Wow.....
This author is one of my faves and it's been awhile since I read her last one (The Nightingale) and I honestly wasn't expecting this latest one to be as good....but it sure is!!
STORY SUMMARY
It is 1974 and Leni (Lenora) Allbright is the only daughter of her adventure-seeking father and mother, Ernt and Cora (Coraline). Leni is 13 years old when the story opens. Her dad is a former Vietnam POW and the war has changed him. He still loves her and Mama but this love is now twisted up in drinking too much alcohol and in a deep-rooted anger. Anger at the way the country is going, anger at the government and anger at himself.
One day, when he loses yet another job, Ernt decides very impulsively that he is moving his family to Alaska. He wants them to "live off the grid". They head north only to discover how very unprepared they are.
They settle on the Kenai Penisula where the wildlife outnumbers the human residents.
Leni is yearning for a place to belong and her mama just wants to go anywhere and do anything for the man she loves.
It is summer when they first settle down in the small community of Kaneq. It is there that they meet the most wonderful, real honest town folk: The Walkers, including a cute boy named Matthew whom Leni will soon form a fierce bond of friendship with, Large Marge who runs the general store, the Harlan clan who are about as wild as they come. Ernt takes to Mad Earl Harlan right away and Mama forges a friendship with Large Marge and Mad Earl's daughter Thelma.
Soon they are immersed in keeping alive in the Alaskan wilderness. The town folk help them out in every way and soon they are all very close knit.
Ernt's troubles seem to be over.
Until winter arrives.
Winter in Alaska means days that are dark for about 18 hours. It's cold, deep snow and tough to navigate. They have no running water, no indoor bathroom, and just the basics. Soon, Ernt teaches Cora and Leni how to hunt and use the guns he has bought. It is imperative that they survive their first winter.
While winter continues to plod on, Ernt's mental and emotional state begins to take a toll. He becomes even more physically and emotionally abusive towards Leni and her mom. His drinking is out of control and he threatens to cut them off from society. He commands Leni to stop dating Matthew and begins to build a wall around their home, keeping everyone out.
Life continues on and soon it is 1978. Leni has graduated from high school and she and Matthew have been accepted into the University of Alaska at Anchorage. They are planning on going together unbeknownst to Ernt.
Meanwhile, Ernt has gotten worse with his drinking and when he discovers that Leni is pregnant with Matthews child, he begins to hit Leni with his belt. Mama stands up for Leni and then the unthinkable happens......
MY THOUGHTS
This book is all about survival. Survival in a land that in the 1970s was still pretty much untamed and underpopulated.
The main theme running through this book is about the strength and resilience that humans need to survive the odds of all kinds of physical and emotional turbulance but also to survive domestic violence.
The character development is exquisite and I was especially drawn to Leni, in part because I also was 18 in 1978 and forging my own way being the first of my family to go off to college.
However, life in central NY was NOT at all like life in the wilderness of Alaska....a place of great beauty but also of great danger. This book really appealed to my sense of adventure and nature loving.
This book shows the strength and love in deep friendships as well as the weakness in a woman who has been emotionally and physically abused by the man she loves. In that era, it was still very much a man's world and not enough was done to protect women and children from abusive husbands and fathers. The author does an excellent job in getting to the point in the plot where Cora and Leni realize that to be safe, they must take action. Actions that will change their lives going forward.
I fell in love with all the characters!
The setting description is exquisite and so well done. It gets me excited to think that a visit to Alaska is on my bucket list and hopefully one day my husband and I will get to see some of this wild beauty.
Some other themes in this book deal with alcohol addiction, loneliness, post-traumatic stress disorder, unwed pregnancy, pain, loss and deep friendship along with familial love and forgiveness. The topic of cancer also comes up.
Without giving too much detail away, I encourage you to check out this story.
The author's note at the end, reveals that her own family growing up were also adventure seekers and settled for some time in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska.
Read this book!! It will linger with you for days after.
In my opinion, this book is appropriate for ages 17 and older.
On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, I rate this a 10.
1 comment:
This sounds very interesting. I think I started one of this author's books years and years ago and just couldn't get into it. Maybe I started with the wrong one. I'll add it to my library list.
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