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There are currently 39 member reviews
for Rise
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Marcia S. (Ackley, IA)
Finding the Strength
I so admire the Brookins family who pulled together to build their own house. Perhaps that doesn't sound so fantastic, until you realize that this was done by a single mother and her four children. (However, the youngest was really too young to help.) This family moved from abuse to strength because they formed a common goal and sacrificed and worked to achieve it. I so admire the fact that they didn't feel sorry for themselves or expect anyone else to "take care of them" or support them. I did like the book and think it would appeal to young adults and adults alike. When describing the abuse and fear, the reader truly feels the family's pain. You also want to cheer as they overcome each insurmountable step in building the house. It's a book of both sadness and joy, and most of all finding strength and each other. (I'm reviewing a pre-release book I won.)
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Alissa C. (Woodstown, NJ)
I really wanted to like this book...
...but I just couldn't connect with the author or her story. I felt confused from the start, with her storytelling itself- the reader is dropped straight into a very messy and chaotic story of a damaged family, and propelled along without much to guide you along the way. Gradually, Brookins does begin to shed light on the past, revealing more about her terrifying struggles with her husbands, but I felt that these details came too late- she and her family were already well into the building of the new house that I just couldn't connect to their struggle as I wanted to.
Overall, this is an amazing story of survival and resilience, and of thriving after devastation- I just wish it had been more organized from the start, as a story, because I found it hard to get in to.
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Lola M. (Boise, ID_
Slightly Askew
I couldn't like this story. Each chapter was a repetitive theme on the last chapter ... dealing with deeply disturbed ex-husbands, a crazy need to be out until all hours building a house, holding down three jobs, raising four children and dealing with men in the building business who were so obviously disrespectful of women over and over ... that it quickly became tiresome. Well, except for the three Hispanic fishermen - they rocked.
That said, I had to admire her stubbornness and complete inability to think logically in the middle of dire situations that she, herself created.
Her writing style is rapid and easy to read and this would make a great Oprah Book Club read.
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Reader in California
The Ups and Downs of Building a House
The premise is pretty amazing. Not a lot of women - or men, for that matter - would drag their four kids, including a two-year-old, out to the woods to build their dream house.
This story will appeal to people interested in construction as a large portion of the narrative is dedicated to the actual process of building the house, step by step.
I don't agree with the title, "How a House Built a Family" as they were already tightly bonded and committed to each other. Her children proved themselves to be strong, capable and incredibly tolerant throughout the entire story. They are far closer to perfect than most children - or adults.
Perhaps this is why I was somewhat troubled by the "fall" sections. The family's history with one of her troubled former husbands is revealed in a melodramatic manner which felt a bit exploitative.
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Cindy J. (Hastings, NY)
Rise How a House Built a Family
Inspiring yet not completely believable. This story of a single mom and her 4 children evading harm from abusive ex-husbands and succeeding in building their own home is inspiring. However, I found it hard to believe that they were able to accomplish some of the feats involved in building a house on their own. I think the point of the book is overcoming obstacles and no longer being afraid including afraid of failure.
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Eileen F. (Green Valley, AZ)
Overwhelming
Cara's book was overwhelming to me. Her story was probably well narrated. Hopefully, it gave her comfort to write it, and others in the same situation to read her narrative. It would be hard for me to recommend this book to someone because of all the emotion involved in reading it. It gave me a good insight into how abuse affects the whole family.
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Ruthie A. (New York, NY)
Conflicted...
Cara Brookins grew up in poverty, had some brutal experiences in school (bullying directed at both herself and her brother) and went on to marry 3 times, twice to men who for very different reasons, abused her. Once free of these men she took stock of her situation, saw how shell-shocked her children were, assessed her finances and decided to build her own "Dream Home" with the help of YouTube and her kids!
The book alternates chapters from the past and the near past -the build. We get glimpses of her life with her abusers, and descriptions of how she was inspired to build her own home, and then, the actual building of the house. Along the way we meet her wonderful parents and watch her children change from frightened victims to strong, resilient individuals.
For me the chapters that dealt with the abuse were the most effective. She does a great job conveying the fear and hopelessness she felt. She tries to explain why she "stayed" with her abusers, and how she attempted to protect her children from the abuse, if not the damage of what they witnessed. Others can judge her choices, but not unless they have walked in her shoes.
The chapters that deal with the building of the house start well, with the source of her inspiration for the house. After that I found myself frustrated/bored by the details. She was in over her head. This caused her to waste so much time and money, not to mention incur serious injury, and still she did not seem to learn her lesson. On the other hand, the amount of actual work they completed, guided by YouTube videos, is impressive.
There are descriptions of how Brookins used a personal form of meditation to calm herself, and although I found her "visions" odd, but if they helped her survive and move forward then good for her! I would have loved some pictures but understand how she would want to guard her privacy. There were also times when she was so clear on details I could only assume she had been keeping a journal. Many details were unnecessary.
All in all this was an interesting read. I found some portions dragged and felt that Brookins left out a great deal of info, her choice, but it made my sense of her experience feel incomplete.
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