Review & Giveaway: Sand in My Eyes by Christine Lemmon

Sand in My Eyes

Author: Christine Lemmon

Publication Date: July 1, 2010

Publisher: Penmark Publishing

ISBN: 978-0971287426

355 pages

Source: I received this book from the publisher for review.

Twenty years ago, Anna Hott thought she could control everything — her crumbling marriage, her demanding children, her hectic life — by quitting her high-placed job in New York City and moving her family to tranquil Sanibel Island, Florida. But she brought her untamed emotions, her rage toward her cheating husband, and her yearning to write a novel with her. When her husband and children left the house for a week, Anna thought at last she would get her household, her novel, and her mind in order. Instead, her elderly neighbor Fedelina Aurelio knocked on her door bearing flowers and homespun wisdom, and when Fedelina’s recently divorced son arrived, Anna had a test of passions and a test of truth. Now, at 56 with an empty nest, Anna Holt pulls out the incomplete manuscript she started that memorable week and — to find closure for her life and a conclusion for her novel — travels to Indiana to visit Fedelina who lives in a nursing home. A novel framed within a novel, Sand In My Eyes is both a story about the tension between motherhood and personal dreams as well as a story about women across generations inspiring one another to let beauty persist despite ugly circumstances.

My Thoughts:

This book is kind of hard to describe. It is a “story within a story”. Anna Hott is a woman in her mid-fifties who is reflecting back on her life twenty years prior, of the week she had all to herself, where she began writing her novel. When life intruded upon her again, the novel got tossed in a drawer, never to be seen again. At the opening of this book, Anna is on her way to see her old neighbor, Fedelina, who inspired Anna to write that story so many years ago. Anna is looking for an ending to her story, and to reconnect with the woman who changed her life.

Fedelina is living in a nursing home in Indiana and when the two women reconnect, Anna begins reading her story to Fedelina, looking for approval from the woman on whom this story is based. The reader is taken back in time, twenty years earlier, to when Anna is an overwhelmed mother of three, caring for her three young children, taking care of a household, and stumbling through the after-effects of her husband’s affair. She is on the verge of a complete breakdown when her husband heads out of town on a business trip and sends the children to stay with his parents for a week, giving Anna some much needed time and space to confront her emotions and figure out who she is and who she wants to be.

With a quiet house, Anna begins pursuing one of her lifelong dreams – writing a novel. When she meets her elderly neighbor, Fedelina, Anna’s outlook on life changes completely. Fedelina gives Anna sage wisdom on life from raising her own seven children, with gardening metaphors that carry throughout the novel.

The story is broken out in sections. “Belvedere” is the present in which Anna and Fedelina are in the nursing home; most of the story is the reading of Anna’s manuscript to Fedelina; and there are several sections from the early 1900s with Cora, Fedelina’s mother, sharing her life’s wisdom with her own daughter (these are also part of Anna’s manuscript).

These characters are rich, complex, and deeply formed. You can feel their emotions leaping off the page. I was instantly drawn into their story, taking meaning from their lives and applying it to my own. There is much to think about in reading this novel and it can easily be transferred to your own life. Are you doing what makes you truly happy?

A few things that bothered me: although this book is 355 pages, I felt that the ending wrapped up too quickly and I didn’t like it! I kind of felt cheated as a reader. Also, the story seemed to move very slowly at times and I had to force myself to keep reading, because I just wanted to get through it. Finally, there were so many editing errors that it drove me a bit crazy! (i.e. lashlight instead of flashlight; loose instead of lose). I hate finding errors like these in a book because it really detracts from my enjoyment of it. There were also many hyphenated words that I didn’t get – i.e. sup-posed. I’m not sure if the completed novel just didn’t translate correctly into a printed, bound copy, but this was all through the novel and really bugged me.

Overall, this is a wonderful story and gave me lots to think about. The characters are rich and deep and I’m sure many of you could find a little bit of yourself in Anna. It definitely deserves the CRAZY FABULOUS rating!

Giveaway:

Thanks to the publisher, I have 4 signed copies of this novel to give away (including my own gently read copy)!

Rules for entering:

1. You MUST be follower of this blog through Google Friend Connect, E-Mail Subscription, or RSS Feed.

2. This contest is open to residents of USA only!

3. You MUST complete the form below – do not leave information in the comments – it will not count!

4. The contest will end on August 8, 2010 at 11:59PM EST; 4 winners will be selected and contacted thereafter.

5. Once the winners are contacted, they will have 48 hours to respond to my e-mail or another winner will be selected. Make sure you check your spam filters!

6. NO P.O. Box Addresses!

7. Book will be shipped from me – please allow 4 weeks for delivery via media mail.