Tea Cup Full of Roses
By Sharon Bell Mathis
Review by Abbas K.

Joe and Davey, are two brother who live within a poor community and family. Their older brother Paul was once a skilled painter...until he became addicted to drugs. Now each of the family members have to cope with their lifestyles and with their family members.
I felt that the author described the personality of the character, Joe as a leader of the family. Being the brother of Paul and Joe, he was the one who earned well grades and later joined the army. They’re mother, Mattie Brooks and their Aunt Lou who lived with them, had constant worry about where Paul was, while Paul’s father, Isaac Brooks was careless and never spoke a word about Paul.
The character Davey, the youngest brother was described as energetic and persuadable. The oldest brother, Paul had been described as isolated and generally outside of the house. Joe’s fiancee Ellie, was described as social and looks to to the future and sets goals.
During the climax of the story, Paul was hospitalized of overdosing drugs, during Joe’s High School graduation. And it was up to Joe and his mother to pay the medical insurance. While their father was still at home, Joe and his mother had went to his graduation and payed the medical insurance for Davey. This described how Joe was hardworking and his mother cared about Paul.
Overall, this book was generally positive. I felt the author used detailed character description and setting. The feel of the story made me think I lived in a poor community.