Etta and Otto and Russell and James - January (2015) book club

Thank you for my book which I have just finished reading. It took a while for me to get into it and am still wondering if I got the true meaning. I had to keep going back to affirm what I thought the author meant. Think I may have to reread it at some point. Have lent it to my daughter so will be interested to hear what she thinks of it.

Thank you for my copy ( it's a beautiful cover) . Just finished reading, but I couldn't help but compare it to'A Man Called Ove'

I`m so pleased that I`m not the only one to be confused about the ending, up until then I enjoyed it.

Beautiful cover, but a pity about the contents! I struggled through this and although wartime Canada was interesting the whole book was disjointed and it confused me. Maybe that's the whole point . It is written in a fey manor but the characters Etta and Otto remained rather flat. I kept hoping all the way through that the characters would become more real and that I would figure out where fantasy left off and reality began, but the characters never fleshed out and the story never really jelled.

Not sure I can recommend this to my book group this time.

I gave it my best shot but found it very confusing and did not enjoy it I'm sorry to say. Backwards and forwards, fantasy, all so muddling, and I usually enjoy the style of writing that explores the character's past, Kate Atkinson for instance. I have donated my copy to my local library so it should reach a wide audience, and certainly there could be many who will enjoy the book.

I gave up on this book yesterday having struggled with it for a week. Reading the above comments I think I would have to agree. I will see if my local library will accept it.

I lent it to my daughter to read over Xmas first and she loved it. Now that all the festivities and mince pies are out of the way I'm looking forward to reading it too. Thanks for my copy Gransnet.

I have now finished the book, and as I feared when I posted my first thread having got half way through, there was a sting in the tail, and - SPOILER ALERT for those who haven't finished it - I think she drowns herself? I thought it began to get a bit "odd" as it went on, what happened to Russell? All a bit confusing but I did look on the inside covers as one of you pointed out, and yes, that was a clever idea. And like someone else said, I dont think I will be recommending it to my friends. Sorry.

After an intriguing beginning it began to lose its appeal as the main characters lacked any real depth and the magical reality didn't ever gel for me. I would like to ask the author what was her inspiration for writing this novel.

I am struggling with this book. It is just not grabbing my interest, working through it but it is a chore.

I have read all of the comments about this book and there were very few positive comments. I was wondering whether the author financed the publication of the book herself. I read about 40 to 45 books a year and this was the poorest by far.

Hi I would love to join the book club how do i go about it pls. Just joined gransnet before xmas and i love reading

marylane1996, welcome to Gransnet. If you have signed up for the newsletter email, it will contain details of how to apply for a free copy of the book of the month. Most times you will be successful. When you have read it, you can add comments or questions to the relevant thread. If you don't get the newsletter and are interested in other book offers and prizes too, have a look under the 'Competitions' heading beneath the logo at the top of the page. In my normal life I never win anything, but my grandchildren and I have benefitted from lots of freebies from Gransnet.

hi Shysal just signed up for the newsletter email. Thanks for your help. Like u i never win a thing. i can buy raffle tickets, play bingo ....yuk not my thing and do the lottery but nothing comes my way!

Thank you for this book. The cover is wonderful and I really want to keep it on view for everyone to see! I found the story interesting and quite easy to follow at first, but then lost the plot somewhat and got quite bored with it. Not one I would recommend, sorry!

I have just finished my copy of Etta & Otto & Russell & James and really enjoyed it,I found it hard to get going but once I did there was no putting it down,the cover of the book is delightful and will claim a place on my book shelf for display purposes just because the cover is so unusual.
My question to the author would be.
Where did the idea come from regarding your story do you know personally some people who have been through similar in their lifetime.

I love the look and feel of the book. The way it is written on the page is a delight. Something different to show my book club.

Thank you for my copy. I have now got the time to finish reading it and will post a further comment then.

A great choice for a book club discussion as it was so difficult to distinguish between reality and delusion
I just loved the language in this book - it was almost a poem and I enjoyed reading it very much
There are so many questions for the author
have all the characters died by the end?
what is the significance of the papermache animals?
but the oddest section to me was the scene in the care home - is that when Etta dies?
It is a book I will go back and read again and I very rarely do that
Thank you for my copy

Thanks for my copy - arrived over Xmas. Unusual cover - unusual storyline!

Thank you for my copy. I really loved this book. I thought it was beautifully written and loved the style and the layout as well as the cover which other people have mentioned.

i found the end confusing - this is not a criticism as it's left me thinking which is a good thing! But I would love to ask the author

(SPOILER ALERT)

- did Etta die?
- did Otto die?
- Did one or both have dementia
- Was it all a dream?

In short - please tell us what really happened as I can't stop wondering!

Thanks Gransnet for this beautiful treat of a book!

I've started reading it and what a clever story - takes you on a journey with the characters, looking for their own particular dream. And aren't we all?

Sorry, but I just didn't enjoy this book. I did finish it but was really happy to. The "Harold Fry" book, on a similar theme was so much better on all levels. Thank you though, GN for the opportunity to read a wide variety of books.

I was thrilled to receive this book...the cover is delightful !!
But now I've finished reading it, I have to agree with many of the earlier comments ......I found it very confusing which really spoiled my enjoyment of the book.
I would also like the author to make it clear to us all what exactly happens at the end.
Does Etta drown herself ?
Does Otto die in the home ?
What about Russell ?
I wonder.....will it make it all clearer if I reread it?
Sorry to the author for being so negative.