Official Review: Vacation To Graceland by Phillip Cornell

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Wasif Ahmed
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Official Review: Vacation To Graceland by Phillip Cornell

Post by Wasif Ahmed »

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Vacation To Graceland" by Phillip Cornell.]
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4 out of 4 stars
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Vacation to Graceland is a short and humorous novel written by Philip Cornell. The book is written in first person and is about how a family decides to go on a trip to Memphis Tennessee from St. Louis for a family reunion.

This family isn't a normal one. Everyone has issues and problems of their own. The protagonist is young and his main motive in life is climbing up the career ladder. So, getting a leave from work is one of the first obstacles he faces and (not surprisingly), this is dealt with in a humorous manner.

The rest of the characters also play a vital role towards this novel's humour. The protagonist's mother is a self centred widow and one of those people with whom you can never win an argument with. His grandmother is on dialysis and does whatever she likes irrespective of what people tell her. The protagonist's sister, Crissy, is apparently the only normal character out of the six. Her two children- a boy and a girl never get along and always find something to fight over. You can imagine what it will be like to stuff these six people into a five seater sedan for about half a dozen hours. I can't tell you any more about the plot as that would mean spoiling the book's humour.

The novel's humour is good, it got me laughing out loud a few times while, in other times, I was giggling to myself or thanking god that I didn't have a family like this. The book also seemed professionally edited and I couldn't spot any grammatical errors or mistakes.

There is almost no suspense in this novel. So, if you are one of those avid dystopian readers who love suspense, then this isn't for you. One thing that I disliked about this book is about how the author has mentioned in the synopsis of the novel that the trip turned out to be an unforgettable experience for the family through which their blood bond strengthened. This definitely didn't happen. The author has written the book in such a way that it seemed like the protagonist had predicted that this all was going to happen if they went on a trip together. Also, he seemed really relieved when he reached home safely.

I would have rated this book 3.5 stars out of 4 if I could, but, I strongly believe that it deserves a rating of 4 out of 4 stars. This book can be read by people of all ages and the humour, like I mentioned in the fifth paragraph, was really good. I was deducting 0.5 stars because of the synopsis thing I mentioned in the previous paragraph. Overall, if you have a good taste in humour then this is a book you should definitely try.

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Vacation To Graceland
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Post by sm1234 »

Nice review. This seems like a book I might enjoy as I have a good sense of humour. *Smiles* :)
Congratulations to the author for getting such a great review.
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Wasif Ahmed
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Post by Wasif Ahmed »

sm1234 wrote:Nice review. This seems like a book I might enjoy as I have a good sense of humour. *Smiles* :)
Congratulations to the author for getting such a great review.
Thanks @sm1234. :)
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Post by bookowlie »

Nice, interesting review! I like both funny books and non-fiction, so this one sounds like something I might enjoy.



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Post by Wasif Ahmed »

bookowlie wrote:Nice, interesting review! I like both funny books and non-fiction, so this one sounds like something I might enjoy.



.
Definitely @bookowlie. And thanks. :)
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Post by James Craft »

You make it sound really appealing! I'll go check it out on Amazon to see if this is something I want to follow up with, but it sounds fantastic!
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Post by Wasif Ahmed »

James Craft wrote:You make it sound really appealing! I'll go check it out on Amazon to see if this is something I want to follow up with, but it sounds fantastic!
Definitely @James Craft. It really was great. Thanks! :)
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Post by gali »

Sounds like a hilarious trip, though I am not sure it is for me. Too bad that the blood bond didn't strengthen despite what was said on the synopsis. Thank you for the review!
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Post by Scerakor »

This sounds like a fun, quick read that is worth a few laughs. Thanks for the review!
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Post by Heidi M Simone »

After reading your review, I'm also glad these people aren't my family - sounds like quite the trip with several strong personalities! It's a bit too bad that this read lacks action/suspense, but I'm glad the laugh-out-loud moments made up for it! Thank you for sharing and congratulations to the author for receiving a positive review!
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Post by Gravy »

Six people in a five seater car? I can just imagine, though I don't want to, lol.
Very nice review!
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Post by kandscreeley »

This sounds like a pretty cute novel. I love books that make me laugh out loud. Thanks for the review.
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Post by godreaujea »

I don't read many humorous books, but maybe I should check this one out. Awesome review, seems like a nice, light read. :)
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Post by JenJenJen »

I read the sample chapter, and was immediately drawn into the characters. Now this pleasant review has me moving this title AND author up to the front of my reading list. It appears to be some light relief from dystopia, but not so light as to be air-headed!

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Post by mindyg123 »

Great review. This sounds like just the type of book I enjoy a funny story about a dysfunctional family and their trip to Memphis. Cant wait to read it and congrats on being BOTD.
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