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Title: Icy Sparks by Gwyn Hyman Rubio ISBN: 0-14-200020-5 Publisher: Penguin Books Pub. Date: 08 March, 2001 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.54 (192 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Heartbreaking and Hilarious
Comment: Gwyn Hyman Rubio's "Icy Sparks" is an exceptional book. She has created an unforgettable character in Icy -- a young girl suffering from Tourette's syndrome. Set in rural Kentucky during the late 1950s and early 1960s, the reader is consistently challenged to question their response to the incidents and situations that occur in this novel.
The book is so rich in detail that the reader is often left feeling as though they have actually witnessed one of Icy's outbursts. The question is -- from which point of view? One of Gwyn Hyman Rubio's strongest assets is her ability to convey the shock and horror of those around Icy as she "jerks" and "croaks," while at the same time describe Icy's self-hatred of the inablity to control her body.
In the end, this book is not simply about Tourrette's syndrome. It is about human igonrance, fear and tolerance. I would highly recommend it to anyone.
Rating: 2
Summary: Misplaced therapy
Comment: "Icy Sparks" begins with the peculiar story of the birth of the main character (Icy Sparks, herself) and the death of her parents. Told through the eyes of a child, it is quite difficult to determine exactly what was going on. Actually, most of the book was this way - confusing.
Once Icy starts "pitching fits" (due to her undiagnosed Tourette Syndrome) most of the writing becomes focused on explaining every movement that jerks through her body and every sound that comes from her mouth. Icy's signature tic is "CROAK"ing, but no matter how detailed Gwyn Hyman Rubio made each jerk and croak, I could never quite see the scene she was describing.
The supporting characters of this book are the only thing that kept me reading. Miss Emily, an intelligent but overweight friend that seems to substitute for Icy's mother. Mrs. Stilton, a spiteful and mean fourth grade teacher. They seemed to come alive, among many others.
But the rest of this book seems to be a inside joke. In the way that unless you are from Kentucky you won't understand what kind of food they are eating or some of the words they are using. In the way that unless you are knowledgeable about Tourette Syndrome you'll feel like you are watching from the outside wondering what is going on.
The end was sudden and abrupt. A new storyline is started with less than twenty pages to go and it seems most of the pages are filled with hymn lines. And the epilogue just made everything worse by trying to wrap up Icy's whole life in under one page.
This book just seems to be a form of misplaced therapy and once the author was done with all the subjects that were giving her psychological trouble, she gave up. The reason for writing a fictional book should not be to teach a lesson on how to treat people or force religion down throats (out of place and at the last minute). It should simply be to entertain and unfortunately, this book did not accomplish that.
Rating: 5
Summary: This book is a winner
Comment: I enjoyed reading this book, because I learned about a subject I knew nothing about before. This is a wonderful coming of age novel set in rural Kentucky in the 1950's. The main character is an orphan named Icy Sparks. She suffers from Tourette's syndrome which causes her body to jerk involuntarily. Tourettes also causes Icy to repeat curse words uncontrollably. This condition leads to much embarassment at school in her early years. She is teased and shunned by her classmates. Icy spends some time in a mental hospital upon the suggestion of her school principal and grandparents. She makes friends with other disabled people there. She also learns new ways to deal with her disorder during her stay. Miss Emily is a compassionate fat woman. She is Icy's best friend throughout the book. I loved the relationship between these two characters. She teaches Icy her academic subjects and about life too. I loved the ending of the book. It is so touching when Icy finally finds her gift. I highly recommend Icy Sparks.
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Title: Drowning Ruth (Oprah's Book Club) by Christina Schwarz ISBN: 0345439104 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 31 July, 2001 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: While I Was Gone by Sue Miller ISBN: 0345443284 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: February, 1999 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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Title: Midwives: A Novel by Chris Bohjalian ISBN: 0375706771 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 08 November, 1998 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: A Virtuous Woman (Oprah's Book Club (Paperback)) by Kaye Gibbons ISBN: 0375703063 Publisher: Vintage Books Pub. Date: 01 November, 1997 List Price(USD): $11.00 |
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Title: Back Roads by Tawni O'Dell ISBN: 0451202341 Publisher: Signet Book Pub. Date: 02 January, 2001 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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