The Bird Walked In
Love Walked InBy Marisa De Los Santos
Cornelia, a twenty-something sucker for old films and charming men, spends her time working as a manager in a coffee shop in Philadelphia wondering what to do next with her life. Clare, on the other hand, is an eleven year-old girl trying desperately to maintain her normal life while her single mother slowly goes off the deep end. The two have very little in common except for Martin, Clare's emotionally distant father who happens to be Cornelia's dashing, Cary Grant look-alike boyfriend. Through him, the girls meet and instantly connect. They then find themselves helping each other through several disasters as well as sharing many simple, happy moments. Through these times, the girls guide each other towards what they are looking for in life.
I would describe this book as "rambling". The plot is great, don't get me wrong. I really enjoyed the story as a whole. At first, though, you really have to get used to the author's tendency to meander off on to different tangents while trying to narrate (my sixth grade teacher called this "birdwalking") . She does write beautifully with lots of witty descriptions and creative metaphors. The problem is that there are A LOT of them. It makes you want to scream "GET ON WITH IT!!". But please don't let that deter you from reading on. She seems to tame these down a bit as you go on. The characters are also marvelous. Teo , an old friend of Cornelia's, is a man I love to meet and and see for that matter. It is a very sweet story and I'd recommend it for a weekend read.
Cornelia, a twenty-something sucker for old films and charming men, spends her time working as a manager in a coffee shop in Philadelphia wondering what to do next with her life. Clare, on the other hand, is an eleven year-old girl trying desperately to maintain her normal life while her single mother slowly goes off the deep end. The two have very little in common except for Martin, Clare's emotionally distant father who happens to be Cornelia's dashing, Cary Grant look-alike boyfriend. Through him, the girls meet and instantly connect. They then find themselves helping each other through several disasters as well as sharing many simple, happy moments. Through these times, the girls guide each other towards what they are looking for in life.
I would describe this book as "rambling". The plot is great, don't get me wrong. I really enjoyed the story as a whole. At first, though, you really have to get used to the author's tendency to meander off on to different tangents while trying to narrate (my sixth grade teacher called this "birdwalking") . She does write beautifully with lots of witty descriptions and creative metaphors. The problem is that there are A LOT of them. It makes you want to scream "GET ON WITH IT!!". But please don't let that deter you from reading on. She seems to tame these down a bit as you go on. The characters are also marvelous. Teo , an old friend of Cornelia's, is a man I love to meet and and see for that matter. It is a very sweet story and I'd recommend it for a weekend read.
