Wanted to go ahead and get this review out of the way since it’s for a Christmas book. This was my book club’s pick for December.
About the Book
Title: The Christmas Pearl
Author: Dorothea Benton Frank
Series: none
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Pages: 139
Edition Read: Kindle eBook
Dates Read: December 26-28, 2024
Blurb: Theodora is the matriarch of a family that, in her opinion, has grown into a bunch of truculent knuckleheads. They’ve all come together to South Carolina to celebrate Christmas. But this Christmas looks nothing like the extravagant, homey Christmases Theodora grew up with. What happened to the days when the holiday spirit meant tables groaning with home cooked goodies, over–the–top decorations, and long chats in front of the fire with Pearl, her grandmother’s housekeeper/manager/caterer/psychiatrist/best friend? Luckily someone hears Theodora’s plea for help and Merle (possibly Pearl?) arrives, pockets filled with Gullah magic and common sense to straighten everyone out.
Review
This is one of those books that I would never have picked up if not for book club and, while most of the time I find books that I really enjoy, sadly this was not one of them. I’m not a big Christmas person (not a Grinch, necessarily, but it’s just not my thing), so there was part of the story that felt really hokey to me. Super cheesy, and not really in a good way, but I could have possibly gotten around that if it weren’t for one thing.
Nearly every single character in this book is a horrible person.
The blurb calls Theodora’s family “knuckleheads,” but that is putting it MILDLY. They are rude, disrespectful, and just the absolute worst. I would not put up with these people, especially since they are coming into my house. They complain about everything, including each other. YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE FAMILY! AND IT’S CHRISTMAS! GET OVER YOURSELVES FOR AT LEAST A LITTLE WHILE!The only member of the family I liked was the little boy (Andrew, I think) and only because he was too young to behave like this.
I also got really annoyed with Theodora. You are the head of this household. They are in your house. Don’t be a doormat. Take control of things! She reminisces about the Christmases of old where her mother and Pearl (the “magical” housekeeper/confidant/miracle worker) put things together and ran the family the way it should be. They didn’t take this foolishness, and you shouldn’t either, Theodora!
The Christmas magic comes in when “Pearl” arrives and magically creates Christmas for them. The family members start to behave properly under her ministrations (because she doesn’t suffer foolishness, pay attention Theodora!) and while it was nice to see them finally behave like a family, there is no indication that this behavior will last. It all seemed very temporary, a blip of happiness that will fade away once they resume their regular lives after the holidays. It almost made me sad, and I don’t think that was the intention
GoodReads rating: 3 stars. I know the way I do my stars is very forgiving, but the book was very well written, even if I didn’t like the characters.
Categories: Books I've Read
Life With No Plot 
Nice post 🌅🌅