Tuesday Night at the Blue Moon

Literally. I read this based off a recommendation and now i pass it on to you. This is a truly enjoyable read, even though it kept me crying through the first 4 chapters..at least. its rare that a book can keep you so emotionally invested. the characters are genuine and real despite the slightly far fetched premise. Thomas makes it all real leaves you wanting more. For anyone looking for a book with true emotional grit, regardless of your faith, this book is for you. put it on your list!

Although it sounds cliche', this truly was a book that I could not put down. It is full of real-to-life characters in heartwarming settings that create a world of which you want to be a part. It captivates the universal human struggle with relationships, both human and spiritual. You root for the characters as they struggle to fit into their own skin. The dual point of views provide a well-rounded story that captivates you from every angle. I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a good read.

I'm not a writer and have never written a review but wanted to put my 2 cents in. Every day I looked forward to my lunch hour so that I could grab this book and read a couple more chapters. The characters were all so interesting and so real. I found it so intriguing to read from Andie's point of view and then from Marty's. It's kind of like seeing flashbacks in a movie. Each flashback helps you to understand the complexities of the situation. This story has some humor, draws some tears and makes you fall in love with the characters who are desperately trying to figure out what they're suppose to do with the unusual circumstances in their lives. Tuesday Night at the Blue Moon is definately a book worth reading.

Every mother's nightmare becomes reality when two girls are switched at birth in Tuesday Night at the Blue Moon. Debbie Thomas has captured the emotions of the major players, from the mother whose daughter is returned to her after the death of the girl she thought was her daughter; to the girl whose world has been turned upside down in the switch. Compelling from start to finish, with an element of faith that helps get these characters through the greatest challenge of their lives.

This poignant, wonderful debut novel by a great new writer (and beautiful wordsmith) was one of the most REAL and honest novels I've read in a while. Debbie Fuller Thomas is one gorgeous writer. Love her descriptive prose. And what an original, captivating story! It begins (so I'm not giving anything away) with Marty, a single mom grieving the loss of her daughter from a genetic disease who then learns it wasn't even her daughter who died. (Yes, her daughter by virtue of having loved and raised her for 13 years, but not by birth. The hospital mistakenly switched her newborn daughter with another's.) And Marty's birth daughter, Andi, is very much alive, recently orphaned, and living with her aging grandparents--illegally in a seniors mobile home park. So the court awards custody (on a temporary/trial basis) of the teenaged Andi to her birth mother, Marty. What follows is an honest, heartwrenching, and very real tale of grief, love, anger, divided loyalties, and what makes a family. I LOVED this book! It was so refreshing to read a novel in the faith market that wasn't of a middle- or upper-middle class family, but instead, a single mom struggling to make ends meet in a realistic, hardscrabble existence (without resorting to the cliches of making mom a druggie or alcoholic.) A mom whose husband left and who's doing the best she can for her children with what she has--which includes the aging Blue Moon Drive-In her father owns and Marty helps run when she's not checking groceries at the local discount grocery store. This is a story about real people in the real world. Bravo, Debbie Thomas for painting such a masterful, realistic, and poignant picture. I can't recommend Tuesday Night at the Blue Moon highly enough! One of my favorite novels of 2008. Leaves so many others by more famous authors in the dust. Can't wait to read more from this talented author! Also recommended: Beyond the Night by Marlo Schalesky and A Bigger Life by Annette Smith.