Product Description

As children, Connie and Estella were best friends-until Estella was discovered to be a math prodigy, which led to the sisters' estrangement. Now, years later, they are forced to reunite on the Gulf Coast of Florida as they pack up their childhood home and ready it for sale. The reunion comes at a time when both Connie and Estella must come to terms with painful revelations and devastating consequences in their own lives. And once again, her sister's genius may alter Connie's life in ways she cannot control.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #271518 in Books
• Published on: 2007-03-06
• Format: Bargain Price
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Kiernan tests the bonds of sisterhood and goes to the well of family secrets and stunted connections in her easy-reading if maudlin debut. Sisters Estella and Connie grew apart early-Estella, a genius, began college at 12 and was the apple of their father's eye, while the younger Connie was blessed with good looks and a charming personality. Now in their 40s and after eight years of not speaking, the sisters are forced together to pack up their childhood home in Florida as their mother prepares to sell it. There are amends to be made and old wounds to be opened, and Kiernan handles the melodramatic moments with a light touch, though her prose can wander into purple territory ("It was as if we were both sunburned, flinching and shrieking at every touch, real or imagined"). Chapters that alternate between the sisters' perspectives reveal the miscommunication between them, and though Connie's self-deprecating humor keeps the novel from becoming too heavy, the climax is overdone and drawn-out. Still, it is a moving novel about forgiveness and the fragility of family.
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From Booklist
Kiernan's debut novel tells the story of two all-but-estranged sisters, Estella and Connie, who grew apart after Estella was discovered to be a math prodigy at the age of seven. Now in their forties, the sisters come together to clean out their childhood home on the island of Big Dune. Connie, a married mother of two boys, has finally grown tired of her husband Luke's constant infidelity and is contemplating ending their marriage. Estella tutors college students in math and boards several of them in the house she shares with her boyfriend, Paul. Neither sister is looking forward to the task at hand, and when they arrive, they find things are just as strained between them as they feared they would be. Gradually they start opening up to each other, but as the rest of the family joins them on the island, Estella realizes that she has to make a confession that could end their newfound friendship. A warm, moving novel about the power of familial bonds. Kristine Huntley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author
Kristy Kiernan was born in Tennessee and raised on the beaches of southwest Florida, where she learned to read by watching her mother draw letters in the sand. She lives with her husband and dog on the west coast of Florida.

Customer Reviews

Frustration Captured!
Kristy Kiernan has either been in a similar situation with a sibling or has an uncanny ability to sense and understand the maddening nuances of family relationships gone off the dead end. As someone who struggles to have any kind of relationship at all with my sister, I can honestly say that this novel absolutely captured exactly how I feel and, I'm guessing, probably how my sister often feels too. It's a great read, well written and just complex enogh to keep you interested and wishing for another couple of chapters by the time you get to the end.

Great Summer Read
I thought this book was well written and loved the characters and story line. I would have loved for the book to continue and felt the end of the book didn't close all the hanging threads as tightly as I would have liked. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good novel about family, love and the nuances of life.

Nice entertaining book. Nothing sensational
I read Catching Genius because I was intrigued by the subject matter. Two sisters who have to deal with the high IQ of one and the average IQ of the other. This difference in IQ and the resulting attention to one sister over another led to the eventual estranement of the two. It was very entertaining and thought provoking. The story held me from beginning to end. I thought the ending wrapped up a little to perfectly. It almost seemed as if the author tired of the characters and wanted everything resolved and done with. The book was enjoyable for the most part.