The Girl Who Chased the Moon in The Sarah Addison Allen Fan Group

Apr 02, 2009 Grace rated it liked it

Well...what can I say about this book? This is Sarah Addison Allen's third novel, and I truly adored her first two. I've described her as an optimistic Alice Hoffman...a writer who manages to create believably magical settings and realistic characters who behave in relateable ways, without Hoffman's common dark angst to her stories. (Note: I DO love Hoffman's writing too!)

However, this book was a huge disappointment.

In Addison Allen's first book, I was captivated by the character development of Well...what can I say about this book? This is Sarah Addison Allen's third novel, and I truly adored her first two. I've described her as an optimistic Alice Hoffman...a writer who manages to create believably magical settings and realistic characters who behave in relateable ways, without Hoffman's common dark angst to her stories. (Note: I DO love Hoffman's writing too!)

However, this book was a huge disappointment.

In Addison Allen's first book, I was captivated by the character development of the family, by the integration of the magic to the town, and by the apple tree. In her second book, I was fascinated by her description of the cozy home purchased by a character, the enticing food descriptions, and the books one character would read (books who became characters of their own). The Girl Who Chased the Moon has no such draw for me. It is slender in size, but still could have packed more punch in its pages. Instead, it meanders about in regards to plot and character development both. We're given a simple snapshot into a few weeks to a month or so in the lives of a few main characters, who sometimes ponder the origins of their issues, but mostly just interact in extremely simplified and unbelievable plot.

This alone would be fine, if the simple plot was enhanced by beautiful writing, magical descriptions, or fascinating twists. But the book was written in a monotone voice about flat characters. You really don't care what happens to them. Sure, Addison Allen tries...she attempts to paint the town itself as a magical and charming place, full of barbecued woodsmoke and magical glowing lights. And she tries to make the characters affable too...the gentle giant of a grandfather, the awkward but charming teen boy who wears straw boater hats in town...but the effort simply falls flat.

These complaints, however, are not the two main reasons for my disappointment in the book. One of these sources of disappointment has already been mentioned by other reviewers...a certain similarity in a plot point to another popular series. However, it was not merely the similarity in plot, but it was the fact that the "great secret" of the book, once revealed, turned out to be..

**SPOILER ALERT...of sorts...**

...exactly what you thought it was all along. There is no surprise, no revelation, and in fact...the great secret doesn't even entirely make sense. You're left wondering what the big deal is, anyway.

**END SPOILER**

My other major disappointment came from the lack of a certain story element that I had come to regard as "signature Addison Allen", even after her writing only two books. As mentioned, in Garden Spells, the character of the apple tree becomes incredibly and deliciously alive. It is its own character in the story, and one who charms and delights. In The Sugar Queen, there is a character who can find messages in books that mysteriously appear whenever and wherever she needs them. These books also become characters of their own, and you find them endearing and charming. I was eager to find out what the new "inanimate animate object" would be in The Girl Who Chased the Moon, only to discover...that there was none. I suspect Addison Allen might have meant to make the pattern-shifting wallpaper the same sort of element in this book, but the wallpaper lacks the charm or magic of the other two books' animate inanimate characters.

If Sarah Addison Allen wasn't such an enjoyable writer, I wouldn't be nearly as disappointed by this book. I simply would think to myself "that was pretty good" and move on. But she has set the bar high for herself, and this time fell far short. Because she's no James Patterson in the frequency of her publication, it leaves me far more disappointed that I'll now have to wait years for her next story.

Sarah Addison Allen just seems to have shorthand written this story. One final example comes from the final chapter...in fact the final few pages of the book. As the book ends, THREE different times someone mentions how the situation feels "like the ending of a story." The first time, the phrase seemed a bit sugary, but I let it slide. By the third time, I was officially irked, and prepared to cynically roll my eyes when a stranger at the book's very end holds a door open for a character and says "are you ready?" Really..who holds doors open and then says "are you ready?" to someone? The phrasing was awkward and obviously meant to set up the "poetic words" at the book's end.

Again, if Addison Allen wrote more frequently, I could forgive her obviously phoning this book in. But for someone with such potential who only publishes a new book every couple of years, it was a huge disappointment. ...more

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Jan 14, 2010 Lydia Presley rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fiction, cozy, 2010, southern

If anyone were to ask me what "summer reading" means, I would tell them to buy this book.

When I think about summer reading I think about something that is light-hearted and poignant, something that will have me happily flipping the pages at the pool, a book that will tease that little smile to my lips so often that others walking by will stop to ask what I'm reading. I want to hear the music of the crickets chirping through the descriptions inside the pages and feel the humidity pressing down on ...more

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Apr 01, 2014 Lianne rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: magical-realism, audiobooks, 2014

Quick, sweet read, and easy to listen to on my commute -- similar to others that I have read by this author. I wanted more from the character development in this one. The characters seemed flat and a bit one-dimensional to me for most of the book, but there was a lot that could have been explored, especially in regard to Julia and Emily, and even Dulcie, Sawyer, and Win. (view spoiler) ...more

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May 26, 2010 Dora rated it it was amazing

Just like her first 2 books, this is a great story about very likable characters with a little magic mixed in. I will read anything this author publishes.

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Aug 14, 2012 Audrey rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: baking

Sarah Addison Allen is such a wonderful author and writes such magical books and this book is no exception to that rule. I loved the story, the characters, the setting, pretty much everything about this book!

I love happy endings and Ms. Allen has not one, but at least four happy endings in this book. I love the wallpaper, the mysterious clothes dryer, the cakes, oh my the cakes!

Every-time I finish reading one of her books I feel all the more richer for the experience, give your spirit a gift and ...more

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Apr 28, 2010 Missy rated it really liked it

Shelves: fiction, 2010-reads, nook-books, magic-realism, favorites

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jan 22, 2010 Jen rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy_and_magic, food

Because the first two books delighted me so, I was disappointed to not feel the same joy with this one. Too many moving pieces, none completely developed, and the magical elements didn't quite make sense the way they did in the others. I did like the parallels between 16 year old Emily and the memory of 16 year old Julia. ...more

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Jan 15, 2011 Amy rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011-books

Not bad, but fluffier than I expected.

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Sep 24, 2009 Elisha (lishie) rated it liked it

Another sweet & whimsy-filled tale from S. A. A. I loved Emily, a refreshingly different teenage character and liked Julia too... Just the right light book to read while not feeling well to lift my spirits.

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Aug 14, 2010 Bianca rated it liked it

Shelves: sci-fi-fantasy, magical-realism

This was just a sweet and simple fairytale in a charming, southern setting. I found its simplicity to be refreshing; the author wasn't trying too hard to do much of anything besides tell an entertaining story. ...more

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Jan 08, 2011 Julianne Dunn rated it it was amazing

I read this book rather quickly because I just loved it. It was just enough quirk mixed with reality that I wish there was another book based in this town.

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