2024 the best of us book review

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2021 15th Annual Indie Excellence Juror's Choice Award Winner

“The Best Part of Us by Sally Cole-Misch is a lush debut novel which explores nature, family, and land with nuance and patience.” —Affinity Magazine

Beth cherished her childhood summers on a pristine northern Canadian lake, where she reveled in the sweet smell of dew on early morning hikes, the loons’ evening trills across the lake’s many bays, every brush stroke of her brother’s paintings celebrating their cherished place, and their grandfather’s laughter as he welcomed neighbors to their annual Welsh harvest celebration. Theirs was an unshakeable bond with nature, family, and friends, renewed every summer on their island of granite and pines.

But that bond was threatened and then torn apart, first as rights to their island were questioned and then by nature itself, and the family was forced to leave. Fourteen years later, Beth has created a new life in urban Chicago. There, she’s erected a solid barrier between the past and present, no matter how much it costs—until her grandfather asks her to return to the island to determine its fate. Will she choose to preserve who she has become, or risk everything to discover if what was lost still remains?

The Best Part of Us will immerse readers in a breathtaking natural world, a fresh perspective on loyalty, and an exquisite ode to the essential roles that family, nature, and place hold in all of our lives.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ She Writes Press (September 7, 2020)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 163152741X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1631527418
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 1 x 8.5 inches
Reviewer: Voracious reader
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Downright beautiful
Review: I sank into this novel with such pleasure that I didn’t want it to end. Sally Cole-Misch is a master of language and of creating a sense of place. She makes it all visceral: you’ll shiver at the cold of the early mornings and feel the rough texture of stone underfoot and visualize the wind whipping across the surface of the dazzling lake as if you are there. The author is equally strong on personal relationships and emotions; I especially loved the character of Beth as a preteen – she’s an utter charmer. I equally impressed by the delicacy with which Cole-Misch handles complicated and important political issues -- the central conflict in the story has no easy answers as she presents it, and I found myself empathizing with each of the characters and their perspectives. For anyone who loves stories of family, beautiful settings, and cares deeply about the environment – really, for just about anyone – this book is a must read.

Reviewer: ann
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Family, love and loyalty
Review: A beautifully written story about family, love and loyalty, woven tightly with a silken-threaded connection to nature and what makes us come alive. This is the story of a summer vacation home and the family who goes there year after year, until something unthinkable drives them away, perhaps, forever. As the title suggests, but as many family members don't realize, the memories of the home and the strong bonds made on the island, are quite possibly holding the best parts of each of the characters. Unknown, though, is if they will try to reconnect with nature, their shared roots, and the home, thus finding their way back to one another. This story is filled with magical visions of water, sky and land, as well as figurative language so beautiful you will find yourself wishing for a summer home as lovely and as meaningful.

Reviewer: Veena Rao
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: An ode to the natural world!
Review: Sally Cole-Misch's The Best Part of Us is a beautiful book about man's connection with nature, family, and the importance of choosing the best part of us. It transported me to a lush northern Canadian lake island surrounded by deep blue waters, where fishing, kayaking, hiking, and celebrating nature are a way of life. It made me root for Beth, the protagonist, whose idyllic summers with her family on their private island ends tragically when she discovers sacred relics belonging to the First Nations. The plot moves back and forth between Beth's childhood memories on the island and her current life in Chicago where she must make a decision to face her past in order to move forward. The best parts of the book, apart from its ode to nature, are the plot buildup in the second half, and the big twist that stayed with me long after I had finished the last page! A definite must-read!

Reviewer: Rhiannon
Rating: 3.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Slow building
Review: Thank you BookSparks and the author for gifting me a copy of this book. This review is my own.⭐️⭐️💫 2.5/5 StarsThe Best Part of Us is a story about family, nature, cultural divides, and how secrets can do nothing but harm. During much of this story we watch Beth grow as a girl during her summers at the family’s lake house, where she is one with nature. This is a slow building novel that has a couple unexpected twists along the way. I might have even shed a few tears along the way.For me there were three big things that prevented me from loving this novel as much as I could have. First, it was a bit too slow building for me. There were several point along the way that I just wanted to put it down unfinished; luckily about halfway through the pace started to pick up and it hooked my attention. One thing that got under my skin (for whatever reason) was that the parents were never really talked about by their title of “mom and dad”, instead they were referred to by their first names. This book is written from the POV of a young girl, so referring to them by first name came of as inauthentic and strange. The final thing that’s a bit perplexing was the bombshell at the end and the almost easy acceptance of it. The reactions were not ones that I would expect, even with the rationale behind them.While I didn’t love this book as I had hoped I would, I was still glad that I stuck it out and read it all of the way through to the end. And if this book did anything, it made me want to buy a lake house!

Reviewer: Marian Wernicke
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: A novel that delights and surprises
Review: I love a novel that takes me to a place that I would love to see in person and that also surprises me at every plot turn. Sally Cole-Misch's novel the Best Part of Us fulfills those requirements and more. A vivid sense of place permeates the novel, with lush descriptions of a cold Canadian lake, a hidden away Edenic island where a family gathers every summer, in short, a seeming paradise. However, the family itself has fissures that are revealed as the novel sweeps the reader along, increasing the tension until this reader was racing toward the ending. A highly accomplished novel by an author who displays compassion for all her characters as well as love and delight in the natural world itself. I was sorry to leave this world. Marian W.

Reviewer: Jane
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: A novel for our times
Review: This extraordinary novel is a perfect read for the times we are living through. It soothes without preaching. It deals with cultural clash with gentle teaching. We are drawn back to the parts of us that we may have forgotten that were born in simple times with family— playing cards with grandparents, remembering our parents teaching our children to fish and falling asleep in a cabin in the woods with a sky full of stars. It’s rare that I cry when reading a book or seeing a film these days, but this one is an exception. Cole-Misch’s beautifully crafted story pulls you in and won’t let go. My only hope is she has another work of art in her because the book left me wanting more.

Reviewer: Rita Dragonette
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: When the Personal and Primal Become Political--a Unique family story, one member being Nature
Review: Bravo to author Cole-Misch for crafting a story that takes two of the key political issues of the day--climate change and indigenous displacement--and weaves them into a family story that sits them at the "table," as close and personal as the survival and ownership of cherished summers on the lake.She challenges with questions about a dilemma unfolding before us as humans--what have we wrought? What can be remedied? A unique and worthy perspective on responsibility in a difficult world.

Reviewer: Linda Pfeiffer
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: I related so much with the protaganist, Beth, about her intense feelings of love for the summer cottage on a lake where she spent every summer from an infant until her early teens. So I was easily drawn into the rest of the family story which included her grandparents, parents and two siblings. The book opens in 2004 with Beth receiving a package from her grandfather, the owner of the island on which the cottage was built. The package includes the Last Will and Testament of Padrig Llyndee, her grandfather, and a deed dated June 23, 1944 as well as a second will. The decision about who will inherit the island will be left to Beth. After that stunning opening the book flashes back to 1987 and explains about the family and their attachment to this island.I won't go further with the storyline as I don't want to spoil anyone's fun reading it for themself. But I was immersed in all of it and remembered my childhood vividly as I read. It very much encapsulated the earlier times when people played outside without gadgets. Learned to boat and fish and swim in Mother Nature's world. Made "summer friends" who lived around the lake. Bonfires, picnics and BBQ's were the entertainment.Loved this book and hope you will too.

Reviewer: Sue
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Interesting story well told. I enjoyed it immensely and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a great read.

Reviewer: Readaholic
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: One of those rare books that you can't put down, but at the same time don't want to finish because you will miss the characters that you have come to know so well - people and the environment. I normally tear through books, but I found myself reading this one slowly in order to fully appreciate every sentence. I could "see" the island, lake and cottage as clearly as if it had been a movie. (Would make a great movie!) I bought extra copies for gifts and have struggled to wait until the holidays to give them; I KNOW they will be a huge hit! Find a cozy nook, ideally outside, and enjoy a truly fantastic read. I am looking forward to novel #2 by Sally Cole-Misch.

Reviewer: David burden
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Great book, a must read by an incredible author