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Gun Love
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
My mother called anyone or anything that seemed alone, or ended up in the wrong place, a stray. There were stray people, stray dogs, stray bullets, and stray butterflies. Fourteen-year-old Pearl France lives in the front seat of a broken down car and her mother Margot lives in the back. Together they survive on a diet of powdered milk and bug spray, love songs and stolen cigarettes. Life on the edge of a Florida trailer park is strange enough but when Pastor Rexs Guns for God programme brings Eli Redmond to town Pearls world is upended. Eli pays regular visits to Margot in the back seat, forcing Pearl to find a world beyond the car. Eli presents Pearls mother with a love gift, a gun of her own, just like hes giving her flowers. It sits under the drivers seat, a dark presence... Gun Love is a hypnotic story of family, community and violence. Told from the perspective of a sharp-eyed teenager, it exposes Americas love affair with firearms and its painful consequences
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review
Nalbuque
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

The elusive Florida fiction! Bleak and interesting, but I must say that I had a bit more animal death than I like in my books (which is none). I enjoyed this one, it was short and weird and heartfelt.

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rachaich
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

Not the easiest of reads, due to both the harsh realities told and the sparse prose.
I can't say I enjoyed it; however, I kept mulling it over, which characters might be honest, whether good would win, if anyone lived a positive life.
I'm undecided:/

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rachaich
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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This was recommended by Mr B's reading spa a few years ago and I finally got round to buying a copy!

It's feeling a little disjointed and distant in its narration but I'm sticking with it...

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Buechersuechtling
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

„Gun Love is about the magic between mother and daughter in the midst of madness. In radiant images, Jennifer Clement tells a story in which love and hate, fantasy and reality collapse into one another. The literary mood of an entire nation.“

That‘s what the blurb says about this book and I have little to add. @ReadingOver50 makes a good point in concerning Pearl‼️

I admit, at first I was reluctant towards the novel but I ended loving the story.

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Megabooks
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Panpan

This book makes no damn sense. Next!

(I did finish it, though. 🤷🏻‍♀️)

youneverarrived I love a straight to the point review 😂 3y
Megabooks @youneverarrived lol! No point in mincing words! 😉😀 3y
Cinfhen Pass 😂 3y
See All 6 Comments
Megabooks @Cinfhen I‘d recommend that. 😉 3y
britt_brooke I love that you finished it. 😂 I do love a good hate-read for a “pan.” 3y
Megabooks @britt_brooke lol! I wouldn‘t have finished but it was a short book and fast read. 3y
83 likes6 comments
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Bookalong
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Mehso-so

3.5/5🌟 I found this a quick read. The prose are poetic and really drew me in. I appreciated the story that Clement crafted. Bringing to light the cause and effect of gun control and gun violence in the US. It was sad and affecting the way she went with Pearl's story. Overall I did enjoy this one, I can't put my finger on it but something was missing, I just wasn't blown away. #bookreview #bookstagram

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Book_Fairy_Mary
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Just one of the many TBR piles in my house ❤️📚
I really need some uninterrupted reading time.

20 likes1 stack add
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TheNerdyProfessor
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
Pickpick

What a read! It is a small novel but it really packs an emotional punch. The writing is so lyrical, it almost feels like some of the words are being sung. Pearl and her mother live in their car and have since Pearl was a baby. This book examines a childhood marred by homelessness and the role of guns in a Florida community. There was a plot twist in the middle I did not expect - this book almost hurts to read but it was very well done.

46 likes1 stack add
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TheNerdyProfessor
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Next up on the reading docket.

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tholmz
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

Just absolutely gorgeously written and heartbreaking and real. I loved this one.

TheNerdyProfessor I'm starting this today! 5y
7 likes1 stack add1 comment
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ReadingOver50
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Mehso-so

This was an ok book. It tells the story of 14 year Pearl, who has spent her whole life living in a car outside a derelict trailer park. Told in Pearl‘s voice, the problem is she is such a passive observer the reader never feels an emotional connection to the book. For a girl who spent her life homeless, you would think she would have a sense of self preservation. Instead she moves from situation to situation with seemingly no thought on her part.

104 likes2 stack adds
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Redwritinghood
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

This NBA longlisted title covers many of the current social issues that the US is struggling with today - poverty, homelessness, drug addiction, the lack of adequate care for our veterans, and, of course, gun culture. I found the prose in this book wonderful with a great balance between the artistic and the practical. True-to-life characters who behave alternatively in selfish and unselfish ways are well-drawn and sympathetic. 4⭐️

readordierachel Sounds very timely! 5y
75 likes3 stack adds1 comment
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8little_paws
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

Read this on a flight today. Clement has a very distinct writing style. There were sentences that really struck me, others didn't really connect for me. I'm comparing this to Where the Dead Sit Talking, the other NBA longlist book with similar themes, and i'm still processing them both. The last third of this book, i'm not sure what I think. Lol great review I know but this book is really something different and not easy to sum up.

Megabooks Agreed about it being something different. I liked it too. 5y
CouronneDhiver Mexico? I don‘t remember that airline... ✈️ 5y
8little_paws @CouronneDhiver cdmx! It's a discount airline, like spirit in the US if you are familiar with that or WOW air. Perfectly suitable for the 4 hour trip from chicago! 5y
CouronneDhiver 👍🏽 Ok, cool. I was a travel agent a few years back... must be a little out of the loop now. Yay for affordability! 5y
Sace Cool picture! 5y
48 likes5 comments
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Lola
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

My second Jennifer Clement and as the first one I read (Prayers for the Stolen) all the ⭐️s from me. Her writing is a cross between two of my favorites-Yuri Herrera and Donald Ray Pollock. I hope this makes the shortlist for the National Book Award.

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Lola
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Today is October 1st, the start of my favorite month, which makes this Monday morning a little less painful than usual. So does the new Jennifer Clement and my pretty perfect misto. I hope the rest of the day is a as good! Happy October, Litsy friends!

31 likes1 stack add
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mrozzz
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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QUITE excited about this #BookMail 😍 My Mom gifted me Lethal White and I couldn‘t pass up Gun Love or the new Mary Kubica— even though I thoroughly did NOT like the last book of hers I read, the theme intrigued me too much to ignore it.

vivastory I can't wait to read Lethal White! 6y
mrozzz Me neither! @vivastory I still have a big stack of library books I‘m trying to get through first 6y
97 likes2 comments
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TheNerdyProfessor
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Jana
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
Mehso-so

This book was great on so many different levels but at the same time, it felt rushed and incomplete. I wanted her to explore more of the situations she described, particularly the foster care part because she just sort of rolled over that as a means to an end when it could have been much more. I liked the way she approached gun violence and gun culture and family and homelessness but it felt...lacking.

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mauveandrosysky
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

The writing in this book is rich and lyrical and stylized right from the opening sentence, the descriptions sensory and evocative. Pearl‘s coming-of-age story is a slice of life that‘s so foreign to me: it‘s captivating in its tragic strangeness and unlikely tenderness. The third act wasn‘t quite as strong as the first two, but the story felt complete at the end, as if everything had come full circle.

27 likes1 stack add
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mauveandrosysky
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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What an incredible opening.

LauraBeth I loved this book! 6y
BarbaraBB Fantastic opening indeed. Looking forward to your thoughts on this one. 6y
31 likes1 stack add2 comments
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Owlizabeth
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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readordierachel Good choices! 6y
63 likes1 comment
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LauraBeth
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Back to the library my pretties! I loved all of these!

130 likes1 stack add
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Megabooks
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

This book had some incredible turns of phrase and downright lyrical prose. Gorgeous book cover to cover. Highly recommend. 4.5⭐️

Above is a favorite quote.

109 likes4 stack adds
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LauraBeth
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Rainy Saturday morning reading.

Lreads Bitsy looks comfy. ❤️ 6y
LauraBeth @quietlylaura She‘s actually crabby this morning 😂 6y
Ashley_Nicoletto @LauraBeth 😂😂 I love when the dog is cranky. Especially if she starts grumbling when you pet her. Whatttt could they even have to be cranky about? 6y
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LauraBeth Exactly @Ashley_Nicoletto 😂😂 6y
Lreads 😂 Crabby pets make our lives interesting! 6y
Notafraidofwords Cranky ? What does she even do to be cranky about ? 6y
LauraBeth @Notafraidofwords I have no idea! She was just very snippy all day yesterday - sometimes she feels particularly jealous of gray cat. 😼 6y
110 likes8 comments
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Megabooks
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement

Does anyone else ever get so stressed out about characters that you can‘t finish a book? Maybe it‘s because my anxiety has been high today anyway, but I‘m having a lot of trouble finishing this book and reading fiction in general.

Can anyone relate?

rjsthumbelina Yep! Anytime books deal with really heavy subject matter or are very emotional/stressful/something really bad happens, it triggers my anxiety. Having trouble finishing The Great Alone for that exact reason 6y
sweetpealsd I have had this happen. I powered through but only because it was part of our lpmbc. You may have to decide if it‘s worth continuing. Good luck💕 6y
Lreads Most certainly! Sometimes a story takes an unexpected turn that I can‘t handle, or my Anxiety in my personal life makes me sensitive to whatever I‘m reading. I tend to read for escape and entertainment because of this. 6y
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Bostonmomx2 Generally no, never. BUT I read The Great Alone and I definitely was feeling some nerves. The isolation with an abusive man...ya, didn‘t sit real well. (But the book overall was so good!) 6y
Megabooks @rjsthumbelina @Bostonmomx2 it‘s good to know that about TGA. I‘ve thought about adding it to my botm order and will hold off. I think im particularly attached to this MC and I don‘t want any more bad things to happen to her. 😕 6y
Megabooks @sweetpealsd I hope I can finish it. It‘s a very good book. I‘m glad you were able to finish. It can definitely be difficult sometimes. 6y
Megabooks @QuietlyLaura Agreed about the turn. What I was afraid of happening to the character did in the middle, and now I‘m more worried about what else will happen to her. I have anxiety already right now. I think I‘m just too empathetic sometimes. 🤷🏻‍♀️🤔 6y
KathyWheeler Sometimes I‘m so afraid of what‘s going to happen to a character that I have to quit reading the book until I can face it. (edited) 6y
rjsthumbelina @Booksandcooks agree 100% about being too empathetic. I am the same way. I even got sad for our fridge when we got a new one! (Of course, that might have been The Brave Little Toaster's fault.) But I cannot read a book if I don't fully connect with the characters, which in turn, makes reading dangerous - bc I feel what they feel 6y
RaimeyGallant Yes! Case in point, my current read. My two quotes posted today are the tip of the iceberg with her. But I persist. 6y
xicanti A year ago I took a small break from my most anticipated release of, like, THE DECADE because I knew it was gonna destroy me but I was also kind of worried I wouldn't love it as much as I wanted to. And I still haven't picked it back up. 6y
Dragon Sometimes I can‘t finish a book because I just do not want to “be there “ when terrible things happen. 6y
Megabooks @RaimeyGallant Yes, that novel is a bit of a sticky wicket. I actually bailed time one and then have successfully read it three times. We all have difficulties in reading a book. 🤔 6y
Megabooks @xicanti I understand! Sometimes the blockbuster or the most wanted are the wrong ones for me. Especially the more intellectual ones that have really messed up stuff going on. It takes me at least three months to pick up a novel again after I‘ve bailed. You definitely have company. 6y
Megabooks @Dragon So relatable. There are definitely things that I wish would happen off the page. Like saying so-and-such was murdered versus going through a minute-by-minute account of it. (edited) 6y
Dragon Totally agree @Booksandcooks 6y
RaimeyGallant @Booksandcooks Yep. I have a feeling I'm going to like the plotting, but the writing is driving me bonkers. 6y
minkyb This is definitely real! 6y
63 likes18 comments
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Megabooks
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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This book has turns of phrase that make me say, damn that‘s some good writing. Really enjoying this one so far!

Suet624 Wow. 6y
Megabooks @Suet624 The lines in here are so wow. Really excited to see where she‘s going. 6y
95 likes5 stack adds2 comments
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Megabooks
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Today‘s #bookmail has a great #firstline.

Yesterday‘s mail was some more FunUsual Suspects bookmarks. I can‘t help myself!

DiruVamp I love that shop! Everything is super cute I got a charm for my planner there. An adorable little storm cloud 😍🤓 6y
LazyDays What a cute way to describe some one.💕 A cup of sugar! 6y
RaimeyGallant Sweet. 6y
See All 9 Comments
JacqMac Your mother sounds like diabetes. Lol 6y
Megabooks @DiruVamp Yes! I think I‘ve seen that design. Super cute! 🤓🤓 6y
Megabooks @LazyDays Definitely in the Deep South. This book is set in rural Florida. 6y
Megabooks @RaimeyGallant Figuratively 😉 6y
Megabooks @JacqMac This character is becoming more trouble than diabetes. 😏 6y
RaimeyGallant ;) Always getting my tongue stuck in my cheek. 6y
116 likes6 stack adds9 comments
review
Hooked_on_books
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

A quiet exploration of homelessness, gun violence, criminality, and the exploitation of children for one‘s own ends (not nearly as bleak as it sounds), this book is the story of Pearl, who grows up in her mother‘s car. I found it lovely. It‘s threaded with melancholy and written in a way that reminds me of Rabbit Cake, though the two books are completely different. A quick and thought-provoking read.

kamoorephoto I loved this one😭💓 6y
59 likes3 stack adds1 comment
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TheBookStacker
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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I love this cover! I also love all books set in Florida, Swamplandia! is one of my favorites! Any recommendations guys on other sweet Florida books I should read!

ReadingEnvy The precursor to Swamplandia, also set in Florida (most of the stories) 6y
LitLogophile I‘m looking through your page and we have such similar taste in books! Also, im from Florida 😊. I haven‘t read it yet but Sunshine State is sitting on my bookshelf 👀 6y
TheBookStacker @2BR02B I will look into it, I read her newer book and loved it. @ReadingEnvy I did read everything she wrote because I love her so much! @LitLogophile I looooved sunshine state! So good! 6y
52 likes1 stack add4 comments
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LibrarianRyan
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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This is this weekends #bookmail. I'll probably keep Gun love because the cover is awesome and take the rest to work for Reaching Forward South.

67 likes1 stack add
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BookishFeminist
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

I loved this short little book. This is Pearl‘s coming of age story, a quirky albino girl living in a car with her mom in Florida. Pearl narrates with clipped language that is full of metaphor. It‘s an indictment of how America‘s gun culture is a danger to ourselves when it‘s meant to protect. It paints a stark portrait of homelessness & foster care while examining spiritual connections between people & the fleeting nature of relationships. 🔫🐊

RealLifeReading Sounds interesting! 6y
Soubhiville Sounds good to me too. Stacked. 6y
Megabooks I have this in my amazon cart! 6y
psmatty Intriguing 6y
kleem Nice 6y
110 likes18 stack adds5 comments
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Carolyn11215
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

Full review up on Goodreads. Trigger warnings: gun violence, homelessness

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shendrix413
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement

"when a man gives his woman a gun, it's because he really trusts her... It's a lot more useful than a box of candy."
?

thereadingowlvina 😂👍 6y
46 likes1 comment
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Christyco125
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Mehso-so

I wouldn‘t call this a YA novel but it is a coming of age story. The story revolves around Pearl and her life before and after a tragic event. I did find the book interesting and well written. If it hadn‘t been offered as a #firsttoread , I probably wouldn‘t have tried it. It‘s between a pick and a so-so.
Trigger warning: gun violence

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shendrix413
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement

Started on the ARC I received of this. I'm digging it so far. There's a character named April May. At first I thought it was 2 girls named April and May, but no, one little girl named April May. Maybe that's only funny because my sleeping med is kicking in 😂 guess I'll see in the morning if anyone else found it amusing 😂📚🎉

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Carolyn11215
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement

“You know, everyone is jealous of Mexico, Corazón said...Because the asteroid fell there from space. It‘s thanks to Mexico there are no dinosaurs. So, you see, if not for Mexico there‘d be no human beings.”

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Carolyn11215
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement

“Eli gave me a cigarette because he knew I was for sale. He knew how much I cost. It took only one cigarette to make me happy.” This book is heartbreaking!

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Carolyn11215
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement

“There is only one kind of man that carries two shotguns into church. That‘s a man that doesn‘t turn the other cheek.”

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danieleloy
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement

“Baby, Pearl, she said, I believe in love at first sight. Be careful what you look at.”

RaimeyGallant Nice quote. :) And welcome to Litsy! #LitsyWelcomeWagon Some of us put together Litsy tips to help new Littens navigate the site. It's the link in my bio on my page in case you need it. Or if you prefer how-to videos, @chelleo just put some together. 6y
3 likes1 comment
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Carolyn11215
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement

Clement‘s writing is fabulous...and timely...and full of social commentary. “People were always thinking homeless was contagious.” And “Usually Everything my mother did was met with disapproval, as though not having a front door to open made you unworthy of a job or friendship or someone lending you something.” Exactly how so many treat homeless people in this country.

Dulcinella ❤️❤️ 6y
12 likes1 comment
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Carolyn11215
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement

Fabulous first sentences! “My mother was a cup of sugar. You could borrow her anytime.”

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kamoorephoto
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

Like a bullet being shot out of any of the lethal firearms that are in this short but heartbreaking book, GUN LOVE just blew me away. Taking on America‘s love of guns, in Florida no less, this is a story about a 14 yr-old girl who‘s spent her life living in a car with her mom in a trailer park. Through the tiny prism of Pearl‘s perspective on life, her story broke my heart over and over. Beautiful and poignant. REVIEW:
http://bit.ly/GunLoveReview

kate_reads This is at the top of my TBR! Good to hear you liked it 6y
60 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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Carolyn11215
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement

Whoop whoop. I just won access to a galley through First Reads! Can‘t wait to dive in!

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Bookmarkie
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Pickpick

A sensory, lyrical novel centered around Pearl, an adolescent girl named after her fair hair and complexion. Like a sponge, my heart was twisted around as it soaked up the creative imagery Clement laid out. A novel about strays, dreams and belonging. #netgalley #gunlove

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Bookmarkie
Gun Love | Jennifer Clement
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Challenge planning and reading Gun Love. So far, I'm immensely enjoying this novel about Florida, poverty, dreamers, a trailer park community, and this lovely little preteen who interprets it all. Oh, and guns. #netgalley#gunlove

21 likes1 comment