It’s been a nice couple of weeks. Reading, lounging on the beach, and doing a spot on impersonation of a tranquilized sloth is pretty much what my days have consisted of since school let out for the summer. But as they say, all good things must come to an end (fact: I HATE people who actually say this with sincerity and I vow to NEVER say it again). Thus, I’ll be heading to teach summer school, starting tomorrow.
However, I am excited to change it up and have an opportunity to teach cute little sixth graders. They’re a far cry from the jaded, tough-as-nails eighth graders I’ve become accustomed to. I anticipate more crying and tattling, but we’ll see.
During summer school, sixth graders get to do a unit on Reader’s Theater, which I haven’t had the opportunity to teach. It’ll shake some creativity up in me and might be a nice change of pace from doing poetry and writing persuasive essays. If you’re a teacher and you have experience with Reader’s Theater, feel free to share any helpful tips/ suggestions you’ve utilized and found worthwhile.
Lately, I’ve been reading a lot of fluffy/feel good books, which I love and put into circulation often for the preservation of my sanity. But I’ve had my eye on Miracle Creek by Angie Kim for a while and thought the premise sounded pretty original and the peripheral conflict of the book was bound to present some interesting controversy.
Miracle Creek is a courtroom drama that develops around a suspicious incident at an experimental treatment facility run by the Yoo family, who consist of Pak, Young and Mary Yoo. The Yoos are facilitators of an HBOT device, which is a Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment “submarine” tank. From this device, patients who have various diagnoses such as autism, cerebral palsy and impotence, are dispensed pure oxygen, in the hopes of combating what ails them. The Yoos, who have recently immigrated from South Korea to Miracle Creek, Virginia, find that this is a fairly lucrative business and they are profiting well from this “miraculous” treatment.
Until an explosion occurs within the HBOT, killing two people and maiming others. Ruled out as an accident, one of the mothers of a patient with autism who died in the explosion is dragged into the forefront of the blame and accused as the perpetrator. She’s undoubtedly a likely suspect, but she isn’t the only one with a motive to kill. As the courtroom battle for her life unfolds, the other people who were there that day, doing various deeds that leave them with guilt, reflect on where everything went wrong.
Told from the perspective of each person who witnessed the explosion and it’s devastating impact, Miracle Creek has many twists and turns, undisclosed secrets, and a braiding together of all the details that make for a blood freezing conclusion.
I was on the fence about how I ultimately felt about this book. I didn’t hate it, but I wasn’t floored by it as a whole either. So I’ve created some “pros” and “cons” to sum up my takeaways. You might find that my “pros” are your “cons” and vice versa.
Pro: There are multiple perspectives covered in this book. I love getting more than one perspective in dramas because it allows readers to gauge characters and their motives better. It also gives insight into the dynamics between characters and why/how their relationships develop as they do.
Con: I actually think there were too many perspectives given in this book.
*Sigh* I know I’m a Picky Patty. But honestly, when you begin reading this, ask yourself, “Do we need to know what Matt’s wife is thinking in this book? Or Teresa?” Not really. And not knowing what every single character’s motive or thought process is adds a little something to the storyline. It gives the reader a chance to flesh the conflict out for themselves rather than having all of the answers spoon-fed to them.
Pro: The conflict of the HBOT being used as an experimental treatment for different medical issues is fascinating to me! Before becoming a teacher, I wanted to be a paralegal and spent a (very brief) stint as a temp for a malpractice firm. The best part? The research that comes out during trials about various proposed solutions for diseases and the benefits and drawbacks of these methods. It’s completely engrossing. I recommend you google HBOT and read the background about it for yourself. Honestly, I wish even more information around it had been included in this book.
Con: The pace of the book is slow going and drawn out. The juicy details of the case didn’t come to light until about 80% through the novel. Then, once the reader gets committed to the story, what’s left of it just flies by! I hate when that happens *crying inside*.
Pro: The defense attorney for Elizabeth (the mother), is a #bossbitch.
Shannon is one of those chicks you want in your corner when you need someone not afraid to get scrappy. Like, you’re a little afraid of her, but ultimately want to stay in her good graces.
Con: I literally did not find any of the characters particularly likeable. Maybe it’s because they were just too realistically flawed. No one is a saint in this book, not even Teresa who is dubbed Mother Teresa by the HBOT crew. From devious, to sleazy, to pathetic, to controlling, to just downright obnoxious – all of the characters had some kind of glaring personality problem. Even Shannon, who is admirable, isn’t someone the reader would develop a genuine fondness for.
Pro: The ending was on point. Rarely do I feel 100% satisfied with courtroom drama conclusions. But this one was spot on. I won’t disclose why I feel this way because it might just be too much of a spoiler, but I’d be interested to know who agrees or disagrees.
Ultimately, I had more good takeaways than bad. If you’re on the fence about this one now, I’d say give it a whirl. It’s very well-written and you might enjoy Kim’s nuances a little more than I did. I give this one a 3.75.
Happy & healthy reading!
Lexi
