Ellen BlockRecensioni

This gentle novel takes place in an island off the N. Carolina's Outer Banks, where lexicographer Abigail Harker lands after the tragic loss of her husband and young son. Sight unseen, she rents a decrepit lighthouse keeper's cottage and slowly adjusts to life on Chapel Isle in the off season. Charmingly, each chapter begins with an illustration, A-Z, of an unusual word and its definition. Abby's transformation of her living quarters and her growing involvement with the eccentric residents is quite charming, and rather than saving it for a summer beach read, my suggestion is to use its warmth now, in the deep midwinter, when we all really need it. And there's a sequel, The Definition Of Wind, so I'm looking forward to seeing how Abby fares during the summer season on the island.

I loved Language of Sand and now Defintion of Wind. These 2 books are delicious reads! Love the storyline,the characters and beach locale.A perfect summer/beach read.
Read these books in order! Abigail Harker is a lovable character as are the people of Chapel Isle.I hope there are more books to come in this series.
This story is part starting over,mystery,ghost story and making new friends.I love how each chapter starts with a dictionary entry.Ellen Block writes a lovely story.
There are a few querky things that Abigail does that didn't make sense to me or that of her character,but it didn't mess up the story either.These are wonderful books!

The perfect summer/beach read.Story of horrifc loss and re-building a new life in a new locale.Fast read,good character development.This "small" book packs alot of story.Well written,loved it!

I would have given this novel 1 star except it ended up serving a purpose. Woken up from a nightmare at 3:30 AM, it turned out to be mind-numbing enough to distract me for a couple of hours until I could get back to sleep. The author certainly didn't have insomnia therapy as her intention, although her protagonist herself, Abigail (who annoyingly obsesses about her newly given nickname, Abby), a lexicographer by profession, puts a second-hand pulp romance novel to similar use in the book. That Abigail/ Abby is a lexicographer is hardly significant, other than that I suppose the author had to choose some titillatingly exotic profession for her. Block's other aim might have been to justify the Random House Unabridged Dictionary entries that she inserted as headings or epigraphs at the beginning of each chapter. To no great effect, in my opinion. They neither illuminate nor even really intrigue (odd admission coming from me, an ardent devotee of unusual words). Both the plotting and character development here are pedestrian & predictable. Almost everything in the novel is obvious. Only one turn in the narrative caught me a bit by surprise, & that only because I probably dozed off & missed a"wink wink" knuckle rap to the skull earlier in the novel. Oh dear, I've torn the poor thing to pieces. Here's the short story: a grieving widow (young, of course); an island with quirky year-round (i.e. not summer vacationing) residents, a "haunted" lighthouse with a "secret" history; a misunderstood guy who seems to always be getting on the wrong side of everyone, a couple of bighearted older folks who have experienced "loss" & who become stalwart friends & advisers to Abby, etc. Oh yeah, & an almost hurricane, some burglaries & a suicide thrown in for good measure. Why did I read the book at all? Well, it crossed the threshold, so the 100pp trial period rule went into effect. Page 100 hit right at the beginning of my nightmare therapy. Enough said. Don't waste your money.

This was a very enjoyable book on many levels. I felt a great sense of time and place. The characterization was pretty good, but I think the characters will be deepened in further volumes. The plot was gentle but moved well and there was an entirely satisfying conclusion. My instincts were excellent when I purchased THE DEFINITION OF WIND the second novel in this series because I wanted to slip right into it. I loved the way each chapter started because it is nice to carry away something from a book that one can use.[bc:The Language of Sand: A Novel|7621807|The Language of Sand A Novel|Ellen Block|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1275927335s/7621807.jpg|10098121]

It is early July and Chapel Isle is crawling with summer visitors. While has very few nice things to say about them, it is the story of a woman finding her new feet and learning to walk again without pathos or maudlin sentimentality. There is a bit of a mystery as well.

It wasn't a bad book..just kind of dragged in places. I'm glad I read it though...

Once again this book was an early review from "Library Thing" I really enjoyed it , my first time with this author, like her and will read more of her work. So I really got into the story loved all the characters and their life stories and was eager to find out what would happen next in fact, I was disppointed when the book ended not the ending I was expecting but I see that Ellen Block is working on the sequel so I'll try to wait I hope it's not too long. Keep them coming Ellen... good work.

This was an enjoyable book. It was interesting to follow Abigail (Abby), as she tried to move on with her life after an awful tragedy took her family from her. While at first the characters she meets seem so different from her, we come to realize how similar they all are underneath it all. It was nice to see her find people she could bond with and rely on, after feeling like she was alone in the world.
I have confidence that she can even find happiness again, and I hope we will find that out in the sequel when it is released.
This was a light read, and even though it had the potential to be dark and sad, it was not. I was happy to see her laughing at the end of the book.

I enjoyed reading "The Language of Sand." The main character was a very likeable person and she grew with each chapter. The antics and personalities of the islanders were amusing and I could see where bingo would be the one of the biggest events on the island. Very entertaining.

Sure to be a pleaser to all who enjoy "woman drama" for me Im on the fence. I liked the prose the story carried and thought the writing was done well once I got half-way through. The Language of Sand started very slow for me. After the first few chapters I was bored but it does pick up speed and showcases a character stepping from grief to strength. The ghost story was a nice element but I wish the author after introducing this theme would have focused on the ghost story more and bring more closure to him as there was no resolve to his story. I think Abigal could have taken me down a much darker, deeper road with her but something just felt missing from this novel and for me I just couldnt connect- I gave it 3 stars because I did think the writing style was lovely.

A well told story of a woman fulfilling the dream of her deceased husband of living in a lighthouse on the coast of North Carolina. While not being told much about her past, the reader is drawn into Abigail's world and how she once again finds her strength to survive in the harsh world of the outer banks. While mentioned a few times in the story, the ghost of the lighthouse keeper is never really developed and leaves questions about any reality that he actually is there unanswered. Maybe the author left some of these questions open so a sequel can be written. All in all, a good story beautifully told.

Abigail Harker sought to come to Chapel Isle to care for the lighthouse after having heard her husband's stories of his childhood on the island. I love southern "island" stories,and I love the quirky characters that come from the region. This book is no exception, and it's written with art and grace. The only reason I didn't give it a 5, was that I would have liked to have known a bit more about her husband and son...I would have liked to have "felt" her grief a bit more. That was the only part I thought was shortchanged. It was a wonderful, and wonderfully written, book.½

This story is written beautifully. It flows more like poetry than prose. The story line draws the reader into the lives of the island inhabitants and explores the contrasts of how each characters life was changed by an event that defines "before" and "after". Each event, the fire, the divorce, the accident, the abandonment, etc. changed the characters lives into how it was before and how it is now. I am waiting for the sequel as this book left me wanting more.

This was a lovely book. A few times at the beginning, it felt densly worded, but either it got better or I was so pulled into the story that I didn't notice it anymore. It was nicely paced, intriguing, and had enough twists that I truly wondered how it would end. I look forward to the sequel.½

I was very happy to see that Ellen Block is working on a sequel. Although a lot happens in Abby's very short time on the island, it almost seems like just a first chapter, or perhaps Part 1---too many characters and situations I want to get to know better.

I tried to add to my vocabulary with the words defined at the beginning of each chapter. Maybe every book should just DO that to help us all!

I somehow missed how the title fits--but maybe that's in someone else's review.

So much happened that it was a little hard to believe---painting the whole place when it sounded as though it was in pretty terrible condition---in a week? And her meal preparation and lack of heat sort of left her hungry and freezing with winter coming on---definitely need that next book to resolve some of these little problems!!

Abigail Harker takes refuge on Chapel Isle to become the caretaker of a lighthouse after her family is killed in a fire. The quirky characters that she meets in passing give her perspective along the way as she tries to accept her loss and deal with the grief. Each character added to the story, whether it be to provide Abigail with things to think about or to scare her over the ghost in the lighthouse. They were each very well written and left me wanting to learn more about their stories (as it seemed that each one definitely had their own story.)

There were many interesting and great things about this book – I loved how each chapter started with a different word starting with each letter of the alphabet, which was drawn from Abigail’s career as a lexicographer before tragedy befell her. While the word wasn’t a word normally used in conversation, it related to the chapter and gave you a little preview of what was to come.

Block pays such close attention to detail, without being overly wordy – her style of writing drew me in. This novel is definitely recommended, although I wish it had been longer! Looking forward to future works by Ellen Block!½

Interesting book. . . . I loved how the book was divided into 26 chapters, each one following the alphabet with very interesting words that were relevant to the chapter but not that were used in the common every day speech.

While the current parts were very interesting, I wish there had been more backstory of what happened to her family and the time she had with her son.

Also, I felt that the beginning dragged a little before getting into the more interesting parts. Sadly, I was not ready for the book to end--I felt that there was still so much left unsaid that could have made for a book twice as long. I hope there is a second novel as I would love to see how she finishes the year caring for the light house.½

I really like to read books about the eastern coast, especially the Carolinas, so I was excited to get The Language of Sand for review. Some of the things I enjoyed about the book: Abigail is a lexicographer so it was clever that the author tied in a word definition at the beginning of each chapter that related to the story. She has rented the keepers house for the non-functioning lighthouse of Chapel Isle. The Outer Banks area has such a rich history of shipwrecks and this book had it's own shipwreck in the story.

Some of the things I would have to see in the book: It definitely could have been longer. I felt like the story wasn't as completely developed as it could have been. I wanted to know more about the lighthouse keeper who died. There were journals in the house that belonged to him that could have been a great source for fully fleshing out that ghostly character but weren't. With the exception of Merle and Ruth, the characters were very two dimensional. Interesting secrets were hinted at and yet not really explored.

Overall I think it was a well written book with a sympathetic main character. If it was about twice as long I would probably have liked it twice as much.

Abigail Harker packs her Volvo station wagon with all her worldly belongings and heads south from Boston to Chapel Isle, a small island off the North Carolina Coast. She's trying to escape a place where memories hurt, but can someone outrun the things that haunt them?
Helen Block has written an easy to read novel about small towns, and cleansing the of a spirit. A perfect novel for a summers day on the beach.½

I enjoyed reading The Language of Sand by Ellen Block, mostly due to the author's writing style. Ms. Block's prose was very descriptive without becoming too flowery. The characters were very interesting (I wish we got more of their back stories) and while the plot could have been a little bit stronger, it still kept my attention. I also thought it was clever to open each chapter, alphabetically, with an obscure word and its definition, as the main character is a lexicographer. I've already suggested it to friends.½

Haunted by the death of her husband and young son, Abigail seeks refuge from her loss by taking a position as the caretaker of a lighthouse on a secluded island and soon discovers that the lighthouse may be as haunted as she is by memories of her family.

I received this book, the Language of Sand by Ellen Block, through LTER. The only thing I didn’t like about this book was the length—I thought it was too short! Block creates some fascinating characters that leave you begging for more—especially her protagonist, Abigail Harker. Abigail is quickly christened “Abby” by the inhabitants of Chapel Isle, a small vacation island in the Outer Banks of the Carolinas where she flees to after a crippling tragedy. Seeking refuge in the solace of a historical lighthouse as its caretaker, Abigail takes on more than she bargained for in the form of a maybe-ghost, an island cat-burglar, and some nosy but well-meaning (and eclectic) townsfolk.
Although I initially thought Sand was going to be formulaic and Nicholas Sparks-esque, the novel’s only mention of romance is through flashbacks Abigail has of her relationship with her husband. The true meat of Sand is overcoming grief and adversity through unknown strength. Given the setting, I would definitely recommend this as a beach read, although it stands well enough on it’s own to be enjoyed anytime.

I won this book through LTER. and absolutely loved it! Abigail Harker - trained Lexicographer - recovering from the fire that killed her husband and young son travels to Chapel Isle, a favorite childhood vacation location of her late husband. This book covers such a short amount of time but is filled with enough detail that you actually feel like you know the characters on Chapel Isle intimately. I love the way Abby talks to herself and her resident haunt Wesley Jasper. And if you have ever lived in a small town or on an island you will know that Ellen Block captures the small town essence perfectly! Great book! Can't wait to read more by Ms. Block.½

Following the death of her husband and son in a house fire that also injured her, lexicographer Abigail moves from Boston to Chapel Isle, on the Outer Banks of NC, to be the caretaker for a historic lighthouse. Her husband had spent summers on the island as a child, but she'd never been.

The book has a good premise, but in spite of her sad past, Abigail comes off as contemptuous (emphasized by her habit of talking to herself—a first-person narrative voice may have ameliorated this) and unlikeable. Even before she boards the ferry to the island she seems reluctant to be there, and the author’s explanation of Abigail’s motivations fail to convince. Additionally, Abigail is defensive in the face of the island’s residents, who are predictably slow to accept her. (The only two bright spots in the narrative are the two characters who are nice to her.) A minor plotline involving a ghost feels tacked-on, and the hurricane at the climax fails to create any tension in the narrative.

The book is bland and overwritten (like the author was just showing off her vocabulary), but thankfully not as long as it could have been.½