DNF: Jo Joe by Sally Wiener Grotta

Jo Joe
written by Sally Wiener Grotta
published by Pixel Hall Press

find it here: Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Book Depository, Goodreads

Why did I pick this book: I was asked by the publisher to review this title. I featured Jo Joe on the blog on September 17, 2013. That feature included a wonderful guest post by Sally Wiener Grotta. See that post here. (I received a copy of this book for review purposes.)

Where I stopped reading: 36% on my Kindle

Why I stopped reading: It is just a bit slow for me. It took me 4 days to get to 36%, and I wasn’t that busy. I just couldn’t get into it.

Ms. Grotta is a beautiful writer. Her descriptions are detailed and I could see everything. But that was part of the problem for me, too much detail. I could see too much. It was hard to get into a flow and rhythm. The story is there, and it seems like a really good one. I wanted to finish it. I wanted to see what Judith discovered. But. I just couldn’t keep reading. I didn’t want to keep reading it. Maybe it is me and I wasn’t in the mood for this book at this time. I don’t know.

Will I pick it up again: I just may. The story seems interesting, and I think I want to know what happens. We’ll see.

What others have rated this book: According to Goodreads, the average rating for Jo Joe is 4.57. It looks like a majority of readers gave this book 5 stars. There were 25 5-star reviews on Amazon. At Barnes & Noble, the reviews were split, 3 5-star reviews and 3 4-star reviews. Just because I didn’t finish this book doesn’t mean you may not.

About the book: Jo Joe is a mystery of the heart about Judith Ormond, a young mixed race Jewish woman. Seventeen years earlier, violence and hatred drove Judith away from the small Pennsylvania village where she was raised by her white Christian grandparents. Only with the death of her beloved grandmother and the need to settle the family estate does she reluctantly break her vow to never return. During the one week visit, she’s forced to deal with her first love who cruelly broke her heart and is menaced by an old enemy who threatens new brutalities. But when she uncovers a long-hidden secret, Judith is forced to look anew at the bigotry and betrayal that scarred her childhood.