The Wonder of All Things

By: Jason Mott

Narrated by: Julia Whelan

Length: 8 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

From critically acclaimed and bestselling author Jason Mott comes a spellbinding tale of love, sacrifice and the power of miracles.

On an ordinary day, at an air show like that in any small town across the country, a plane crashes into a crowd of spectators, killing and injuring dozens. But when the dust clears, a thirteen-year-old girl named Ava is found huddled beneath a pocket of rubble with her best friend, Wash. He is injured and bleeding, and when Ava places her hands over him, his wounds miraculously disappear.

Ava has a unique gift: she can heal others of their physical ailments. Until the air show tragedy, her gift was a secret. But now the whole world knows, and suddenly Ava is thrust into the spotlight. People from all over the globe begin flocking to her small town, looking for healing and eager to glimpse the wonder of a miracle. But Ava's unusual ability comes at a great cost - her own health - and as she grows weaker with each healing, Ava begins searching for an escape. Wash agrees to help Ava, but little does she know he has his own secret he's been harboring, and soon Ava finds herself having to decide just how much she's willing to sacrifice in order to save the one she loves most.

©2014 Jason Mott (P)2014 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Wonder and sadness

The narration was wonderful. I wanted more for the ending but all and all in ended the way it should.

wow

wow just wow just overwhelming with emotion completely worth the money. I'm at a lost for words.

Dynamic Catholic

The narrator has great insight of god and service to mankind.slept well with the book

Not my favorite. But good.

What did you like best about The Wonder of All Things? What did you like least?

The idea of the story. I got my expectations too high on how the story would develop.

Would you recommend The Wonder of All Things to your friends? Why or why not?

Not really. I did like it at first, but it was a little disappointing.

What does Julia Whelan bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The excellency of the narration of course. It got to the point where i forgot only one person was narrating the book.

Do you think The Wonder of All Things needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Yes, too many details left unknown, and the ending was a "wait what!" cliff-hanger.

Any additional comments?

Is there a follow up?? I would star up this book if there were!

Could have been great but wasn't

Hated the ending. Narration was good for the females but poor for the male voices. Some beautiful prose but the story was flawed somehow.

Yawn

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

No. I really enjoy the way Mott writes, but I'm never really interested in WHAT he writes. I didn't find the plot very compelling. There weren't any surprises. Some of the characters were not believable. For example, I couldn't understand the father's motivation to do the things he did. He was written as a decent guy, but he seemed willing to betray his daughter's best interest for financial gain and the good of others.

Which character – as performed by Julia Whelan – was your favorite?

Probably Wash - he sounded a little like Bobby from the cartoon King of the Hill, but all of the characters were individualized by Whelan and easily recognizable.

Do you think The Wonder of All Things needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No, I didn't see the conclusion as ambiguous, although I know that some readers felt that it was. I'm not interested in finding out what happened to any of these characters after the story ends. The overall premise didn't attract me much after the first couple of chapters, possibly because I recently read another of Mott's books, The Returned, and they share some common thematic bonds. I was just waiting for the book to end fairly early on.

loved this book!

Heartwarming story of love and friendship. Would make a great book club read. Will read more books by this author.

**GREAT** story

This is still one of my all-time favorite books, but I listened to it for the first time. I’m not sure which is better (written or spoken). I just really liked it a lot.

Moving, frustratingly beautiful

Moved me to anger, sadness and a type of emotional love for Ava and her family. The story is good but the narrator gives this life, true life. A rare gift is horribly exploited and childhood lost amongst the chaos.

An affirmation of life

I loved this story because it highlights the flawed humanity in all of us, the need we have to believe in miracles, to pretend that death doesn't happen, to look for blame, to find love, and to simply need each other as much as we wish we didn't. I think it a perfect and true tale.