My dad recommended this book to me because it was the first book he has read in a really long time. Normally his 'library'consists of quote books and magazine articles, so I was proud that he read this. I decided to take up his recommendation and also issued a bet. Judging by the weight and thickness of the book, I thought I could read it in under an hour. I was wrong, though. It took me almost exactly 2 hours to finish the 200 page book (including introduction).
I found the book to be touching, but I felt sort of unhappy rather than inspired. The book was written well; I just got that feeling from the storyline.
For One More Day is about a man. 'Chick' Benetto adopts a conversational storytelling tone with the reader in the beginning. The entire story is a series of flashbacks within a flashback. The reader learns about his childhood, his young adult life, and eventually his sad adulthood, where he became so depressed that he attempted suicide (not a spoiler, as it is mentioned at the very beginning of the book).
Most of his story revolves around his parents. His mother, mostly, but his father as well. He reflects on his mother and how he wishes he could have one more day with her. He realized after her death, 10 years before, that he really hadn't appreciated her. His father and mother split when he was young and he was always bitter at his mother for it, but then he realizes that what she tried to do was for the best. His father was the driving force behind Chick, because, as he observes, "Kids chase the love that eludes them, and for me, that was my father's love," (33). Even after his dad was mostly out of the picture, he still chased after what he couldn't attain. His dad's ambition for him was baseball. The only important thing was his son getting to the major leagues. It was more important than school, his friends, his mother, and any job he might hold.
Right after Chick's attempted suicide, he sees his mother. She is standing on the baseball field close to the water tower he jumped off of. Chick looked again and she was gone. He walked to their old house and surprisingly, found her there. She wasn't really a ghost, more like a solid thought. He hugged her and talked to her and she told him things about her life, taking care of him and then living on without him when he became "too busy" for her.
It really is a touching story. Near the end of his one more day with his mom, she was telling him that she loved him and would always be with him. It didn't sound cheesy in the book, it sounded heartfelt.
I enjoyed reading this. I wish that I could've felt more upbeat about it at the end, but the book is what the book is and I am happy to have read it.
I found the book to be touching, but I felt sort of unhappy rather than inspired. The book was written well; I just got that feeling from the storyline.
For One More Day is about a man. 'Chick' Benetto adopts a conversational storytelling tone with the reader in the beginning. The entire story is a series of flashbacks within a flashback. The reader learns about his childhood, his young adult life, and eventually his sad adulthood, where he became so depressed that he attempted suicide (not a spoiler, as it is mentioned at the very beginning of the book).
Most of his story revolves around his parents. His mother, mostly, but his father as well. He reflects on his mother and how he wishes he could have one more day with her. He realized after her death, 10 years before, that he really hadn't appreciated her. His father and mother split when he was young and he was always bitter at his mother for it, but then he realizes that what she tried to do was for the best. His father was the driving force behind Chick, because, as he observes, "Kids chase the love that eludes them, and for me, that was my father's love," (33). Even after his dad was mostly out of the picture, he still chased after what he couldn't attain. His dad's ambition for him was baseball. The only important thing was his son getting to the major leagues. It was more important than school, his friends, his mother, and any job he might hold.
Right after Chick's attempted suicide, he sees his mother. She is standing on the baseball field close to the water tower he jumped off of. Chick looked again and she was gone. He walked to their old house and surprisingly, found her there. She wasn't really a ghost, more like a solid thought. He hugged her and talked to her and she told him things about her life, taking care of him and then living on without him when he became "too busy" for her.
It really is a touching story. Near the end of his one more day with his mom, she was telling him that she loved him and would always be with him. It didn't sound cheesy in the book, it sounded heartfelt.
I enjoyed reading this. I wish that I could've felt more upbeat about it at the end, but the book is what the book is and I am happy to have read it.
Megan, I LOVED this book. Isn't it funny how different people can read the same book, and get totally different feelings from it. I'm glad your dad liked it! And hey, if he loves quotes, stop by my blog and read about a new beautiful wall calendar for 2012!
ReplyDelete