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Land of a Hundred Wonders | 
 enlarge | Author: Lesley Kagen
Publisher: NAL Trade
Category: Book
List Price: $14.00
Buy Used: $3.13
You Save: $10.87 (78%)
New (49) Used (24) from $3.13
Avg. Customer Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 29412
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 320
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 7.8 x 5.2 x 0.8
ISBN: 0451224094
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9780451224095
ASIN: 0451224094
Publication Date: July 29, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: moderate shelf wear, unmarked text, binding tight,
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Product Description
From the national bestselling author of Whistling in the Dark comes another funny, poignant, unforgettable story.
The summer Gibby McGraw catches her big break, the cicadas are humming, and its so warm even the frogs are sweating. Brain damaged after a tragic car accident that took both her parents, Gibby is now NQR (Not Quite Right), a real challenge for a fledgling newspaper reporter. Especially when she stumbles upon the dead body of the next governor of Kentucky, Buster Malloy.
Armed with her trusty blue spiral note-book, Gibby figures that solving the murder might be her best chance to prove to everyone that she can become Quite Right again. But she gets more than she bargained for when she uncovers a world of corruption, racism, and family secrets in small town Cray Ridge. Lucky for her, shes also about to discover that some things are far more important than all the brains in the world, and that miracles occur in the most unexpected moments.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 1 more reviews...
 NQS September 9, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
That would be....Not Quite Sure
I honestly can't tell if writing the book from the prospective of someone who is NQR is a cop out for NTG (not too great) writing or was extremely clever (yes that's an intentional reference;))
I don't think that the author ever really fully explored the Land of A Hundred Wonders or gave us a feel for why this was such a 'magical' place.
I found the whole story rather contrived even if we take the NQR aspect out of it..the characters were just a little too stereotypical for me...
But again I guess you can't expect much from someone who is NQR....
It wasn't horrible but its definitely not one of my favorites!
 Fantastic!!! August 30, 2008
Gibby McGraw may not be QR, but Lesley Kagen sure is. What an extraordinary novel! Gibby is funny and sweet, and although an automobile crash killed her parents and left her a little brain damaged, she's quite wise, too. She confronts her mean, nasty antagonist with aplumb and exacts the perfect punishment; she seeks to solve a murder, calm her mother's spirit, and help her pregnant friend in her NQR way...Kagan's writing is superb, her plot is perfectly woven. This book is a keeper and deserves a place beside A TALE OF TWO CITIES, LITTLE WOMEN, and GRAPES OF WRATH.
Who is QR? August 20, 2008
Land of a Hundred Wonders took place in Kentucky in 1973 and had quite a bit of mystery, and I liked that. I related a lot to the main character Gibby having certain memory problems myself. I also like the way she was written when she talked or thought. When she would forget things people didn't keep repeating things to her over and over, which can get annoying if done wrong. The book kept the pace pretty steady too ... although I will say it comes very close to being a story with a stupidity plot, where if people aren't doing obvious, stupid things, then their wouldn't be a conflict in the first place. I think the author was trying to show that, like Gibby, mostly everyone has there NQR moments and not that they were all stupid. But sometimes I did wonder... There were times the characters did things that surprised me, and then there were also some predictable moments. I haven't read many books that take place in the south, in fact the only other one I can think of is Gone With the Wind, and my only real problem with this was I didn't like how everyone seemed to not think things through. Despite that, I did find the book enjoyable.
fun chick lit NOIR August 7, 2008
0 out of 3 found this review helpful
In 1970 the car accident that killed her parents left Gibby McGrew with a brain injury that caused some damage that her grandpa calls not quite right (NQR). Three years later, the twenty something Gibby lives with her grandpa and works at his Top O' the Mornin' Diner and Pumps in Cray Ridge, Kentucky. Her dream of becoming a big city investigative reporter was smashed when her brain was dented on the day she became an orphan.
However, Gibby refuses to totally give up on her goal. She produces the weekly Gabby's Gazette that patrons of her grandpa's diner can pick up a copy on Fridays. However she sees an opportunity to prove to her grandpa that though she will never be quite right, she can function quite nicely. Gibby has found the murdered corpse of the alleged next state governor, Mr. Buster "Butter" Malloy. She plans to solve the case.
Gibby hooks the audience from the onset and keeps our empathy throughout with her NOIR chick lit asides. Her commentary along with a strong support cast make for a delightful historical regional investigative tale. Fans will appreciate LAND OF A HUNDRED WONDERS due to the guide displaying an appreciative outlook for life more so than most people who are allegedly quite right. She is a "shoe-in" to gain reader admiration for her can do lifestyle.
Harriet Klausner
Good hearts are better than good smarts August 6, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Last summer's great read was Lesley Kagen's "Whistling in the Dark". If you enjoyed that book, you will love her new book "Land of a Hundred Wonders". The author reveals the mystery of secrets, corruption, and murder in a small Southern town through the inquiring (but "Not Quite Right") mind of a young woman, Gibby McGraw. I loved the characters and their colorful language and cadence to their conversations, and I was inspired by a central theme to the story: good hearts are more important than good smarts. I've already given away copies to the same friends and family that so enjoyed last summer's "Whistling in the Dark". Let's hope that Ms. Kagen is working on next summer's great read.
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