage:

(Kitty) "I have spent my life waiting for something to happen. And I have come to understand that nothing will. Or it already has, and I blinked during that moment and it's gone. I don't know which is worse - to have missed it or to know there is nothing to miss."

I love this book so much - its one of my absolute all-time favourites. I like to re-read it every year or so - if you haven't read it, you must

Once. again with a Tracy Chevalier book you are taken on a beautiful historical journey. Set in late Victorian London at the time of the start of the suffragette movement. I love the way that this book was written with short chapters from a different characters point of view, from children to adults. I loved each and everyone of these characters. It made me smile at times and also made me feel quite emotional. The way that the author describes these emotions and moments in history at times it made me feel like I was there. An amazing book and one I would highly recommended.

loved how individual each character’s narration is

3.5
a quick read with great character development :))