Sharon Wyse

Creepy at times. Inappropriate, yes. It kept my interest. Lu Ann keeps a box with dolls for all the babies her mother has lost. Her mother is way too involved in her life and controls every aspect of Lu Ann's life. Lu Ann's parents have a dysfunctional relationship and her brother and her mother bully her. She seemed to looking for affection where ever she could find it, since she was not getting it from her family.

Another tough read about a family with difficult relationships. This story written in the form of a child’s diary has a deep feeling of authenticity, like it was written from the heart by child who doesn’t quite understand her mother or her father or her brother or anyone else really. A week of tragic tales. I tell you, if Rowling kills off Harry tomorrow, I’m foreswearing books.

This was a quick, but enjoyable book to read. It is written in the form of a diary of a young girl whose parents are very dysfunctional. I did not care much for the ending. Considering everything else that happened in this book, it just wasn't very realistic that everything would end nicely.

Lou Ann Campbell lives on a north Texas wheat farm with her dad, mom, and brother Will. The book is her diary of the summer of 1960. The 'box children" are 5 dolls Lou Ann keeps in a box to represent the five miscarriages her mother has had in the past. Her mother is pregnant again, and things aren't looking good for this baby either. The reader has a front-row seat to Lou Ann's growing up and becoming stronger and the family tragedy. Interesting look at family dynamics in 1960.