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Official Review: Butterfly by Kathleen Sullivan McDonald

Posted: 26 May 2019, 11:45
by Poppy Drear
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Butterfly" by Kathleen Sullivan McDonald.]
Book Cover
3 out of 4 stars
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Butterfly by Kathleen Sullivan McDonald, despite following Bridget, a fictional character, is primarily the author's memoir about dealing with profound loneliness in the face of losing her loved ones. She leaves her family in Scotland to live in Florida, and she loses several members of her family, including her older brother, Patrick. After she has a dream where he visits her, she decides to become a nurse, a goal she pursues even while other people close to her pass away back in Scotland.

Right off the bat, it should be obvious that this is a character-driven story. There's relatively little dialogue. Instead, Bridget has many inner monologues, and the narrative often skips several years at a time or simply describes what is happening rather than providing specific scenes. This is especially prominent in the last part of the book, where Bridget is in school. Since the focus of the novel is Bridget's inner growth, this makes sense, but I can see people who are fans of vivid worldbuilding and individual scenes being turned off by this.

Bridget, as a character, is remarkably well-rounded. This makes sense, as she is a stand-in for the author herself, but it was still impressive how well the author was able to communicate her thoughts. The book is laid out in such a way that her character arc itself is clear and satisfying, with an effective resolution. Despite numerous time skips, the pacing works for what the author is trying to accomplish, and characters other than Bridget are realistic enough to not be distracting.

I was disappointed to see numerous grammatical errors, such as mixing up homonyms like "rye" and "wry," and several comma issues. These didn't pop up constantly, but they were distracting enough to disrupt reading whenever they occurred. The author's writing style also frequently sacrifices clarity for flowery language, and when this happens, it's very difficult to understand what the author even means to say. This was the only sub-par element of the novel for me, but it came up with such regularity that I kept wishing the book had been edited more thoroughly for clarity and grammar.

Ultimately, I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. It would have earned a better rating if it had been edited more thoroughly, but as it stands, it is a gripping memoir about how the author coped with losing people close to her and even being separated from her country of origin. If any of these topics are of interest to you, this book is worth checking out.

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Butterfly
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Re: Official Review: Butterfly by Kathleen Sullivan McDonald

Posted: 29 May 2019, 04:58
by Ivana Tomaš
This seems to me to be an interesting book, since it describes the life of the author after the tragic loss of loved ones.
Thank for very good review!

Re: Official Review: Butterfly by Kathleen Sullivan McDonald

Posted: 29 May 2019, 09:38
by kandscreeley
This sounds intriguing. A memoir but with a fictional character? It doesn't really sound like my cup of tea, so I'll probably pass. It's too bad that this wasn't edited, but I'm glad that you were able to find some enjoyment in it. Thanks!

Re: Official Review: Butterfly by Kathleen Sullivan McDonald

Posted: 29 May 2019, 15:20
by kdstrack
The author has found a creative way to present her memoir. She has experienced quite a bit of loss but presents it in a fictional way instead of lamenting about her life. This sounds interesting. Thanks for your insightful review.

Re: Official Review: Butterfly by Kathleen Sullivan McDonald

Posted: 30 May 2019, 07:03
by Wyland
I like the author's memoir where she takes the character of Bridget who is lonely and facing some loss in her life, something that informs her decision to be nurse. Thanks for the review.

Re: Official Review: Butterfly by Kathleen Sullivan McDonald

Posted: 30 May 2019, 15:55
by mblmn_mortician
I'm not sure how a memoir will read with a fictional character, but I tend to enjoy books where the writer and/or characters reflect on life events that shape their lives. Loss has a way of allowing us to reflect more deeply. Butterfly looks like an interesting read. Thank you for your review.

Re: Official Review: Butterfly by Kathleen Sullivan McDonald

Posted: 31 May 2019, 04:52
by Cecilia_L
The cover art is beautiful, but I dislike memoirs with time gaps and fictional aspects. I recently read one with a quite confusing timeline. However, I appreciate your interesting review.

Re: Official Review: Butterfly by Kathleen Sullivan McDonald

Posted: 02 Jun 2019, 07:10
by Letora
The book cover caught my attention immediately when I was browsing through reviews! It's sad that the plot skips around. I really enjoy books that take time to develop each area of the character's life and actions. Given there is so little dialogue, does Bridget avoid people and not interact with them, or does the author summarize these things instead? Thank you for reviewing!

Re: Official Review: Butterfly by Kathleen Sullivan McDonald

Posted: 29 Jul 2019, 23:18
by supernatural143
A sad memoir about the author's resilience might be my object of interest. Sad to say, I was put off by the errors. I am not sure if I will read this book. If it is free, I might.