Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Bigger is Better

The Bequest of Big Daddy by Jo-Ann Costa
Published:
April 1, 2013 by Koehler Books
Going into this I expected a story during the Civil War, telling the life of Big Daddy, a man who was an awful person. Except that's not quite what I received. Instead Big Daddy was born to a Civil War widow, and while there is a chapter telling the story of his parents during the Civil War, the majority of it takes place afterwards. As for Big Daddy himself, he actually isn't that mean of a person. Yes, he has his vices, and he made some hard choices by circumstance, but deep down I think he's a good guy.

There are certain aspects of this book I really enjoyed. I loved the hints of Gone with the Wind throughout. I loved reading about all the crazy situations Big Daddy got himself into, and how he escaped. And individually, there's a lot of subplots I loved.

But taken as a whole, I wasn't a fan of how it flowed. There aren't really chapters throughout, instead it's broken up into 7 sections, and I think adding in chapters could have really helped. Also, funny enough, even though I enjoyed the first half more, the second half seemed to read for quicker.

I'm still not sure what to make of this book. It wasn't what I expected (nor anything close to what the cover implies), but in some ways I liked it more than I anticipated. And I also can't help but have a soft spot for this since one of the main characters (and the author herself) made the move from the South to Southern California, the opposite of me!

3.5/5

Disclosure: I was provided this book through Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours. All opinions expressed are my own.

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