Children deserve care.

When Bill Blair buys a piece of land in 1954 in what will become Silicon Valley, complete with a towering California oak, he sets this family drama in motion. Bill, a pediatrician whose motto is “Children deserve care”, dreamed of having his own children, and soon marries Penny. They build a house (which figures largely in the novel), have “the three Rs”, Robert, Rebecca, and Ryan, but when unplanned James is born, and the family begins to fail.

“Think how much we love the three we have,' Bill said when, newly and accidentally pregnant with James, she wept and wept. 'I'll die,' she said, and he smiled an indulgent smile that chilled her."

James is a wild child, but it wasn't clear to me if this was his personality, the result of the way he is treated by the rest of the family, or a combination of factors. When Penny is overwhelmed and can't control him, she distances herself from the family, both emotionally and physically. She begins this process by doing craft projects in the house, calls herself an artist when she uses a shed down the hill from the house as her studio, and eventually moves into the shed. The title comes from the heartbreaking children's crusade to try and think of things that their absent and uncaring mother might like to do with them, to spend time with them. Their stories are told in multiple first-person perspectives from the children and the adults they become, along with third-person sections recounting this sad family history.

While I was interested in reading the thoughts from the siblings in the first person, I think the story suffered because we are not privy to any of Penny's perspectives. I don't understand how she became an artist, other than doing crafts with clothespins and calling it art. To me, she was selfish, apathetic, and later downright cruel when she exploited James through her art. Even though Penny had once created a scrapbook about her perfect family of two boys and one girl, she did not come to understand that she was not cut out for motherhood until it was too late, and she seemed to simply place her needs for artistic time and furthering her imagined artistic career above everyone else in the family, without guilt or regret.

I wish there had been more from Penny, but I also wish there had been less detail and rambling in the first half. The book became a bit of a slog for me, but I am glad I finished because the last quarter was some of the best stuff. I enjoy listening to good family sagas, but The Children's Crusade was more of a family drama. While I could appreciate parts of it, I didn't find much reading enjoyment.

10 people found this helpful

Slow poignant storytelling

One of the most interesting, poignant, sad and true stories of a family in (and out) of turmoil I have read in a while. The characters are so real I felt like I was a part of their lives, I was so wrapped up in each of their stories. Slow and steady storytelling with not much action, but a lot of revelation. Loved it

8 people found this helpful

Excellent

Great family drama. I recommend this novel to fans of Six Feet Under; great tension and nuanced characters throughout. Enjoy!

6 people found this helpful

Fine fiction

This is a beautifully crafted novel with timeless content about families and human relationships. It is read with perfection. I recommend it to all who listen to straightforward readings of literary fiction. I couldn't put it down.

5 people found this helpful

Bittersweet

I listened to this in one sitting, being the youngest of four kids...I can't even begin to say how emotional this was for me. Right now I am reeling. The dynamic of this family is nothing like mine but the feelings are exact, so well written and the performers were great, especially Santino Fontana. I usually listen to one book right after the other...but I'm going to give this some time to sink in...I'm hurting right now but I needed this because as much as I went through with my mom...I know we adored each other! I will listen to this author again, but not for awhile, so good but hit a lot of old wounds. The end result will be awesome and enlightening, no matter what there is nothing like family!!!!

5 people found this helpful

well written

she tells the story from each child and adults perspective in a way that draws it all together and uncovers the truth of families.

3 people found this helpful

Not very Memorable

All mediocre families are kind of the same. The Blairs had their issues, but nothing too ink-worthy. Definitely a better book to listen to than to read - using different voices for the characters' solo chapters kept things interesting. Still, the writing was good: it did let you peek into the windows of another way of living life.

2 people found this helpful

Excellent character driven novel

Overall, I greatly enjoyed this book. I liked how the author described people with fine detail, and the sense of place was beautifully drawn-I felt like I was there in Portola Valley. The plot follows the inner lives of its characters; it is not driven by outer events. Packer has created a slow meditation on themes of family life, estrangement, both from others and self, and redemption, quietly delivered. It’s true protagonists are James, the fourth child who lost out on the love of a mother, and that mother, whose name embarrassingly escapes me now.

If you are a reader who prefers fast paced action and an exciting, page turning plot, you might not enjoy this novel. I read “A Dive From Clausen’s Pier” before this, and wondered where Packer was going with the narrative. I was surprised by the ending, which gave me an enjoyable understanding of her storytelling. Both novels show a love and positive outlook on humanity, a refreshing change to the current trend in popular dystopian fiction , which I also enjoy.

The narrative is excellent. All the voices are read naturally,not over dramatized, which distracts from the language.

1 person found this helpful

A First Person Character Story

This book was not for me. Because of this, I can't state that it was bad or good; I can only state that I did not like it. The story unfolds through the eyes of a melancholy man that looks to his past and present while describing what he has seen, sees, and feels.

The problem is that it is not very enjoyable to see life through the eyes of a desolate man.and reading a chapter in a desolate man's voice becomes a sing-song drone. I only made it through three hours. The book may have gotten better as the main character got better, but I just could not listen any longer.

1 person found this helpful

Not that good

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

No. I don't think the theme was very well developed. The Children's Crusade was a very small element of the book. This is a rambling story of a family with a good dad and a bad mom.

If you’ve listened to books by Ann Packer before, how does this one compare?

I read the one about Claussen's pier and it was better.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

There are a few narrators, male and female voices. One of the male voices read very fast, too fast.

Was The Children's Crusade worth the listening time?

I listen to books while I work so it kept me entertained but I found it annoying at times and thought about quitting it.

Any additional comments?

In Ann Packer's defense, I thought I was buying a book by Ann Patchett! My bad. It struck me not far into it that Ann Packer is no Ann Patchett.

1 person found this helpful