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Hello everyone,

My name is Phil and I am a writer and a reviewer; I just joined this group so I need to post one of my reviews and get my post count up. I gave it five stars on Amazon. I hope you will enjoy this review and quite possibly the book too:

I would have preferred the author use more nickname-ish chapter titles like "Meic", a pseudo-Welch fun name for her collie Mikey, instead of the Who, Why, When, Where and How titles that she chose, but this in no way detracts from the quality of her writing or the poignancy of her tale. From start to finish, the story-line keeps the reader engaged and eager to find out what comes next. The characters loom as large as real life because that is what they are; this is a refreshingly honest read.

"Sell the Pig" shows us that life across the pond in England is not much different from life in the US, as far as the quality of healthcare for the aged is concerned. Watching a Brit pick up lock, stock and barrel and move to the land of hairy armpits (as France is wrongly perceived by a great many Americans) in search of better health care and probably a more humane existence generally, should be quite an eye-opener to readers here in the US! The take away for me is that the French seem to love life and those still living it, including their pets, in ways that differ significantly from how they are loved in merry old England, or in the good old USA. As an example, in the US, if you're not willing to sit outside, don't bother taking your pet to dinner; in France most restaurants allow pets inside.

You have to admire someone that would go to such lengths, undertake serious challenges, and risk it all in a bit of a gamble on a better quality of life for her dear mother, aged 90+, in a foreign country. Since everything she reveals in this story is true, one can only hope that she survives and prospers 1000 miles from home--both culturally and geographically speaking. Kudos, Tottie, for having a big heart and a persevering spirit!

Having read this misnomered "review", I have no better idea what the book is about than before I read it.

Not the least.

Although, hey, gotta love that the first thing in your "review" is a description of what you would have done differently. 'Cos that's what we, the reading public, want to know - how the reviewer would have written the book instead of the author.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion and you obviously have one.

I may not be a great reviewer, particularly in your opinion, but it's not accurate to say you have no more idea what the book is about after reading my review, which included some pretty strong hints I thought:

"Watching a Brit pick up lock, stock and barrel and move to the land of hairy armpits (as France is wrongly perceived by a great many Americans) in search of better health care and probably a more humane existence generally, should be quite an eye-opener to readers here in the US!"

"You have to admire someone that would go to such lengths, undertake serious challenges, and risk it all in a bit of a gamble on a better quality of life for her dear mother, aged 90+, in a foreign country."

That's what the book was about by the way.

If you are looking for a book report kind of review, I'm sorry, but I will take that into consideration if I ever decide to review another book here on this forum.

I have a fair idea of what the book is about by your review Hearty Guy.

It sounds an interesting book about an unusual topic.

Not everyone is an experienced reviewer FNAwrite - your post seemed unneccesarily rude to me

Hello Aussie-reader,

Sell the Pig is a well-written book with an underlying theme that will resonate with some readers as it did with me. Just like my review however, it is clear one can never please everyone. If you want to read another heartwarming tale try Grandfather's Uncle. It will be available for free soon and I will let you know when that happens. Please remind me if I forget. Have a great day down under or where ever you may be.

Thanks for your consideration!

Thanks Hearty Guy - yes, I am down under in Australia - how did you guess?

Gosh, thanks, everyone, for taking the time to talk about me and little old Sell the Pig! I only just found this thread by chance, so please excuse me for not stopping by before. Really, thanks so much.

Yes, I did survive, I still live in France and love it so much I have now taken French nationality. There's a sequel to Pig out now, all about Mother's four wonderful years living in France where she died peacefully just after reaching her 94th birthday.

A third book in the series, about life for me now in the After Mother years, is due out on April 30th.

Thanks again for all the kind words.

Best regards to all

Tottie Limejuice

I'm glad to hear you successfully made a new life in France. All the best with all your books! I'll have to read them asap (it will be a while). . . and visit your FB group page.

Do please also drop in on the Book Group I run on Facebook! It's called Book Group - Read, Write, Review, Discuss, and it does exactly what it says on the tin