Hi, all--

I just wanted to share with you two reviews of TBK that appear on LibraryThing.com:

Young, naive Cora falls for Iver, a carefree "ladies man." After she gets pregnant, he is pressured by his family to marry her, yet he isn't ready for the responsiblity of having a wife and family, so he resents her. She ends up having five boys, but never really grows up herself and therefore resents the children at times because she wants to have the freedom to do what she wants. Therefore the five boys end up running wild and being left to fend for themselves, which leads them into all sorts of trouble and emotional problems. Eventually they are taken in by the Lutheran Welfare Society and are in and out of various foster homes. Even though this book takes place during and after the Great Depression, it could very well have been set in modern times. The same social problems persist today. The book was very well written; I couldn't put it down and highly recommend it. ( ) | lilmanmom Nov.14, 2011 |

Nov 14, 2011 | The Brothers’ Keepers is a novel that reads like non-fiction yet carries the creative weight of a well-written saga. The story, in brief, is about five boys who are all but abandoned by their parents, left to fend for themselves. When either of the parents is there (mostly the mother) they are emotionally and physically abused. This narrative has been told, similarly, many times and in many different ways. What sets this one apart from others is the manner in which the characters are portrayed. The authors do not impose a sense of pity on the children, but disgust for the parents. The children possess an unassuming inner strength, within their brokenness, that gives them a sense of power – a power that both binds them and pulls them apart. Within all of the children is an inner violence that, as adults, is tempered in various ways. The reader knows, before its reading, that none of the boys will grow up without deep emotional scars. It is impossible. All abused children – as adults - know this. Some of the boys are able to make relatively good lives for themselves, the rest cannot. Whatever their ending, the authors bring the story to a successful close without straying from its forceful beginning. One cannot help but be moved by such an account. It is Paddison’s and Orvik’s interpretation of this old and unfortunate tale that makes it a compelling achievement. ( ) | Bale | Nov 6, 2011 |