The Forgetting Tree by Tatjana Soli - Blog Tour, Book Review and Giveaway

About the Book:

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin’s Press; First Edition edition (September 4, 2012)

From The New York Times bestselling author of The Lotus Eaters, a novel of a California ranching family, its complicated matriarch and an enigmatic caretaker who may destroy them.

When Claire Nagy marries Forster Baumsarg, the only son of prominent California citrus ranchers, she knows she’s consenting to a life of hard work, long days, and worry-fraught nights. But her love for Forster is so strong, she turns away from her literary education and embraces the life of the ranch, succumbing to its intoxicating rhythms and bounty until her love of the land becomes a part of her. Not even the tragic, senseless death of her son Joshua at kidnappers’ hands, her alienation from her two daughters, or the dissolution of her once-devoted marriage can pull her from the ranch she’s devoted her life to preserving.

But despite having survived the most terrible of tragedies, Claire is about to face her greatest struggle: An illness that threatens not only to rip her from her land but take her very life. And she’s chosen a caregiver, the enigmatic Caribbean-born Minna, who may just be the darkest force of all.

Haunting, tough, triumphant, and profound, The Forgetting Tree explores the intimate ties we have to one another, the deepest fears we keep to ourselves, and the calling of the land that ties every one of us together.

About the Author:

TATJANA SOLI lives with her husband in Southern California. Her New York Times bestselling debut novel, The Lotus Eaters, won the 2011 James Tait Black Prize, was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and a New York Times Notable Book. Her stories have appeared inBoulevard, The Sun, StoryQuarterly, Confrontation, Gulf Coast, Other Voices, Third Coast, Sonora Review and North Dakota Quarterly. Her work has been twice listed in the 100 Distinguished Stories in Best American Short Stories.

Learn more about Tatjana and her work at TatjanaSoli.com.

My Opinion:

This is a novel of love for the land and loss of a child. I found the parts about citrus farming to be fascinating. The parts of the story at the beginning when it involved Claire and her marriage to Forster and their life as Claire adjusted to being a farmer's wife and then her falling in love with the farm were truly readable and I fell in the love with the farm too. The passages written after the loss of their son were heartbreaking. Ms. Soli knows how to set a mood with her words and she can really do somber. But as Claire entered life on her own and Minna entered I lost all interest in the book and lost all understanding of what was going on.

I got totally confused. I didn't understand this Claire. I didn't understand anything. I found I didn't even care any longer and had to force myself to finish the book. The way Claire acted with this woman in her life made no sense to me and I therefore lost all respect for the character and therefore the book. I realize from looking at other reviews that I am alone in these feelings but this is my review and therefore my thoughts. I found the last third of the book to be completely unreadable.

You can see the Tour Schedule HERE

You can purchase The Forgetting Tree on Amazon.com

The Giveaway:

One lucky reader will win a copy of The Forgetting Tree. How do you win? It's easy! Just hop on the Rafflecopter! Good luck everyone.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure:  I received a copy of The Forgetting Tree gratis from TLC Book Tours. Any opinions expressed are my honest opinions and were not impacted by my receipt of the free book. I received no monetary compensation for this post.