2022 Book Review #14:The People We Keep

 

I had never heard of this author but she's written books before this new novel. What attracted me to it was the setting: the finger lakes region of NYS.  (we call it the "southern tier....it's about 2-3 hours southwest of us here in the Capital Region of NYS and I've only been there twice in the last 30 years!) This story is a "sticks with you after the last page is turned" kind of a story. It was excellent!

STORY SUMMARY

It is 1994 in Little River, New York.  April Sawicki is just 16 years old and lives in a rundown motorhome with her single dad.  Her mother left them when April was just a preschooler and has never returned.  Her father won the motorhome in a poker game. She is failing at school and no one seems to care.  She works various shifts at Margo's Diner in town because she is constantly fending for herself.  Her father is neglectful and would rather spend time at his girlfriend Irene's home.  Irene has a boy from a previous relationship. 

April has never felt at home in her hometown.  She has Margo for a friend and her good friend Matty from school.  Matty and she have a sexual relationship and Matty thinks they are going to be married after they graduate from high school.  But Matty doesn't want the same things April wants.  She wants to discover new places and have a life. 

One evening, she "borrows" her neighbor's  (Mrs Ivory) car to perform at an open mic night.  And that's when she realizes that her life could be so much bigger than where she comes from.  She has a fight with her dad, who slaps her in the face and breaks her beloved guitar, so she packs all of her stuff into large garbage bags and leaves for good.  She sets off on a journey to find a life that is all hers. 

She drives with no real destination in mind and decides to stop in Ithaca to rest. Her plan is to just survive and as she looks for work, she finds a kindred spirit and a sense of belonging at the coffee shop known as the Cafe Decadence. She becomes friends with Carly and Bodie who work as baristas in the cafe and a young man named Adam. She becomes a barista as well.  Life seems good. But still, somehow, it doesn't make sense that her life could be this easy.  She falls in love with her friends in Ithaca but she can't seem to shake the feeling that she'll hurt them the way she has been hurt. 

She leave Ithaca. As she makes her way to the southern states, she meets people who feel like home.  She chronicles her life in the songs that she writes and performs and she discovers that where she came from doesn't dictate who she has to be. 

And then...she ends up back in Little River.  About to give birth. Only to discover her father has died.  And she leaves.  Again.  Where will she end up??

MY THOUGHTS

This is a very compelling novel that broke my heart, made me cheer, brought me to tears, and made me laugh.  It has a lyrical quality to it.  The main theme is about a yearning for family or a place to belong.

It touches on child abandonment, neglect, loneliness,  physical abuse, attempted sexual assault, poverty, homelessness, single parenthood, friendship, love, and the power of music. 

As we see April mature over the course of just about 4 years, we see her mature emotionally.  She is a survivor.  She is not like her father. She has a street smart sense about her that helps her to survive despite the odds playing against her. She's an overcomer with a huge heart and compassion for anyone who is "different". Her music is her companion.  The author is excellent at portraying April in such a way that we can really "feel" her emotional/psychological pain and loneliness. 

There were a couple of quotes that really stood out to me:

"The best way to keep your heart from getting broken is not to get your hopes up in the first place". (pg 259, The People We Keep by Alllison Larkin, c.2021)

"You're the gift that came from two broken people. They were weak, and hurt, and cowardly, and somehow managed to make this miracle girl who is so full of piss and vinegar that she survived it all.  Maybe you need to mourn who they weren't.  Maybe that's what you're' here for now." (pg 318)

"We have people we get to keep, who won't ever let us go.  And that's the most important part.  That's what's true." (pg 353)

In my opinion, this book is appropriate for ages 17 and older (due to some mature content)

On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, I rate this a 10.