Winter Garden

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I was drawn into this one immediately and could not stop. The magic of this story is so delicate, elegant, and cold. Winter pervades the entire novel and laces it with icicles, snowflakes and possibility. Excellent heartfelt story about the troubled dynamics of the mother/daughter bond and the relationship between two sisters. Sisters Meredith and Nina couldn't be more different from one another, and have difficulty bridging the gap to find common ground. Their Russian-born mother, Anya, however, has always been cold and distant and the girls have felt unloved, affecting each of them in different ways. Their fragile bond is further threatened after the death of their father, who was the glue that held them all together. Of course, the ending left me in tears. If you didn't know, I'm a complete and utter cry baby. It felt like my heart was literally torn in two - between what could have been and what was - but ultimately it was still a happy place to be. I find The Winter Garden to be too much and not enough at the same time; too many descriptions that are unnecessary to the storylines, too many tropes as if the author wanted to put every one she could think of in one single book (more than 10) and too little depth for topics that deserved way more than that. I won’t even mention rape/sexual abuse since it was completely brushed aside but at least the drug abuse, depression and toxic/abusive friendships which is the best kind of relationship that we have in this story. Although both Rosa and Beatrice explore motherhood and loss in different ways, I did find Rosa’s story more captivating, perhaps because it felt like she had more to lose than Beatrice and everything to gain.

Sophisticated and serene, The Landmark London is the crowning jewel of the fashionable Marylebone district, NW1, and is located less than half a mile from the world-famous Baker Street. Dine and unwind in a tranquil oasis of the enchanting Winter Garden. Under views of elegant palms, with its magnificent glass roofed atrium, the modern European menu offers popular classics presented with a tantalising twist. The fine dining Winter Garden is known and loved for its stunning eight-storey, glass atrium, extravagant service and simply delicious culinary compositions. Meredith and Nina Whitson are as different as sisters can be. One stayed at home to raise her children and manage the family apple orchard; the other followed a dream and traveled the world to become a famous photojournalist. But when their beloved father falls ill, Meredith and Nina find themselves together again, standing alongside their cold, disapproving mother, Anya, who even now, offers no comfort to her daughters. Meredith and Nina are two sisters that lead very different lives. They grew up with a distant mother and in turn have never been close to one another. Their mother told them a fairytale as children. When their father dies it is his last wish that their mother tell them the whole story.This book is a powerful story of feminism, friendship and identity entwined in a magical world of Victorian England. Filled with whimsical writing and childlike fairytales told in an adult historical fantasy. If you like books that have fantastical elements of magic while dealing with the harsh realities of life you'll enjoy this. Nina and Meredith never had a mother they could count on or could talk to about boys. The only thing their mother was good for was telling them Russian fairy tales from her youth; Little did they know how important those fairy tales really were. Their father, however, was their hero. What they couldn't get from their mother, they got in spades from their father. When their father dies from heart problems, they are heartbroken. Nina's father makes a final proclamation as he lays dying: He wants Nina to convince her mother to tell the full fairy tale of "The Peasant Girl and The Prince." This fairy tale does more for their family than any of them could have ever expected. It will lead them on a journey of a lifetime..

We all really loved the discussion we had for this one and we really dug deep into the emotional depth of this story and how it made us feel. We used some discussion questions that really enhanced our discussion. It’s stories and discussions like this that really bring out the best reading experiences for me. One stayed at home to raise her children and manage the family apple orchard; the other followed a dream and traveled the world to become a famous photojournalist. One of my favorite Kristin Hannah novels. Winter Garden is a heart-breaking but beautiful story of the power of love, family, and connection.On one hand, there are parts with strong emotional resonance. I’m so fascinated by her choice to begin with end and end with beginning, and the imagery is fantastic in all senses. Best of all was Bell’s commentary on the legal subjugation of women, then and now. Not one to learn from past experience, Alex started the Legal Practice Course in London. There she met some great people and had a lot of fun messing about during lessons that were clearly meant to be extremely solemn affairs. Thankfully, she dropped out just before the point where all students must submit to the personality-removing process that is a compulsory part of being an esteemed member of the legal profession. Firefly Lane, her beloved novel about two best friends, was the #1 Netflix series around the world, in the week it came out. The popular tv show stars Katherine Heigl and Sarah Chalke and Season Two is currently set to conclude the series on April 27, 2023.

That’s where the game ended…or began, depending on your point of view. Once I read my first account of the siege, I was hooked. Big time. The survivors’ stories literally clawed their way into my heart and there they remain. Hopefully you’ve finished Winter Garden before reading this essay, and if so, you have a pretty good picture of the suffering endured by Leningraders. What I was less able to incorporate into the novel was the beauty of the city. Leningrad was built to be famous, an eternal, gorgeous city that would welcome artists and celebrities and the wealthy. Picture elaborately designed buildings, topped in gold and painted gaily… picture arching bridges over sweeping rivers…picture scrollwork and marble statues and intricately landscaped public parks…now picture the Northern lights sparkling above. All of this was Peter’s Window to the West, the city that would give Venice a run for its money. Overall this book is a thought provoking story with harsh realities told in a fantastical world filled with magic. It's beautifully written, I highly recommend this book if you enjoy stories that discuss real issues within a world filled with magic. Once again, I find myself in awe of the power and beauty of Kristin Hannah’s words. She gives her readers the ability to crawl inside the story and see the world through the eyes of her characters. It’s her stunning gift for capturing the heart wrenching and emotional aspect of every connection that left me completely enamored with this family. Every single one of them. By the time I reached the end of the story, I was nowhere near ready to let them go.Both Nina and Meredith have grown up into adults who are unable to have normal relationships with others. Meredith's marriage is failing, because she shuts her husband out with an emotional wall. Nina is a world famous photographer who runs away from family and commitment by flying off to the latest war/famine/disaster. She refuses to accept a marriage proposal from someone who loves her and she loves because of her stunted emotional growth. He shrugged. 'I'm not so sure. If something brings you more grief and heartache than reward and pleasure, yet you persist in the endeavour anyway, then how else might one describe it?'] I found it absolutely fascinating and captivating watching the way the 'fairy tale' that the mother was telling slowly blended into reality. The transition was so powerful -- there are all these subtle details that if you read carefully, you'll catch and they'll take your breath away. It's a truly stunning piece of writing. I did like the character of James - I would have much rather read a book about his adventures as a orchid hunter. At least he was likeable and behaved like an adult. Meredith and Nina Whitson are as different as sisters can be. One stayed at home to raise her children and manage the family apple orchard; the other followed a dream and traveled the world to become a famous photojournalist. But when their beloved father falls ill, these two estranged women will find themselves together again, standing alongside their cold, disapproving mother, Anya, who even now, offers no comfort to her daughters. On his deathbed, their father extracts one last promise from the women in his life.

What starts as a dysfunctional domestic situation between 2 sisters (American born) and their Russian-born mother ends up being so much more. Grief and a deathbed promise brings these unhappy women reluctantly together, and what seemed like a familial dysfunction becomes an intimate look at the mother of these two sisters who was raised in Russia during the war. Primarily they learn about a side of her they never knew. Her story of war-torn Leningrad, paints a vivid picture of the atrocity of war. One cannot fathom the pain, hunger, starvation and death all around the survivors, the terror of small children being taken by train away from their parents, starving, cold, crying and afraid. Your heart sinks and you feel your throat all choked up. Don't be surprised if your eyes smart a few times and tears cloud your vision as you're reading this emotional rendering. This part of the novel is truly heartbreaking. I found it very moving, and well written.

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The biggest problem I have with this book is about the very unidimensional feminism. It is quite clear the author wanted to denounce the sexism of this time, but it is a feminism centered on the protagonists, a real egocentric white feminism. Not even a word about racism and colonization of this period, it could have been in the book as Beatrice is traveling, some opportunities was clearly missed here and in the end the book has some really sketchy racist vibes and ... no thank you In the present-day story the description of Sitka, in Alaska and its history was depicted such as one can easily visualize it. Kudos to author Hannah. She carries the reader through the scenes effortlessly. You feel yourself there and want to see it for yourself some day. The characters are flawed but believable, the novel hard to forget and the ending entirely satisfying to this reader. Definitely recommended. i wish we could've seen more of james, another character i really loved. he might just be my favourite one, actually. 🌹 It’s possible that, for me, Hannah over-corrected in her rewrite, because I actually found the chapters about Meredith and Nina more interesting than their mother’s gradual fiction-into-fact revealing of her tragic experiences in the siege of Leningrad. I also found the ending to be a little too tightly wrapped in giant happily-ever-after bows of coincidence and catharsis, but readers who need cheerful conclusions may feel differently.