Comments (16)

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Dec 21, 2013jtkretzschmar rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
As far as books by Miriam Toews go, this was definitely not my favorite. I was not a fan of the writing style, nor was I a fan of the characters. Regardless of all that, this author can tell a story. She may be one of the best story…
Jun 25, 2013leensbo rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
There's something very beautiful about this book. It's quiet and at times surreal, and often very sad. It did remind me of Toews' first novel, A Complicated Kindness, which is by no means a bad thing. I recommend it.
Jun 17, 2013occy rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
Didn't enjoy this novel at all. Struggled to get half way thru it and finally gave up.
Jun 03, 2013uncommonreader rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
Toews writes with humour about young Mennonite women escaping the patriarchy of their famililes and religion, but the book is a variation on earlier novels. I would like this gifted writer to turn to other themes.
Jan 21, 2013mythoughts rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
It took a few pages to get into the writing style, but after that I was totally absorbed in this story. It's beautifully written and one of the most satisfying books I've ever read. Outstanding.
Dec 29, 2012DanglingConversations rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
There is nothing humorous in this story, it goes from human tragedy to tragedy and still Irma struggles to make a life for herself in the face of grim parenting and a surreal culture in rural Mexico. Irma bears the burden of her mandate…
pomtree
Oct 25, 2012pomtree rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This is an astounding book. It tells the story in the first person of a young woman who flees her Mennonite family in Mexico along with her two younger sisters to escape her father's rage. As the story unfolds, you learn of the ways that…
Nov 03, 2011elinpat rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
A wonderful book about a mennonite woman whose father is patriarchal in the extreme. They live in a mennonite colony in Mexico. Irma varries jorge in the drug trade, they live in the father's other house and take care of the chickens for…
goldie1234
Sep 29, 2011
Great book- A graet follow up to A complicated Kindness
Aug 13, 2011velvetcactus rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
Easily the quirkiest novel I have ever read. After Tom Stoppard's offerings of course.
Cdnbookworm
Aug 07, 2011Cdnbookworm rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Irma is 19, lives in a rural Mennonite community in Mexico, and has been ostracized by her father for marrying a young Mexican man. Her father has expected her to live in another house on the property in exchange for work. Her husband,…
ksoles
Jul 09, 2011ksoles rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
Had I not read a review promising that "Irma Voth" picks up after 140 pages, I may well have given up long before that. Indeed, the narrative moves idly at first: the eponymous protagonist, nineteen years old and abandoned by her husband,…
glengould
Jun 29, 2011
Big disappointment, but i did struggle through to the end. I didn't care about Voth's journey after she left her family home (ie with the film crew or her trip to Mexico City). I wanted to learn more about her mennonite upbringing and the…
Jun 13, 2011gvlee rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
Not as good as her previous works. I felt like the story built to a climax, as the truth about the past is gradually revealed, but then it drops off without any true resolution.
Jun 05, 2011
Really difficult to get into!
Feb 26, 2011
In Toews' new novel, the Mennonite community and family issues are relocated from Manitoba to Mexico, but the protagonist's need to escape continues.