Saturday, March 27, 2010

Queen Mum by Kate Long

Published: 2006
Pages: 328
Genre: Fiction
Ally lives with her husband and teen son. Across the street lives Juno, her husband, and her two teen daughters. Juno and Ally are best friends and have shared a lot together, but when Juno signs up for Queen Mum, a reality TV show, it changes everything. For two weeks she'll live in another household while a new mom comes to live in her house. But Ally doesn't like change, and she knows from bitter experience how something precious can be lost in a moment.
I bought this book on a whim and was expecting it to be a cute, light read about two families and a reality TV show. Well, let me tell you that I was totally wrong with that assumption! Queen Mum is much deeper than that, and for some reason I felt some sort of connection with the book and its characters that I wasn't anticipating.

The first section of the book (let's call it the "Queen Mum" section) is purely about the reality TV show and how both families were coping with change. I expected the Queen Mum section to last for the entirety of the book, and was a bit concerned when it ended so soon! But what follows is a demonstration of how families can drift apart, how friendships are put to the test, how to cope with grief, and how to stand independently when your best friend is unstable.

Ally has lost a child due to a car accident, and we see how this tragedy has marked her personality. She is not confident to be on her own and constantly relies on Juno to support her. When Juno is not there and is trying to cope with her own problems, Ally is lost and lashes out on her troubled teen son and her husband. Throughout the novel, she finally comes to terms with her life and what she's lost, what she's learned, and what she finally accepts. This transformation of acceptance is what made the book for me - it was an important part of the book and I can see many people relating to this.

Juno has her problems too - her marriage is weakening, her mother is on the verge of death, and her teen daughters are acting up. The once perfect and dominant Juno goes through a period of near-depression but prevails and comes out as a stronger individual. Yet again this demonstrates how Queen Mum is about change, acceptance, and the strong ties that will always keep you connected to your family.

Recommendation: The reading itself was light, but the material this book covers shouldn't be read by someone who's expecting to breeze through a book without getting invested in it. For this reason, I recommend Queen Mum to someone who is looking for a book that is short, sweet, yet has substance.

10 comments:

j said...

Sounds like the type of book that would be a good beach read. Thanks for the review!

DK's Book Reviews said...

I am following from the book blog. Have a great day.
http://dkay401-challenges.blogspot.com/
http://dkay401-bookreviews.blogspot.com/

Simply Stacie said...

Stopping by from the Saturday Network. I am now a follower!

http://stacievaughansblog.blogspot.com/

Ana S. said...

I love it when a book surprises me like that. I'm glad this was even better and more meaningful than you expected :)

Emidy @ Une Parole said...

Thanks for all the comments. Welcome to the new followers!

Nymeth - Yes, I'm so glad it turned out to be this kind of book! It's always nice to have low expectations for a novel and be happily surprised.

Dana said...

Great review! I love it when a light read surprises me like that!

Vicki said...

I read this book a couple of years ago and remember really enjoying it!I've liked all of Kate Long's books I've read actually.

Emidy @ Une Parole said...

Dana - I know, isn't it great?

Rhiana - I haven't read any of her other books. But after reading this I'll definitely be looking out for the others that she's written.

Trillian - Wow, thank you so much!

Tales of Whimsy said...

Great review and recommendation :)

Vanessa said...

Wow. I probably wouldn't have picked this up on my own, but it sounds great!