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| Plot Summary of A Little Help From Above |
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"
HarperCollins, Jan 2003, 13.95, 336 pp.
ISBN: 0060096209
In Long Island Lauren tells her older sister Shelby Lazarus, a Chicago Tribune reporter, that their parents were critically injured while jogging. Shelby, estranged from the family for two years, does not want to return home, but reluctantly does. In heaven the girls' mom had intervened with the estrangement by causing the crisis, but did not mean for her husband and his second wife (her sister) to be severely injured. Still, Shelby is coming home.
Shelby notices that Aunt Roz (she cannot call her mom) has kept all her childhood awards and meets Lauren's second husband even as she wonders when her sister married. Lauren asks Shelby to come see their parents, but Shelby has never stepped inside a hospital since her mother died three decades ago. She learns that Lauren is a DES baby who cannot conceive a child when her sibling asks Shelby to become a surrogate mother. As other secrets are revealed that hurt everyone, even Shelby's mother realizes that her beloved family may need a higher level of heavenly intervention if they are to share a loving future together.
A LITTLE HELP FROM ABOVE is a whimsical look at serious modern day women's issues. Shelby is an interesting character though she “kvetches” too much while the strong support cast deals with too many different crises so that none fully retain audience empathy. In her debut, Saralee Rosenberg shows plenty of talent with a plot that will leave her audience wanting similar tales (with less baggage) while wishing her mazel tov with her career.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of A Little Help From Above |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- thoughtful
Time/era of story
- present (2000-2010)
Family, struggle with
Yes
Struggle with:
- Step Parent(s)
Family, loving relations
Yes
Special relationship with
- sister
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Religion theme?
Yes
Religion theme:
- Angel buddy
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- journalist
Age:
- 20's-30's
Ethnicity/Nationality
- Turkish
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Main Adversary
Identity:
- none
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 4 ()
United States
Yes
The US:
- Midwest
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- no torture/death
Unusual Style:
- a lot of play on words
- a lot of flashback and forwards
- a lot of stream of consciousness
- No single main character?
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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