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Sweetie (Kindle Edition) newly tagged "bestseller"

Read books on your computer or other mobile devices Pricing information not available. Friendship. Courage. Hope.For shy, stuttering Melissa, the wild mountain girl named Sweetie is a symbol of pride and strength. But to many in their Appalachian town Sweetie is an outcast, a sinister influence, or worse. This poignant and haunting story takes readers deep inside the bittersweet heart of childhood loyalties.   Share your thoughts with other customers: Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars If you loved To Kill a Mockingbird, you'll adore Sweetie!, November 30, 2010 I've read Kathryn Magendie's first two books and was so glad I did, but I was truly surprised she could write a third with such power! Sweetie made me laugh, sigh, and yes, cry a few times.

Read this moving (not sappy) story of the true meaning of friendship and true family, then buy a copy for your best friend. You'll be glad you did. The characters are real, but unique. The dialogue/dialect is absorbing, but not corny. The plot is mystical, but not unbelieveable.

Sweetie is one of the best five books I've read (and I've read a lot!) in my 51 years.

Bravo to Ms. Magendie. Cannot wait for the next book!!!!

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38 of 42 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars A Bit of Magic, November 16, 2010 My taste in literature is pretty unsophisticated. I prefer sappy romances to the classics; formula fiction to literary fiction. Still, when asked to review Sweetie something about the description intrigued me:

About the book: Friendship. Courage. Hope.For shy, stuttering Melissa, the wild mountain girl named Sweetie is a symbol of pride and strength. But to many in their Appalachian town Sweetie is an outcast, a sinister influence, or worse. This poignant and haunting story takes readers deep inside the bittersweet heart of childhood loyalties.

My Comments: Kathryn Magendie can write! I loved her use of language and would periodically stop to read aloud so I could hear myself saying those beautiful words. I don't really think anyone would talk like that, but I could see an old woman in a rocking chair telling this story (the book is written in the first person) to her grandchildren. I'll admit I found the character of Sweetie somewhat unrealistic, but then I'm pretty sure I was supposed to find her unrealistic. As I said earlier, I tend toward the simple in my literary tastes and there are a lot of ways to interpret things in this book. Sweetie is a child of the mountains, who is uncomfortable around people, except around a few who are outcasts for various reasons. Is she real, did the story happen? I'm not sure.

I found Sweetie to be an engaging read, though it didn't provoke any emotional reaction from me, unlike many books with death scenes that have tears rolling down my cheeks. I recommend it to those who like literary fiction or Southern fiction. I think it would make a good book club selection, even though it doesn't come with handy discussion questions at the back--but I think folks could find plenty to discuss without stilted questions that pretend a work is greater than what it really is. At 200 pages it is not work that will bog you down for days. Grade: A-

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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars A Sweet, Captivating, Friendship Story, December 16, 2010 Sigh. I'm such a sucker for a friendship story. Especially if it's a women friendship story. Why? Because so many books of what's called "women fiction" most often than not feature broken friendships or a friendship where one of the women is a harpy and the other one is sooo perfect. So I tend to yearn for a good women friendship story. Was Sweetie a good one? No. It was an abso-friggin-lutely fantastic one!

First off, the writing in Sweetie was so beautiful. Her use of language was just tremendous. Her words were filled with wonderful imagery, her sentences were pure lyricism. I'm not one of those people who can enjoy a book purely for wonderful writing. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy beautiful writing when it comes up, but I need to be interested in the plot first. Then, I notice the wonders that some authors can do with seemingly ordinary words.

The characters in Sweetie were so great. I loved Melissa and could completely relate to her (as a former shy girl or maybe not so former). I wanted nothing more than to see her break out of her shell and to tell all of her idiot classmates to stuff it. She literally broke my heart because all she wanted was to feel loved and appreciated. But Sweetie was the real hero of this story. She was just so captivating and so out there. I cheered for a true original. In fact, she sort of reminded me of the Potato Girl from Promise Not to Tell (another fantastic book about another true original). I just loved all the complexities each of the girl had and their dynamic with their own family. And their friendship was just so beautiful.

So, I highly recommend Sweetie. It was a sweet, enchanting, captivating novel. It did make me tear up a bit at how great Sweetie and Melissa's friendship was, so it is a bit of a tearjerker. However, it is a great coming of age story and an amazing friendship story. Definitely pick it up. (And yay! for one of my better Early Reviewer Reads)

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