Members with This Book
Most Helpful Reviews
see all reviews
Liked It1 of 1 members found this review helpful “Do you believe in second chances? |
Newest Reviews
see all reviews-
“I wrote this novel and am pleased with the production and the way it turned out, especially the cover.
BettyDravis wrote this review Saturday, September 1 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
This is the story of my beautiful older sister and her seven marriages. She had an exciting life ... filled with high drama ... lots of sadness but much happiness too.
1106 GRAND BOULEVARD is an epic love story/thriller set in my hometown of Hamilton, Ohio. The title is the actual address of our childhood home, and the cover is a photo of the house, taken through the window of my father's car as he drove us past the house in the early 1980s ... many years after we seven siblings had left the Nest.
My father is 91 in the above photo; he passed away at age 93.
I hope you enjoy this dramatic tribute to my sister and my family. It's what I call a "faction" book because it's BASED on fact with some fiction thrown in for good measure.”1 of 1 members found this review helpful“Do you believe in second chances?
Linda in Maine wrote this review Monday, September 3 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Some books grab you with an action-packed opening and hook you right in from the first paragraph. Other books reveal the richness of their story a layer at a time.
Betty Dravis' "1106 Grand Boulevard" does both. Firmly rooted in small-town America, it ranges through nearly fifty years and across the country from Ohio to Arizona, Nevada and California. Sixteen-year-old Billie Jean Sloane takes center stage as she runs screaming from her young husband's jealous rage, headlong into an amazing matrimonial career. Billie Jean's family, already disapproving of her marriage to Cal, shield her from his remorse and entrust her to the care of her Aunt Tommie where she learns a more calculating approach to relationships -- without losing her sometimes naive desire to marry for love.
Fortunate in the love of her large family, Billie Jean is not so fortunate in her marriages. Time after time she marries in haste only to be disappointed in her search for the lasting "love of her life," yet her energy and optimism shine through the author's words. Billie Jean's parents, sisters and brothers circle through her story in a way that made me appreciate the importance in my life of my own family.
This book is fiction based on fact, and how I'd like to meet the author's sister (the "real" Billie Jean) and the rest of the family. What a great bunch! Betty Dravis portrays all of her characters lovingly but doesn't sugar-coat them, and their personalities are never overshadowed by the events of the story. They could be your next-door neighbors.
This book reminded me of "Standing in the Rainbow" by Southern author Fannie Flagg, having a similar span of time, small-town focus, and entrancing, strong-minded woman as a central character. Billie Jean's personality is very different from that of Flagg's Neighbor Dorothy, but both women live their lives with a consistency and honesty that has the ring of truth -- both are people you'd like to know. Both claim the attention of everyone in their sphere and work hard for everything they achieve.
I love a story that somehow comes full circle, referencing and resolving the themes that run through it. This book certainly does that (read it for yourself to find out how!) and it's that resolution that lifts the story, and the telling of it, out of the ordinary. To see the pattern and context in a long, vivid life is a gift, and "1106 Grand Boulevard" gives us that.
If it were a movie -- and it should be, with the lead played by somebody easy to like, Sandra Bullock for instance -- I'd be there with a box of tissues in my lap, expecting some tears and lots of smiles. A great story, interesting characters, costumes and interiors from the thirties through the seventies -- what could be better?
Betty Dravis' beautifully paced book kept me reading late into the night, fingers crossed that the irrepressible Billie Jean would find the true, satisfying love we all yearn for. If you believe in second chances, you will love this book!
originally posted on www.amazon.com”
Displaying 1-3 of 3
