The novel showcases the strength of female characters and their ability to survive despite the challenges they face. Ingrid Magnusson is sent to jail for the murder of her ex-boyfriend, leaving her daughter, Astrid, to enter the foster care system. This is our reading group for anybody who loves to read and identifies as a feminist. We'll be reading a variety of books that may fall into one of th This is our reading group for anybody who loves to read and identifies as a feminist. We'll be reading a variety of books that may fall into one of the following categories: Ingrid did not see her daughter for several years and she is terrified because of Astrid’s appearance and her inner world. They have become completely different people now, but they are still connected with each other. I imagined the lies the valedictorian was telling them right now. About the exciting future that lies ahead. I wish she'd tell them the truth: Half of you have gone as far in life as you're ever going to. Look around. It's all downhill from here. The rest of us will go a bit further, a steady job, a trip to Hawaii, or a move to Phoenix, Arizona, but out of fifteen hundred how many will do anything truly worthwhile, write a play, paint a painting that will hang in a gallery, find a cure for herpes? Two of us, maybe three? And how many will find true love? About the same. And enlightenment? Maybe one. The rest of us will make compromises, find excuses, someone or something to blame, and hold that over our hearts like a pendant on a chain.”

THanks David! Look forward to following you, loved comparing the books and seeing that long skein of overlap--and then fun to see the rest. I just stopped by Petersburg to see if anyone had read it. It was like wrestling an active, slender, brightly colored snake... Janet Fitch’s White Oleander paints a heart-wrenching picture of a dysfunctional mother-daughter relationship. The white oleander flower, while of particular significance as a plot point in the beginning of the novel, is also symbolically woven into the narrative as it manifests-both in its beauty and its toxicity- in the human relationships so vividly described in this story. Written in 1999, this is the kind of novel that stands the test of time. Dark and depressing (some content might be disturbing for readers) but so beautifully written that it holds you in its thrall- the kind of story that stays with you. This is so much more than a coming-of-age story. With its brilliantly poetic and powerful writing, fluid narrative and memorable characters Janet Fitch’s "White Oleander" is a modern masterpiece. I hadn’t watched the movie because I wanted to read the book first. I might pass on the movie but will definitely revisit this book in the future. But most importantly, it's a space for people to come together and discuss literature with other feminists! The performances were widely acclaimed, particularly those of Pfeiffer and Lohman. The New York Times called Pfeiffer's role the "most complex screen performance of her career... at once irresistible and diabolical", [5] while the Los Angeles Times singled out her "riveting, impeccable performance in what is literally and figuratively a killer role." [8] Variety described it as a "daring, unsympathetic performance". [9] Lohman's work was variously described as "the year's most auspicious screen acting début", [5] a "tremendously weighty and extended role... [taken on] with great confidence" [9] and an "awesome performance". [7] Accolades [ edit ] I don't want to squirm when I'm reading, and I read for pleasure. Is there a market for books like this? Of course there is. And I've got nothing against people who like this book. But should they lap it up like it's licorice?I regret nothing. No woman with any self-respect would have done less. The question of good and evil will always be one of philosophy's most intriguing problems, up there with the problem of existence itself. I'm not quarreling with your choice of issues, only with your intellectually diminished approach. If evil means to be self-motivated, to live on one's own terms, then every artist, every thinker, every original mind, is evil. Because we dare to look through our own eyes rather than mouth cliches lent us from the so-called Fathers. To dare to see is to steal fire from the Gods. This is mankind's destiny, the engine which fuels us as a race. ”

That was the thing about words, they were clear and specific-chair, eye, stone- but when you talked about feelings, words were too stiff, they were this and not that, they couldn't include all the meanings. In defining, they always left something out. Loneliness is the individual at odds with his society. As such, they are absolutely modern. Traditional societies co-opt the individual. There is no place for individual consciousness when the village needs to get the wheat in. For better or worse, they operate free from the patriarchy. After reading her scorching short story in Los Angeles Noir, I smoked a cigarette (I don't smoke), napped and reached for a novel by Janet Fitch. Round 2 is White Oleander, which Oprah's Book Club made a sweepstakes winner at the time of its publication in 1999 and for good reason. This is fiction at its most intoxicating, with boozy prose but also beautifully woven narrative, without a single lull in story or a character who fails to make a mark. Its vision and breadth reminded me of W. Somerset Maugham's Of Human Bondage, with a teenage girl in Los Angeles surviving a succession of mentors that mold her into an adult. Turan, Kenneth (October 11, 2002). "Artful 'Oleander' Needs More Compelling Voice". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved October 31, 2022.

Sarris, Andrew. "The Best Films of 2002, and a few Honorable Mentions". The New York Observer . Retrieved October 31, 2022. My goal wasn't to make this "review" the compare/contrast of the book and movie that it ended up being, so my apologies on that front; however, it would have been impossible for me to have read this book through any other lens, being that this is one of my all time favorite movies. Starr: Astrid's first foster mother, she is a former stripper turned outspoken Christian. She is recovering from alcoholism and drug use and lives in a trailer with her children. She first shows kindness to Astrid but later grows jealous of Astrid's relationship with Ray. Rena Grushenka: Astrid's final foster mother, a tough, business-savvy Russian woman. She is abrasive but encourages Astrid to make sound financial decisions and to become a good negotiator.