White Oleander

Product Information

The Goodreads Libra Goodreads Librarians are volunteers who help ensure the accuracy of information about books and authors in the Goodreads' catalog. The Santa Anas blew in hot from the desert, shrivelling the last of the spring grass into whiskers of pale straw.

Some key reasons why the film version of a book is so lacking relates to‚ one‚ the lack of depth of the story‚ two time constraints and‚ three‚ the inability for producers to include the full content of a story. How the decisions a young girl makes, the actions she takes based upon the conclusions she draws, create the woman she becomes. The themes of identity, family, and motherhood are explored in depth throughout the book, making it a thought-provoking read. Astrid starts to distance herself from her past but begins to receive letters from Paul and her mother, drawing her back in. In control over her mother for once, Astrid demands answers about her past in exchange for testifying that Barry committed suicide.She is abrasive but encourages Astrid to make sound financial decisions and to become a good negotiator. When Ingrid is imprisoned Astrid is fostered out to a series of homes in Los Angeles, her mother, an ever present part of the baggage that she carries with her.

An universal theme in this story is the that of a child trying to escape from the pernicious influence of a misguided parent. Perhaps that explained the worn and tattered condition of the book I held within my hands, pages yellowing, stained and dog-eared or soiled in some other way by the fingers of less careful readers. Also, being that I was raised and currently live on the outskirts of LA, I also really enjoyed the way Los Angeles and its white oleanders and Fairfax heat played a veritable character of its own here.Marshall Berman uses Karl Marx’s idea that “all that is solid melts into air” as a definition of modernity. Yvonne never gets to meet her baby, and weeks later, she moves out of Rena’s house with her new boyfriend.