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The Stars Are Fire by Anita Shreve

The Stars Are Fire

by Anita Shreve

  • Critics' Consensus (0):
  • Readers' Rating (40):
  • Published:
  • Apr 2017, 256 pages
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Cathryn Conroy

It's Really, Really Good! A Fast and Captivating Read
The plot premise of this book is truly the stuff of nightmares and, tragically, real news headlines: What if a ravaging, uncontrollable wildfire burned not only everything you own, but also destroyed your entire town?

It is 1947. Gene and Grace Holland live a simple life in a simple house in Hunts Beach on the coast of Maine. Her mother is present but distant, and her mother-in-law despises her. Claire is two, Tom is nine months old, and Grace is pregnant. Their marriage is as brittle and dry as the drought that shrouds this idyllic land by the sea. When a wildfire breaks out up and down the coast of Maine, Genemore
R. Buxton

Excellent Book
I could not put this book down. It was very moving and so well written that I could easily visualize everything that was going on. A must read!
Linda J. (Ballwin, MO)

A Fire in the Heart
Once again, Anita Shreve, one of my favorite authors, has penned a novel that snares the reader's interest from the first sentence.
It is the summer of 1947 and Maine is suffering through an unbearable drought. The spring rains have long since dried up and the sun parches the state. Even the coastal towns have no relief save the slight ocean breezes.
Grace Holland is 24 with two children under the age of two, and is suffering through a drought of her own in her marriage.
She married Gene, thinking life would be wonderful. It hasn't turned out that way. She performs her wifely duties of washing, ironing, andmore
Andrea S. (Lafayette, IN)

Good book
I requested this story of the aftermath of catastrophic forest fires in Maine in 1947 because we had visited and been charmed by the Maine coast last fall. I was therefore familiar with many of the locations mentioned in the book. I don't know if the plot is based on an actual person's experience or not. But the story uses much historical detail to tell the story of Grace and her family and how they survived the fires. The fires are a metaphor for change in Grace's life as well. I enjoyed this book very much. I had never read anything by Anita Shreve before. I picked this book because of its setting, but I foundmore
Christine B. (Scottsdale, AZ)

The Stars Are Fire
I absolutely loved this book. Ms. Shreve's description of the fire was so intense and believable I felt like I was living it with Grace and her children. The resilience of Grace is unbelievable. Her determination to make a new life for herself and her children is unstoppable. This gritty and poignant novel is filled with so much hope, love, despair and finally redemption. Understanding Grace's husband Gene and their relationship or non-relationship was difficult. I wish there had been more background about Gene and his mother. However, I think ultimately this is Grace's story and one to savor.
Janice A. (Houston, TX)

Anita Shreve The stars are fire
Shreve has produced another well written and descriptive novel. This story shows the strength of a woman who lost herself and by surviving a tragedy found the strength she always owned. Grace experiences her true love as well as her Achilles heel and must decide between the expectations of her generation or her own happiness.
Paula Jacunski, Bath Maine

The Year Maine Burned
I've read many of Anita Shreve's books, and I think this is her best yet. Shreve immerses you in Grace's life, struggles, disappointments, little successes. Through Grace, she explores the devastation of a massive fire. I intended to shut the book last night--and I did--but Grace stayed with me, and so I just gave in and finished the book. Packed with emotion; I would say it is true to Maine life in the late 1940s. I hope when this book is reviewed that there is a "Beyond the Book" article on the the "Year Maine burned". The fires destroyed 851 homes and 397 seasonal cottages, leaving 2,500 people homeless (more
Lucy Jay, Albany NY

She did it again!
Anita Shreve has a way of telling a story that makes the reader feel as though he/she is  part of the story.  In The Stars Are Fire, Grace Holland faces extreme hardship as well as great joy... along with some hard choices, indecision and guilt. I was guessing at the outcome right up to the last page. 

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