Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Call number
F GAN
Publication
WaterBrook (2018), 384 pages
Description
Fiction. Literature. Romance. Christian Fiction. HTML:Challenging perceptions of discrimination and prejudice, this emotionally resonant drama for readers of Lisa Wingate and Jodi Picoult explores three different women navigating challenges in a changing school district�??and in their lives. WINNER OF THE CHRISTY AWARD® When an impoverished school district loses its accreditation and the affluent community of Crystal Ridge has no choice but to open their school doors, the lives of three very different women converge: Camille Gray�??the wife of an executive, mother of three, long-standing PTA chairwoman and champion fundraiser�??faced with a shocking discovery that threatens to tear her picture-perfect world apart at the seams. Jen Covington, the career nurse whose long, painful journey to motherhood finally resulted in adoption but she is struggling with a happily-ever-after so much harder than she anticipated. Twenty-two-year-old Anaya Jones�??the first woman in her family to graduate college and a brand new teacher at Crystal Ridge's top elementary school, unprepared for the powder-keg situation she's stepped into. Tensions rise within and without, culminating in an unforeseen event that impacts them all. This story explores the implicit biases impacting American society, and asks the ultimate question: What does it mean to be human? Why are we so quick to put labels on each other and categorize people as "this" or "that", when such complexity exists i… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member Virginia51
This is a wow book. This is a hard subject to write about and to read about. People are all different yet we are all the same. This tackles a hard subject that is very current. How would we react when someone tells us that our schools have to change. This was well done in this story. Each of these
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characters really comes to life. I loved them at Rome’s and wanted to slap them at times. Camille, Jen and Anaya each have their own troubles and then they are thrown together. I did not want to put this book down. I received a copy of this book from bloggingforbooks for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will. Show Less
LibraryThing member SarahGraceGrzy
Wow . . . Just wow. Ganshert pens yet another emotionally moving, grippingly-real story. I can honestly say I have never read another book quite like No One Ever Asked.
Split between the point of views of three different women in vastly different worlds, this book kept me engrossed in the story
Ganshert deals with a very real and touchy subject - racism. And while she definitely doesn't shy away from the nitty-gritty details, she handles them with incredible tact and grace without downplaying or excusing them. This book is far from painless, yet I am incredibly glad I read it. It opened my eyes to so much and gave me an even greater understanding of racism and the other issues touched upon in this book.
All in all, No One Ever Asked is an incredible novel to add to your library. Highly recommended!
CONTENT NOTE: Recommended for ages 18 due to mature themes,such as racism and violence pertaining to racism, mentions of intimacy, divorce, and drugs. Plus very emotion-heavy details on adoption and racism.
Split between the point of views of three different women in vastly different worlds, this book kept me engrossed in the story
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throughout every page. Each character is so incredibly realistic you can't help but empathize with and relate to them. I think Jen's storyline was probably my favorite, as adoption is a subject very close to my heart, but I also very much enjoyed Anaya's and Camille's stories. Ganshert deals with a very real and touchy subject - racism. And while she definitely doesn't shy away from the nitty-gritty details, she handles them with incredible tact and grace without downplaying or excusing them. This book is far from painless, yet I am incredibly glad I read it. It opened my eyes to so much and gave me an even greater understanding of racism and the other issues touched upon in this book.
All in all, No One Ever Asked is an incredible novel to add to your library. Highly recommended!
CONTENT NOTE: Recommended for ages 18 due to mature themes,
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LibraryThing member vintagebeckie
If you want a book that will challenge your attitudes, convictions, and, yes, secret prejudices, then you will want to read No One Ever Asked by Katie Ganshert. Inspired by the real life state takeover of a Missouri school district and the ensuing uproar that followed, Ganshert’s novel is full of
There are three main characters in No One Ever Asked. Camille epitomizes the oh-so put together wife and mother whose smugness about her perfect life is brought down in humbling ways. Anaya is an eager young woman of color who wants to make a difference in her own community, but feels she has sold out to teach in a majority white school district. Jennifer is a struggling new mother to an adoptive daughter whose past trauma and current cultural challenges make Jennifer feel disconnected to her daughter. All three women are presented in a realistic way — there’s no sugar coating of their inner turmoil. In fact, I loved the revelation of their very private thoughts. None are perfect, and I found some of their struggles hit close to home. Amidst the angst, Ganshert gives the reader glimpses of hope, and healing comes in unexpected ways. At the end of the book, I felt I was leaving friends. Specific to the audiobook — the reader had a great sense of timing and gave each woman (and other characters) a distinctive voice, not only in accent, but in tone as well.
No One Ever Asked was a book that will make you stop and think. It is also one that demands discussion. Grab some friends and read this book together. The ensuing conversation may just lead to growth for you and your friends as well.
Highly Recommended.
Great for Book Clubs.
Audience: adults.
(I purchased the audiobook from Audible. All opinions expressed are mine alone.)
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characters that will touch your heart, make you angry, and perhaps cause you to reexamine your own choices and beliefs. I found this novel not only to be a well-written and thoughtful look at the hidden and not so hidden middle America, but one that offers hope and healing in the face of anger, fear, and broken relationships. This one is a highly recommended read.There are three main characters in No One Ever Asked. Camille epitomizes the oh-so put together wife and mother whose smugness about her perfect life is brought down in humbling ways. Anaya is an eager young woman of color who wants to make a difference in her own community, but feels she has sold out to teach in a majority white school district. Jennifer is a struggling new mother to an adoptive daughter whose past trauma and current cultural challenges make Jennifer feel disconnected to her daughter. All three women are presented in a realistic way — there’s no sugar coating of their inner turmoil. In fact, I loved the revelation of their very private thoughts. None are perfect, and I found some of their struggles hit close to home. Amidst the angst, Ganshert gives the reader glimpses of hope, and healing comes in unexpected ways. At the end of the book, I felt I was leaving friends. Specific to the audiobook — the reader had a great sense of timing and gave each woman (and other characters) a distinctive voice, not only in accent, but in tone as well.
No One Ever Asked was a book that will make you stop and think. It is also one that demands discussion. Grab some friends and read this book together. The ensuing conversation may just lead to growth for you and your friends as well.
Highly Recommended.
Great for Book Clubs.
Audience: adults.
(I purchased the audiobook from Audible. All opinions expressed are mine alone.)
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LibraryThing member khal_khaleesi
Wow, what a book! This book held my attention all the way through and never let go. The pacing is fantastic, and it is written very well.
I did have a few problems though. I did not like the character of Anaya. If anyone was judgmental and racist in this book, it was her. She refused to help a girl
I did like the characters of Camille and Jen though. Poor Camille had so much happening to her, and Jen definitely had her hands full with a newly adopted daughter.
I will say that all of the characters were written well and realistic. I didn't like how the author always made some of the white people have physical flaws like how one lady was described as being able to tell she had been fat formally. Another white person had eyes that were too close together. I just felt that a lot of this book was racism against white people. Yes, I am aware the author is white. But I felt like this book was trying (but failing) to make me feel guilty about the color of my skin.
I did feel like the ending was a little predictable, but I'm glad that everyone did get over their fears although Anaya seemed to still be a bit prejudiced and racist.
It was nice that this book wasn't too preachy even though there are talks of God and scripture.
Even though I had a few gripes about this book, it was still an enjoyable book.
I did have a few problems though. I did not like the character of Anaya. If anyone was judgmental and racist in this book, it was her. She refused to help a girl
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on her track team get scouted all because the girl was white and rich. She didn't know her problems. However, she was happy to help a black girl get noticed. Anaya was a teacher, yet she paid more attention to the black kids in the class. Anaya seemed to lump all white people into one group and seemed to think all white people were privileged and horrible.I did like the characters of Camille and Jen though. Poor Camille had so much happening to her, and Jen definitely had her hands full with a newly adopted daughter.
I will say that all of the characters were written well and realistic. I didn't like how the author always made some of the white people have physical flaws like how one lady was described as being able to tell she had been fat formally. Another white person had eyes that were too close together. I just felt that a lot of this book was racism against white people. Yes, I am aware the author is white. But I felt like this book was trying (but failing) to make me feel guilty about the color of my skin.
I did feel like the ending was a little predictable, but I'm glad that everyone did get over their fears although Anaya seemed to still be a bit prejudiced and racist.
It was nice that this book wasn't too preachy even though there are talks of God and scripture.
Even though I had a few gripes about this book, it was still an enjoyable book.
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LibraryThing member sunshine608
Having lived through a similar experience and something that I see and deal with almost every day, the topic of this book intrigued me. What happens when a affluent school is forced to deal with the loss of accreditation of a struggling and low-income minority school system. I've seen the forces at
I recivied a free copy of this book from NetGalley.
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play so thought it would be interesting to read about from the points of few Ms. Ganshert introduces us too. I was also intrigued with how a White writer would tackle some of the subtle issue. I have to say I was pleasant surprised, I think Ms. Ganshert did an excellent job and some aspects resonated with me and I liked that she introduced these idea to an audience that probably doesn't deal with them on a daily basis. I wonder how many of her readers were like the O'Hare principal and had no idea who Emmett Till was. That idea is heartbreaking to me but I imagine many readers are learning about him for the first time. Her details regarding Tamir Rice were very well laid out and I appreciate reading about it from her point of view. I think this is a great book- a great story that is well thought-out. So much of it rang true and the characters are real ( not felt real, I feel like she did this characters almost perfectly) I could not put this book down and will definite recommend this books in every time a mom ask for a book recommendation in every single mom group I am in. This should be required reading.I recivied a free copy of this book from NetGalley.
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Awards
INSPY (Winner — General Fiction — 2019)
Christy Awards (Nominee — General Fiction — 2019)
Language
Original publication date
2018
Physical description
384 p.; 5.49 inches
Pages
384
ISBN
1601429045 / 9781601429049