Catching Heaven

by Sands Hall

Book Overview

The complex bond and unspoken resentments between sisters . . . the aching search for home and connection and community . . . the ever-changing landscape of family and those who define it . . . Sands... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0345440005
• ISBN13: 9780345440006
• Release Date: July 2001
• Publisher: Ballantine Books
• Length: 400 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.8" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Great character development keeps interest high!

I enjoyed CATCHING HEAVEN a great deal and finding the characters real made me feel like I was right there with them. I wasn't turned off by the PRO-LIFE bashing as stated in the other review - in fact, didn't see it as bashing at all, but actually what "those" people do at clinics. Also, if you are THAT sensitive, then maybe you shouldn't read books in general - remember - the writer has the right to write what he/she chooses.Great book - great story lines - great ending!! ENJOY!!

Sisters and friends & thoughts brought to life

My friend gave me this book for Christmas and I usually love everything she gives or recommends to me but this time I was a little hesitant. I fought getting into it but soon found the characters voicing thoughts and feelings that I had thought were only hidden inside of me. Maud's questioning of why people have children, on page 203, and Lizzie later on thinking how it would only take 2 steps to reach out and touch Jake really hit me hard. How we find and lose, build and break and rebuild relationships, whether they are with the family we are born with or the family we create was so right on. These relationships were so real I felt like I knew them and had been there. I saw my friend in several of the characters and, of course, thought of my sister and myself. There was the good stuff I see in myself and others but I also saw the underbelly and selfish side of myself and others in this book. WOW ! This was a book I couldn't put down but made it last through 3 days so I could savor it bit by bit. I finally finished the last few chapters in a deluge of tears and am ready to read it again with a clearer head, this time. I am so pleasantly thrilled to find a book I want to give as a gift. I wanted to write this review as I was reading it. I want to write Sands and thank her. If Laurie hadn't given this book to me, I would have given it to her. I look forward to what Sands has to write next. I look forward to that journey of discovery.

"Catching Heaven" is a sure winner!

"Catching Heaven" is a wonderful book that caught my interest from the first page and held it until the last. It relates the story of Maud, a disillusioned actress who has left the bright lights of Los Angeles, and her sister Lizzie who lives in the small town of Marengo, New Mexico. Maud, yearning for the stability of family and a more quiet life thinks she can find serenity in the desert with Lizzie. Lizzie on the other hand envies Maud's hectic lifestyle; after all, she has given up her dreams of being a successful artist and is the busy mother of three young children making a living painting pictures for a greeting card company. The interaction between the two sisters should strike a familiar chord in anyone who has grown up with a sibling that has taken a completely different path in life. But the book doesn't only tell the tale of Lizzie and Maud; we also meet Jake, the father of Lizzie's youngest child. Jake had left two years earlier for Nashville to try and break into the song-writing business. Unsuccessful, he returns to Marengo with the desire to become part of Lizzie's family. The three central characters weave their own interlocking tales throughout the book; Maud's chapters begin with Shakespearean quotes, Jake's begin with bits of poetry, and Lizzie's begin with "notes beneath the magnets on her fridge." I can always judge how well I like a book by how easy it is for me to put it down. "Catching Heaven" was nearly impossible for me to leave; I couldn't wait to return to my friends in Marengo. I encourage everyone to buy this mesmerizing novel; devour it as I did, become a part of Maud and Lizzie's life, you won't be sorry you took the journey.

A Rich Treat!

Sands Hall's debut book, CATCHING HEAVEN, is wonderful! The prose is supurb. The characters will become good friends by the end of the book, and not soon be forgotten. They are so alive, so real! I was truly sad when it ended, and I had to leave these new friends , and Merango. Don't pass this one by. I look forward to more from Sands Hall. BRAVO!

Catching Heaven is delicious

Read Catching Heaven slowly. Savour the words. The descriptions are scrumptious. Relish the many characters - each with their own carefully formulated personalities, strengths and weaknesses. Altogether a feast.