Review by Anibalector -- Lara's Story

[Anibalector]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Lara's Story" by Diane Merrill Wigginton.]

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2 out of 4 stars

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Lara’s Story by Diane Merrill Wigginton is a beautiful coming of age story set in the 19th century United States. This book left me with mixed feelings and I’ll try to do my best to show how confused I was.

Lara Flannigan (the main character) tells her story of becoming who she is at the moment she speaks. She remembers her childhood in Ireland – the happiness she felt being surrounded by her big family – in a heartbreakingly nostalgic tone. She draws an almost idyllic picture of her family, which is, however, bittersweet, because the reader knows from the very beginning that Lara’s willingness to tell her story is determined by a heartbreak.

After suffering a terrible loss her family sends Lara away, she is betrayed, neglected, and almost lost if it weren’t for a childless couple who save Lara and bring her to America, where her new life begins. Her new life is beautiful and strikingly different from the one she had, yet, she cannot forget Ireland and her Irish family, thus, she decides to do something to help people who are in the same situation she used to be. Her kindness and willingness to help will be rewarded and Lara will finally have the life she deserves in the end.

I rate this book 2 out of 4. Even though this book seemed like a beautiful story of human strength, I couldn’t give it more than a two-star rating. This novel is a piece of historical fiction, but the actual “historical” part seemed like mere decoration, no authenticity in whatsoever. Irish childhood was particularly unrealistic. For instance, when Lara’s parents talked to each other or their children, they occasionally inserted a regionalism or two, but otherwise, they spoke a perfectly standard English which kept puzzling me, because as far as I know these people hadn’t received that much of an education to be able to use “fancy” words and complex expressions. Another reason for me to give this book a two-star rating was something that is a common sin of the inexperienced writers, which is naming a feeling instead of letting the reader feel it.

The artificiality of the past is what I disliked most, it seemed like a perfect simulacrum, which would be fine for escape literature. But the occasional “linguistic jumps” are what kept truly bothering me. For instance, one of the characters’ speech consists entirely of Irish dialect, then, at some point, the same character begins to speak perfectly correct English.

What I liked the most was the structure of this novel. The author begins the story when it is at the point of ending, so Lara has to explain how she ended up where she was. I tend to agree with people who say that the most beautiful part of a journey is the journey itself.

I still think it is a lovely story about the power of kindness and the desire to live. I would recommend this novel to everyone who likes historical fiction and coming of age stories. If you are in search of an easy read that would allow you to escape into the safety of a story, then this book is for you. If you love historical fiction, but you are more accustomed to such authors like Kate Morton or even Sarah Jio, then this book would probably disappoint you.

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Lara's Story
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[cd20]

It's funny the different things that we pick up in stories. So, what bothered me is that the fiance's name wasn't mentioned at the beginning, but later that made sense. I also felt like the family was too perfect before things fell apart, but didn't notice the family use "fancy" words. I did enjoy the history, and the historical parts, but I am not a huge history buff, so didn't notice any inconsistencies. I agree that the story is lovely.