A Grown-Up Kind of Pretty

Another Great one from Jackson

Jackson has done it again.

I am a long-time fan of Joshilyn Jackson, as is noted here and here. Her writing takes me away into the worlds in her book, and the characters always feel so instantly like I've known them my whole life. Would it be weird to call her books "comfortable"? Because right from the prologue of this newest novel, I knew I was going to be stuck in my chair until the end.

Wow, was the drama in this story heavy! And powerful, like a punch to the stomach, or a terrible image you accidentally stumbled upon on the internet. I completely loved the characters. Poor Mosey and her search for who she is, her turmoil over being a teenager with a dysfunctional family. She was so realistically wise beyond her years. Big was another I enjoyed immensely, as a mother who is trying to protect her children and her heart amidst an unspeakable crime. And whoo-boy, the dialog that came out of Lawrence's mouth weakened my knees! Once the clues started falling into place, I found myself feverishly turning the pages for more. A fantastic story by a much loved author.

5 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

Beautiful

Lovely book filled with family, love tragedy and everything in between.

4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

Is the simplest answer always the right one?

Mosey has grown up in a house with her mother and grandmother, two women that have been scandalizing their Baptist community for 46 years. She is a great student, and a good kid but her family is one kind of obsessive about keeping her that way to the point of ridiculous. Mosey has no desire to be 14 and pregnant she has bigger goals set for herself if only the self-righteous would step aside.

She was born illegitimate as was her mother before her but that is where they part familiar traits. Her mother was wild until a stroke knocked the life out of half her body and now Mosey’s grandmother is determined to bring her back. Mosey’s mother “Little” continued to struggle until the day a small treasure box is pulled from the ground in their backyard. After a tree is removed and Little sees what has happened the first word she says clearly is mine. Mosey and her grandmother “Big” have no idea what is in the box or how it got there but something has brought Little back to fight another day and now everyone wants to solve the mystery of the little box with so much to tell.

As the story unfolds you discover that Little may have had some secrets she played close to her heart so does Big. So much as gone on while Mosey was trying to remain the good girl that at some point as the secrets pour out she wonders why? The adventure that started with the discovery of that little box becomes an obsession of lies and deceit that no one could ever imagine. When everything falls out of that box it will not only spill truth but also shine a light from above on the lies that everyone has been telling all these many years.

Joshilyn Jackson makes every reader unable to put her books down and weep when they are over the sadness of them ending unbearable. There is so much to this story that no character is considered secondary with every twist and turn integral to the plot.

3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

Incredible.

This beautiful story captivated me from page 1, and I'm eager to read more from the author. I suggest you allow yourself a large chunk of time to enjoy this book because you won't want to put it down.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Gorgeous story, rich with colour and personality

Joshilyn has a gift for getting to the heart of it. Her characters are as real as you and I are and the situations, while entirely unlikely, are absolutely feasible and beautifully handled. This is my first Jackson read. She's terrific.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Its Joshilyn Jackson-as if anymore needs to be said!!

Her characters are so easy to relate to b/c she writes in such a way that you find yourself AS the character. Its truly like your there watching your dead grandbaby being uneartherd, or trying to communicate after youve had a stroke ect. this is the kind of book that you tell yourself you will read a chapter before bed and then next thing you know it 2:00 am and you still want more!!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Enjoyed

Jackson has done it again. Amazing book of family and the emotions that go along with them. Truely a gifted voice.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

This book is pure delight. It's nothing fancy but is a really go

This book is pure delight. It's nothing fancy but is a really good read.

Ginny, known as Big to her daughter and granddaughter, gave birth to Liza when Ginny was fifteen years old.
Then when Liza, now called Little by her mother, was fifteen she gave birth and refused to tell anyone who the father of her child was. With Mosey approaching fifteen, this household of females are feeling the pressure of the fifteen-year evil that seems to come their way.

I laughed: Mosey hasn't even been out with a boy but she steals pregnancy kits to test herself at home since she's so sure that by some hook or crook she'll be pregnant at fifteen.

Liza, now thirty, has a stroke and is stuck inside herself with little means of communication.

While removing a tree and its stump from Ginny's yard the handyman uncovers a box containing the bones of a baby.
The search for the identity of the child brings out revelations about all three of the women. Also involved is Mosey's best friend, a teenaged boy who is a nerd. Mosey and Roger befriend a classmate of Mosey's who is from a large family of ne'er-do-wells. This child played on my empathy and I rooted for her.

Throw in a little romance, a family of snobs, rescuing dogs ... or people ... who need fixing and you have a recipe for a page-turner.

You won't go wrong with this one. I give it four stars.

Love Joshilyn Jackson!

Love Joshilyn Jackson!

I've been in a bit of a fiction slump. Lately, nothing between t

I've been in a bit of a fiction slump. Lately, nothing between two covers has nagged me to put off chores or order pizza for dinner.

The dry spell is over, for now at least.

A GROWN UP KIND OF PRETTY, by Joshilyn Jackson, is terrific. Three characters with very distinctive voices tell a story that gets its kindly hooks into you and drags you off your workaday path at every opportunity, just to find out what happens next. This is a book you'll take with you to read pages whenever and wherever you've got a minute to spare. Don't put it on the passenger seat while you're driving or you'll miss a lot of stoplights going green.

Streamlined storytelling at its best, A GROWN UP KIND OF PRETTY is laugh-out-loud funny, tautly plotted, believable, and satisfying. Who could ask for anything more?

Good Book.

At first I really had no idea where this plot line was going, but the more I got into it the more I read. I loved her writing style and recommend it to anyone as a quick read.

Fabulous Southern Family Drama

A Grown-Up Kind of Pretty is told from the rotating perspective of three generations of women--grandmother, daughter, and granddaughter. The daughter, who is only 30, has had a stroke, and holds the key to a family secret. The entire book is exceptionally well-written, but the scenes from the point of view of the stroke victim as she struggles to communicate with her mother are brilliant. Without missing a beat, Joshilyn Jackson moves deep into the head of a 15-year-old, then to the 45-year-young grandmother, who is fighting to hold herself and her family together. I loved this book.

Loved it!

I absolutely loved this book. This is the firstbook I have read of hers and I cam't wait to read the others. Highly recommend.

One of her best!

I am an avid Joshilyn Jackson fan......and this is one of her best!

Great

This is truly one of the best books I've read in a long time. The characters are real and likable, and Jackson writes with humor that I really enjoyed. Can't wait to read more vrom this author.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Very enjoyable

Once I started it - wanted to finish it! Very enjoyable read. Glad I purchased it on my Nook Color.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

very different

a complete departure from my usual reading fare. Although I have not finished yet, i am really enjoying this book.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great quick read.

This book had me captivated from the beginning. Joshilyn Jackson did a fabulous job making visualization so easy with her captivating descriptions. I really enjoyed how there were three narrators. I read this book during my sons afternoon naps and when he woke-up it was always too early to want to put down the book. Also, enjoyed how current it was.

Great Story but Hard to "get into" the Characters

The story is about family and layers of family skeletons that get unearthed innocently while digging out a pool addition in the backyard.
As the story developed it kept me reading to see what happens next but the main characters were just hard to get into and even fell a little flat in some places.

Fabulous!

Her best one yet. Read it in one day and stayed up too late so I could finish it. Impossible to put down.