Book Review Tuesday - All the Rest of Her Days - #BRT
Maggie is 16 years old and pregnant, a big problem in the 1960s. When she confesses to her parents, they make the decision to send her away to a home for unwed, pregnant girls, where Maggie will stay until she gives birth. Then, the baby will be taken and put up for adoption. She gives birth to a son and carries her secret with her for decades.
Thirty years later, Maggie receives a telephone call from a man who says he is her son. This is actually how the book begins - so the reader has a pretty good idea where it's going. But this isn't a mystery; it's a story about loss and a mother's never-ending love for her son.
The first seven chapters make up Part One, which focuses on Maggie Porter - her teenage pregnancy, her return to high school and college after giving up her baby, and her eventual marriage to a man named Joe. It ends with her pregnancy and the birth of a daughter.
Part Two begins in Ireland, with Julia O'Brien preparing to leave for America. She joins her brother there and meets a man she will eventually marry. But this couple finds themselves childless after a number of years, and decide to adopt. And yes, they adopt the little boy that Maggie Porter had put up for adoption.
From there the storylines move along - sometimes so quickly it's hard to keep up - to the eventual point that begins the novel.
The author had a good plot and developed it thoroughly. However, this book was in desperate need of a copy editor. Spelling errors and in particular, the misuse and lack of punctuation mar an otherwise engrossing tale. Copy editors can polish a story and make it shine.
Many parts of this story seemed rushed. This is really more of a saga, spanning decades, but at times the author covers years in a single paragraph. Also, when shifting to a new scene (and a new time period), it's a good idea to have a break, even with a symbol, to let the reader know. Otherwise, one is left wondering what happened, thinking something was missing.
This book was published seven-and-a-half years ago - it would be my recommendation to have it professionally edited and re-release it.
You can get a copy of All the Rest of Her Days in digital or print versions here: https://www.amazon.com/All-Rest-Days-Jane-McCarthy/dp/1495287661/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=