Book Review: Never Say Never by Lisa Wingate (Audiobook)

Book Description from Amazon.com


Kai Miller floats through life like driftwood tossed by waves. She's never put down roots in any one place--and she doesn't plan to. But when a chaotic hurricane evacuation lands her in Daily, Texas, she begins to think twice about her wayfaring existence. And when she meets hometown-boy Kemp Eldridge, she can almost picture settling down in Daily--until she discovers he may be promised to someone else. Daily has always been a place of refuge for those the wind blows in, but for Kai, it looks like it will be just another place to leave behind. Then again, Daily always has a few surprises in store--especially when Aunt Donetta has cooked up a scheme.


My Thoughts:


"Amazing things could happen in an ordinary life if you let 'em." says Donetta Bradford. This book is full of Donetta-isms and some very profound ones too! Donetta is a small-town Texan full of life and southern charm. I actually wish now I had written down all the Donetta-isms...some of them were very thought-provoking. 


If I could give you one word that represents the theme of Never Say Never, that word would be people. Throughout the entire book are examples of how noticing and helping and be-friending the people around us is what matters in life. Everyday we pass people by..at work, in the grocery store, on the street, in our own homes and we don't know them or even see them. What was it they kept saying in the movie, Avatar, "I see you." I think Lisa Wingate was trying to get the message across that we need to see people.


Ok, for the writing...This is the second Wingate book I have read. The first was Talk of the Town, which I also enjoyed. This second book took me back to Daily, Texas and the people who live there that I met in Talk of the Town. The author wrote the book from the perspectives of the older woman, Donetta Bradford and the younger woman, Kai Miller. With each chapter, Lisa switches from Donetta to Kai and back and forth like that. I found it a really interesting way to read a story. You weren't stuck in the head of one person the whole book and you could view the goings on from two very different perspectives. 


I actually listened to this book via audible.com. I liked how each character perspective was read by a different narrator, one for Donetta and one for Kai. It really made you feel like they were each telling the story to you. The only thing that was a little weird for me and a bit hard to get used to was when these two women narrators spoke the male parts. It never quite sounded right to me. But other than that one little thing, I enjoyed listening to this book on my commute to and from work each day. I actually found myself becoming engrossed in the story to the point that I couldn't wait to get back in to my car to hear some more. 


So, pick up a copy of Never Say Never. Its a fun read!