Tuesday, September 20, 2011

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender

I added The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake after it first came out. I saw it on multiple blogs and added it to my tbr list. I knew very little about the book other than the main character could taste people's feelings in the food they made. I heard mixed reviews so I didn't rush out to get it. I'm glad I didn't I didn't dislike The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake but I didn't really enjoy it either.
The book spans from when Rose is nine til she's in her twenties. On her ninth birthday, Rose discovers she can taste her mother's anger and it leaves her with a hollow feeling. She soon discovers that she can taste the feelings of whoever made what she eats. Soon these feelings overwhelm her. Sadly I didn't really connect to Rose. Her brother, Joe, is odd. I was interested in what his story was more than Rose and her story.
I saw The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake described as magical realism. While there were magical elements to the story, the story itself lacked any magic. I could understand Rose's frustration but I didn't really care about her. None of the characters leapt off the page for me. The writing was good and story was well paced though.
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake wasn't my favorite but I could see how others might like it. Others who shared their thoughts on The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake: ChickLitReviews, Bookfan, The Perfect Binge, and The Broke And The Bookish.
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6 comments:

  1. (Diane) Bibliophile By the SeaSeptember 20, 2011 at 3:59 AM

    This was an odd book. I liked it but did not love it.

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  2. AnonymousSeptember 20, 2011 at 10:56 AM

    I like the title, but the actual story just doesn't seem like one I want to pick up.

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  3. DanetteSeptember 20, 2011 at 1:20 PM

    I'm almost done listening to it on audio and feel the same way. I do not love it. It's ok and it has made me think a few times, but I feel like I'm slogging through it. The author reads the audio book and she is just a normal person reading aloud, so it isn't very pleasing to listen to, even. Ah well. I'm almost done. :)

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  4. StaciSeptember 20, 2011 at 4:05 PM

    Love your honest thoughts on this one. A blogging buddy sent me their ARC a while back so I won't be fusing to dig it out of shelves.

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  5. ErinSeptember 24, 2011 at 6:12 PM

    I went the same way you did, reading some so-so reviews and wanting to read it eventually but not urgently. I'm still interested, I think mostly because I'm curious, but my expectations aren't too high.

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  6. ShoshanahSeptember 25, 2011 at 11:28 AM

    Have you ever read Like Water for Chocolate? It's a similar idea (tasting feelings through food), and hopefully you'll enjoy it more. I read it back in high school, so I don't remember a lot, but do remember enjoying it.

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