Acampora, Paul. Defining Dulcie

[heather]

I love Acampora's style and from the first page I knew that I would enjoy the book. I don't have the book with me to quote, but the "if this was a movie" part in the first chapter broke my heart.

Dulcie is a strong character and I enjoyed reading about her struggles.

I did have a little trouble at times with the trip across country being told in flashbacks. Some of the encounters (especially with the nun) seemed too important for that. And something about the abusive parent didn't sit right - maybe just because she was terrible and I didn't want to think about her.

It was an enjoyable read and I liked the details - his description of the brown CA landscape made me homesick. (Even though I prefer all of this green.)

[Tess]

I am almost half-way through this novel and strongly suggest everyone read it. I'm not ready to give up my early pick of Firegirl, but, so far, this one is coming up close.

[gbishop]

I have to say that Defining Dulcie was just ok. Dulcie was a strong character but there was something about the beginning of the book that just didn't pull me in. I didn't like Dulcie's mother at all. It sounded like she had hated her life from the get go and was glad when her husband died so she could get the life she always wanted. I did like her grandfather and I liked the way the story ended but I think some people will say the end worked out to easy, that it was not very realistic. For a short book I do feel the characters were well developed or I wouldn't have ended up with such strong feelings about them. I still think Firegirl was better. I saw more growth in the characters in Firegirl and it touched my heart more deeply.

[heather]

It has been a while now since I read it, so forgive me if I am remembering things wrong. I think this is one that I will need to re-read eventually. I have to admit that until I read this old post of mine, I had forgotten that this was one of my favorites.

I can see the problem with the mother seeming like she hated her life. But I wonder if it is more that she had to get away from everything that reminded her of her husband and their life together. I can understand that need to break away and "start over".

I also think that Firegirl was better - but that needs a re-read at this point too!

[Becky]

I liked this book, but it's not my pick. The prose gets kind of long and boring in places – like the end. When there’s conversation and action, the reading is good. But when Dulcie is thinking things out, going on and on in a didactic tone, I wanted to scream like Mrs. Soule. Also, there are a few things that seem kind of stuck in there – like the key to the city story at the end of the book. The faults that I find with the book may be first-time author faults -- I think that Paul Acampora will do even better next time. Dulcie is to be praised because it's not the "same old story" – the characters are indeed quirky and strong, strong, strong. Which must be why Roxanne does what she does at the end of the book--weren't they almost strangers?