This novel takes place in two time periods - 2011, when Ella and Jude are 15 and fall in love; and 2018 when Ella is released early from prison for a crime it takes us a little to learn about. In both time periods, we get perspectives from Ella, Jude, and Ella’s mother Helen, and Helen also reflects on her own teenage years as well.

So there was a lot going on in this book, maybe too much. Indeed, I’m not going to list then because I don’t want to spoil the book, but I started to wonder just how many secrets, lies, traumas, and bad decisions there can be in one book. And not just because it’s downbeat, but because it really started to strain credulity. The audio narration by Xe Sands, Stephanie Willing, and Steve Quinn was good though.

interesting tale about mothers and daughters and family bonds, among many other things. definitely uniquely interesting

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book. This was an excellent read! The characters were incredibly well written as was the story. It starts off a bit slow but really picks up half way through. The story and characters were so relatable.

I was initially intrigued by the description thinking it was going to be a thriller, but had a pleasant surprise. This is heavier on the literary fiction side (my all time, absolute FAVORITE genre) and it was amazing. 4 stars because sometimes the dialogue felt a little lacking...like, I wanted more expression from the characters? More internal dialogue and less spoken dialogue. In my opinion this could have benefitted from being a much longer book. However, I will 100% recommend this to family and friends. I think this is one of those rare books where there's something for everyone to take away.

I didn't know what to expect going into this novel, but I was not disappointed. Leavitt has weaved together a wonderful story about the love between a mother and daughter and the ties that bind despite the unthinkable. When Ella is released from prison early after murdering her boyfriend's father, her mother is there to help her try and get her feet underneath her. Ella is determined to find the baby she was forced to give up for adoption while imprisoned. What follows is a story of redemption and struggle and through it all the love between mother and daughter. This story is compelling and thoughtful and will keep you interested.

a bit slow for me. it took me a long long time to get through this. the build up to the reveal of what happened that night was honestly just too dragged out, and the dialogue was a bit... stilted. overall, I ended up with a book that gave me something to think about, but not sure I loved the experience.

The book had a promising start, but about halfway through, it took on a more teenage, angsty tone that didn’t quite resonate with me. Additionally, the reliance on withheld information and miscommunication as plot devices didn’t work in its favor. I also couldn't get into the characters – I don't mind unlikeable characters if there's something redeeming or obvious growth; these characters didn't seem to learn from their mistakes and kept making poor decisions.Unfortunately, it didn't work for me.

I really wanted to love Days Of Wonder. Unfortunately, it was just okay for me. While the premise is interesting, and the book is well-written, I just didn't connect with the characters.

I found this book to be captivating all the way through.

I love that the book encompasses three generations of women. Ella was recently released from prison after being accused of trying to murder her boyfriend's father. Shortly after her sentencing, she found out she was pregnant and made the decision to give up the baby. The book flips between the life of Ella, desperate to get her daughter back, and Ella's mother, Helen.

At its heart, it really is about all different kinds and levels of love.

This was one of those books where I’ve wondered how it isn’t on more people’s radar.⁣
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Days of Wonder opens with our FMC, Ella, being released from prison for an attempted murder that she may or may not have committed. What followed was a beautifully complex story of mothers and daughters and the choices that pull them together and force them apart. ⁣
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What I took away from this story: every woman has a story. She has a story she shares with others, but also the story she keeps for herself. Women are truth-keepers and, with the best of intentions, may hide hard truths from other women, especially daughters, in an attempt at protection. This is such a well-written story from this perspective as we see Ella and her mother, Helen, struggle with the weight of what neither will admit to the other. ⁣
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This book also handled complex topics regarding incredibly devout/conservative religion in a very delicate way. I loved the way the author handled the cycles of grief Helen felt upon being removed from her Hasidic Jewish community, but also how she claimed back the parts of her faith that she needed as she grew older. ⁣
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I also, just in general, really enjoyed the way the novel was laid out in a series of flashback and real time chapters. It definitely had me racing towards the end of the book needing to know what would happen. ⁣
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I would definitely recommend this book to those who enjoy reading about the complexities of family dynamics. I had a lot to think about at the end of this book and still think about it and its messaging. ⁣
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I received this book through @netgalley . All opinions are my own. CW: SA, teen pregnancy, incarceration

Very well crafted story about innocence lost and how deeply someone can love and be loved. The controlling father who created the conflict was very well woven into the story. Sometimes it was frustrating to know who was guilty of a crime or if they knew they were guilty! Hard to put down and glad I read the book. Recommend.

In this complicated modern fiction novel, readers follow Ella and her mother Helen shortly after Ella is released from a 6-year sentence (shortened from her original 25 year sentence) in prison. Accused of attempting to murder her boyfriend Jude’s father, Ella discovers that she is pregnant shortly after arriving in prison, but she decides to give up her child for a closed adoption. After her release from prison, Ella tries to move on and find a way forward, but this seems to involve several lies of omission and a layer of deception -- both in Ella’s new life and around the attempted murder which set off this entire cycle of events. With complicated narrators and equally complicated protagonists, this novel has a difficult debate about morality and lies at its heart, and moral ambiguity is the name of the day. Ella and her mother Helen are by no means perfect, and the flaws in their characters are incredibly complex and add to the overall nature of the novel. With such complicated characters and a confusingly vague event at the heart of this novel, readers are sure to enjoy the moral ambiguity and the difficulties of life as a felon in the United States in this challenging novel.

Days of Wonder by Caroline Leavitt is melodramatic with abandonment, attempted murder, abuse, an unplanned pregnancy, prison, and more. However, the relationships, particularly of mother with daughter, are explored with care and ring true. The grief Helen, Ella, and Marianna suffer at the hands of the "system" and of the people in their lives rings true. The idea of forgiveness - for others, from others, for ourselves, and from ourselves rings true. For me, this is a memorable story.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2024/06/days-of-wonder.html

Reviewed for NetGalley and a publisher’s blog tour.

Days of Wonder is about a mother and daughter finally starting their lives. Early twentysomething Ella has just been released from prison after being convicted of trying to murder her teenage boyfriend’s father. Her mother, Helen, is in her early 40s, was formerly an Orthodox Jew, and has always chosen to live a sheltered life.

Shortly after being incarcerated as a teenager, Ella found out that she was pregnant. After her baby was born, she was taken away and given to new adoptive parents. Ella was sentenced to over twenty years in prison but is released after serving six years. Ella moves in with her mother, but realizes there is more she needs to do in her life. Ella moves away to make it on her own and track down her daughter and former boyfriend, Jude. Helen meets, “Mouse,” an affluent man who is intrigued by her. He breaks her out of her shell and introduces her to new experiences.

It was a little hard to get into at first, but I was so enthralled during the second half of the book. I found Ella’s backstory fascinating. Young love can be so all-consuming and tumultuous. Ella and her mother both suffer from their choices or how they feel about the actions of others. They were such complex characters. I really liked how they changed and developed through the novel. I wasn’t sure where things would go as they progressed, but I was engrossed and so invested. I really enjoyed this wonderfully written novel.

Thank you Algonquin Books and NetGalley for this ebook. All thoughts are my own.

Caroline Leavitt is such a wonderful and unique writer. I know I can always count on her for a different and riveting story. DAYS OF WONDER is no exception. This is not necessarily a happy or uplifting book, but wow, it makes you think. Ella falls madly in love with Jude as a teenager, and the pair spend all their time together, including days at her apartment with Ella's mom, Helen. They avoid Jude's angry and bitter father, a judge who resents him for his mother's death. But when Ella is accused of trying to murder Jude's dad, he pulls strings and she's sent to prison for 25 years, while Jude has no consequences. Neither can remember that night, which doesn't make things any easier.

In prison, Ella discovers she's pregnant and reluctantly gives the baby up for adoption after Jude terminates his parental rights. But when she's released early--after only six years--she's determined to track down her child. What follows is an oft heartbreaking tale of Ella trying to reclaim her life, her child, and her own self while dealing with reentering society as a convicted felon.

WONDER is a little meandering at times, with various plot points that run off in various directions, but it's also captivating. All of our characters are flawed but intriguing, with Ella at the center. She doesn't always make the best decisions, but she has a good heart. The story is told in alternating POV and timelines, between present-day and then flashing to the past, leading up to what happened to the judge. In this way, it serves as part mystery, as no one knows exactly what happened that night, and part literary fiction, probing the bonds between mother and daughter and parent and child. Through Helen's relationship with Ella and then Ella's relationship (or lack thereof) with her daughter, we learn about the sacrifices made for our children... even the decisions the warped judge makes in terms of Jude.

This is such a thoughtful story, and so poignant. I was completely caught up in Ella's world and life. I honestly would read a sequel to learn more about her future. Leavitt's writing is gorgeous, and this is such a different, enjoyable tale, even if the subject matter is often serious and sad.

It’s been six years since Ella walked into prison for a crime she doesn’t remember committing. All of her plans for her life were decimated with the guilty verdict and sentencing, and she had fully expected to spend fifteen years in prison. The only thing she can cling to is the hope of finding the daughter she put up for adoption in her first year as an inmate. It was a closed adoption, so Ella doesn’t have much to go on, except the possibility of an address in Ann Arbor, Michigan. What really happened the night of the crime? Can she develop a relationship with the daughter she never met? With nine years of unanticipated freedom but a felony conviction, who is she supposed to be?

This book was a fast and enjoyable read. Some of the plot points were predictable, but there was a good balance between “I knew that was going to happen” and surprises. Some of the flashbacks ran a bit longer than I would have liked, but they all contributed to the plotlines of the novel. Definitely recommended for readers who like mysteries, general fiction, and for book clubs.

I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

bookishintheburgh
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Thank you @algonquinbooks for the ARC of Days of Wonder by Caroline Leavitt. This was a book that you simultaneously didn’t want to put down, but also wanted to savor it to make it last longer. The prose and characters were done so well. The character’s flaws drive the story, but also make you fall in love with them. If is a story about love, forgiveness, starting over and friendship. It showed the complexities of all the different types of relationships and how love can make us hurt the people we love.

Ella and Boyfriend Jude have an intense love affair. One night, Ella is arrested for attempting to kill Jude’s father even though she doesn’t remember the night. She is convicted and sentenced to prison where she also finds out she’s pregnant. She gives up the baby against her will. She is released early and works to rebuild her life as well as navigating tough relationships with her mother and other people who come into her life.

This is a poignant and touching book that will stick with you long after you have finished.

What a soap opera - full of melodrama and unlikely coincidences. Ella and Jude fall in love and spend all their time together when they're not in school. Ella falls in love with Jude, but Jude loves both Ella and her mother, Helen. He's the son of a single father - a well regarded judge - who treats him horribly, and Helen welcomes Jude into her home and into their family life. On the day before Jude is set to move away, his father is poisoned, and Ella is arrested for attempted murder. The rest of the story jumps back and forth in time, so we get a better idea how Ella ended up in her predicament. At the same time, we read about her life after prison. Spoilers ahead. The story was okay, but I found it unbelievable that Helen would let Jude practically live at their house, even spending the night on many occasions. The way Ella found the child she'd given up for adoption was completely unrealistic, and adding the over-the-top drama with the adoptive father was too much.

This a story ultimately about love and loss. The book opens as Ella is being released early from her prison sentence. Incarcerated as a teen for the attempted murder of her boyfriend’s father- she struggles to remember anything about the night in question. The book moves back and forth in time to explore the event in question, while also tackling Ella’s search for the baby she gave up and her tenuous relationship with her mother.

Her mother was such an interesting character. She grew up in a strict Hasidic Jewish household, but was disinherited when she became pregnant. That shaped so much of who she was and the type of relationship she built with her daughter. Ella’s boyfriend Jude on the other hand, was a character I didn’t care much about. Which is surprising because of the trauma he dealt with. There was something missing in his portrayal I think. He was more removed as a character than the women, and his decisions were puzzling at times.

Overall this story had more of a YA feel than I was expecting. The story kept me interested throughout and had many surprising moments and revelations, but I think the YA feel threw me off a little. If you enjoy YA then I think you will probably love this one. It has great family dynamics and drama, obsessive love, secrets and character growth. Definitely all great qualities in a book!!

Thank you to @algonquinbooks and @netgalley for the ARC to read and review.

Days of Wonder had a lot of elements I really enjoy in books–the mother was a seamstress who had left her religious Jewish family behind to become a single mother, her daughter is now getting out of prison where she both learned how to knit and got her college degree and is starting over. She had put a child up for adoption and is interested in meeting her She even gets a job writing advice columns! All things I love.

I did feel like the book was a bit far-fetched in both the crime (no spoilers but it involves foxglove poisoning) and how well she did in prison especially since she was supposedly there for six years. At apparently a great prison that actually tried to rehabilitate her but still. She seemed troubled before she went to prison (very odd obsessive relationship with her boyfriend ) but really didn’t seem the worse for wear after leaving. She was interested and slightly obsessed with finding the child she put up for adoption thinking she would be in prison for 25 years but who wouldn’t be. It was cute to have knitting be part of what brought them together.

I felt like there wasn’t a major reason to have the family that adopted her daughter be so troubled. There was a lot going on her mother’s life and her life. Adoption isn’t cheap and you have to be very organized and I honestly had a little trouble thinking this couple could manage to do it in the first place.

Overall, I did like the book and the characters felt real. It was just a little too much drama and heartbreak in every aspect of everyone’s lives and back story. Not one person had a happy life? The book also had a strong young adult feel to me, especially the parts about the teen relationship that ended in her going to jail. I would have liked a little more depth into why and how she got into this relationship. While I enjoyed her mother’s backstory and small romance, I almost felt like it would have been served better in another book. A sequel? A prequel? One book about the mother and one about the daughter would be been perfect. Instead, I felt like we got a slightly incomplete picture of the two women, especially in the later part when we learned more about the daughter’s boyfriend’s backstory–which was also very tragic!