Gretel Killeen

Lorita asked a friend ( a book seller) to find her a book by a female Australian author. This author was suggested and L. picked “The Day My Bum Dropped” It was about menopause and sounded funny. The wrong book arrived but L. decided to go with it anyway! She found it was awful and she was very disappointed and quite mortified! It was an ego trip and how dare anyone publish such rubbish! She was really, really sorry! Her “friend”? offered to give us our money back! Three took up the offer, the rest of us had given them away or taken them to a book exchange.
Others: The writing was awful. Both characters were vacuous and pointless. This has to be the most dreadful book that any of us has chosen. No character development. At least you could skim it. She wrote for people in their forties but still used a Young Adult style. Nothing we could find in it to like even a little! It caused discussion and mirth all along much the same lines. Only four of us read it all through.
No reviews found. Because it was too new or because no one could read it ?
Members asked to score and give their reasons for that score.

Lorita: 3. 1 for pink cover, 1 for writing a whole book, 1 for some funny bits.
Wendy: 4. Read it all, thought it quite funny.
Barbara: 2. 1 for writing it and 1 for getting it published.
Jenny A.: 2. Lowest score I've given so far, it was rubbish.
Enid: 2. Was she drugged?
Norriel: 1. For getting it published.
Janine : 2. I didn't like it but didn't want to crush her!
Jenny M.: 1. A waste of valuable reading time.
Lynn: -2. -1 for writing it, -1 for getting it published.
Ros.: 2. Shouldn't have been published.
Robin: 0. Two pages were enough!
Sheena; 2. It might appeal to eighteen year olds.

Av: 1.5… (meer)

This was an aberrant choice by a member of my bookclub who usually makes good selections. We have forgiven her, but only just! The bookclub began in 1975 and still has two original members. In collective memory, this was the lowest rated book in the group's 35 years. I think that says it all. The fact that it couldn't be found on any of LT's data bases and I've had to add it manually, suggests it isn't likely to be widely sought after - and for very good reason. It has one or two mildly funny paragraphs, but is otherwise a ramble of rubbish, presumably published only because of Killeen's public profile in Aus and her good reputation as a writer of YA humour.… (meer)