[alert variation=”alert-info”]Publisher: CreateSpace
Formats: Paperback, Kindle
Purchase: Powell’s | Amazon | Barnes & Noble[/alert]
My View From The Summit (VFS) is a collection of thoughts and memories that were originally put down on Thomas’ blog. Thomas explores her ideas on relationships, God, and life. Meandering throughout her philosophical waxing are smatterings of memories about her marriage, her family, her divorce, and her daughter. The Collection is divided into sections, each with a different theme or topic: one touching on death, one on parenting, and another on relationships.
Nicole shows promise as a writer – her descriptions are unique and beautiful. When she describes her childhood home, you can smell the plants in the backyard and feel the presence of her grandmother. She has a simple way of putting things and she is concerned with everyday struggles that will appeal to the reader. She feels like someone you would want to get to know, someone with whom you would eat dinner and share a bottle of wine.
The only problem with this book is that all of the entries seem pretty short. Not only are the posts short, but also the memoir as a whole is short. It could stand to be flushed out a little. The author has a tendency to wax philosophical, but the parts that are really compelling, the parts that a reader really connects with – the personal events and information – are pretty sparse. The whole collection would benefit from more scenes from her memories to support her philosophical meditations; more interactions between Thomas and her former husband, and Thomas and her daughter. It would be nice to feel like the reader got to know her family more, to get a better feel for her world. This is story worth fleshing out, and Nicole has the voice to do it. For someone interested in Catholicism, raising a child in the faith, or the struggles of relationships – dating and divorcing – this would be a good fit, just expect to be left wanting more.
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