Twenty-four-year-old Violet wants one thing: to hide from life after her husband's death left her reeling. But life has other ideas. Well, life and a certain seven-year-old neighbor.
Violet moves to Magnolia Avenue, a forgotten street in a forgotten neighborhood filled with forgotten mobile homes. It looks like the perfect place to retreat and lick her wounds. But it's not long before her young neighbor, Arabella, enlists her in the rescue of the cantankerous old woman next door who has fallen ill. But if Violet thinks this is a one-off event, she's wrong. Next thing she knows, she is entangled in the lives of several neighbors from grumpy Mr. Pritchard to the handsome GI across the street. Set against the backdrop of the 1969 moon landing when astronauts broke the boundaries of Earth, A Boundless Place shows what happens when people are able to break through their own boundaries and reach out to others.
Assessment:
Plot/Idea: This is a sweet, feel-good story that will gratify readers. By the ending, the characters have all become friendlier and lighter in spirit, as they support one another in grappling with their losses and loneliness.
Prose: A Boundless Place offers clear and efficient prose that buoys the story.
Originality: Although this is eminently readable and enjoyable, a number of its elements are familiar. Characters' personalities and motives change too quickly, and future relationships become predictable.
Character Development/Execution: Collectively, the characters are relatable over the course of their personal transformations. Young Arabella is endearing and has a nearly magical touch.
Date Submitted: July 07, 2022
What a heartwarming, feel-good story. There's still heartache, grief, and regret woven throughout. But, in the end, it's about how friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers band together to create a much-needed support system to help the main character, Violet, weather her emotional storm. Wonderful characters throughout and you can almost feel the heat and humidity of the south in the descriptions An enjoyable read indeed.
This such an uplifting book and I almost needed to read it just at that particular time. It renewed my faith in possibilities with people. It takes beautiful writing to make readers like this cast of damaged grownups. Everyone needs a neighbor like Arabella. The whole time I was reading this book I pretended like the cast of characters were once happy, bubbly kids like Bella until something tragic changed the course of their lives and disposition.
In the end, I cared very much what happened to these folks. I wanted everyone to be happy. I finished it last night and felt like I just put every character to bed happy and ready to tackle the next day on Magnolia Avenue. I recommend this joyful book.
A heartwarming, delightful debut. You can’t help loving Pamela Stockwell’s grumpy, quirky characters and wish you were their neighbor on Magnolia Avenue. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll get misty eyed. The writing is evocative, it made me tear up many times. I was watching the moon landing with the characters and teared-up as Armstrong took his step for mankind. Stockwell grabbed my heart many times. Brava, Ms. Stockwell.
A Boundless Place by Pamela Stockwell is a fantastic debut novel that I really enjoyed.
This novel is definitely character based and the characters are so well written.
Set in the 60's in the South, in South Carolina was very well done.
I absolutely LOVED Arabella and Violet.
Violet has just moved to Magnolia Street, in a neighborhood of mobile homes where people seem to keep to themselves. Their relationship is so sweet, they both care so much for their community and neighborhood.
Also, it was very clever having the 1969 Landing on the Moon as the backdrop of the story, that was really neat and a great added element to this story.
This was a heartwarming beautiful story with wonderful characters that I enjoyed every minute of.
