An earnest and poignant bildungsroman.
A young woman leaves home in search of her family during the Civil War in Ehrlich’s debut historical novel.
In 1865, 15-year-old Ellis Cady lives alone in her Western Tennessee home. Her father and Walter, one of her brothers, left two years prior to sell some horses but haven’t returned. Her twin brother, Earl, left shortly afterward to look for them, and then Ellis’ mother died. One day, Ellis makes the decision to leave home with a few belongings and her beloved horse, Billie. She first stops at her friend’s house, only to find it abandoned, before making her way down a trail where she discovers her brother Earl, who has sad news but doesn’t know where their father is. The two get caught up in a Civil War battle, during which Ellis is grazed by a bullet. She awakens in the care of Libby, a Cherokee woman who’s riding with a diverse group of men. Later, after stopping in Jamestown, Missouri, she finds her uncle’s ranch, where she learns more about her family and becomes more determined to locate her father, certain that he’s still alive. Ehrlich’s prose is accessible and spare and particularly skillful at describing the harsh reality of war and its battlegrounds: “Fragments of bone and skull escaped earth’s hollow grasp….A large ribcage, still covered by thin hide. Another and another.” The story simultaneously highlights the loneliness and camaraderie that can be found during wartime. Additionally, Ellis’ coming-of-age adds a personal layer to the battle-laden background, as when she spies Libby making love with her husband and encounters previously unknown feelings. Although the story is earnest and often compelling, there are a lot of scenes of Ellis simply wandering and riding from place to place, which may not interest readers who prefer more action. Still, Ehrlich’s story of a girl surrounded by loss and death as she searches for her family is engaging and makes for a quick, heartfelt read.
An earnest and poignant bildungsroman.Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2022
ISBN: 9798985997408
Page Count: 255
Publisher: Bay Feather Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet bedtime story.
A boy and his stuffed bear head into the woods.
Having captured readers’ attention with Born a Crime (2016), his bestselling memoir of growing up in South Africa, comedian and television host Noah has written a parable about decision-making. As he puts it in a brief prologue, “It’s about disagreements and difference—but it’s also about how we bridge those gaps and find what matters most, whether we’re parents or kids, neighbors, gnomes, or political adversaries. It’s a picture book, but it’s not a children’s book. Rather, it is a book for kids to share with parents and for parents to share with kids.” With plentiful illustrations by Hahn and in language aimed at young listeners, it tells the story of a small boy so impatient to start his Saturday adventures that he rebels against the rules of his household and heads out without brushing his teeth or making his bed, despite the reminders of his stuffed bear, Walter. “We can’t just run away,” protests the bear. “Your mother will miss you. And where will we sleep? And who will make us waffles?” “We’ll build our own house,” the boy responds. “And we’ll grow our own waffles!” From there, the pair go on their walkabout, encountering a garden gnome, a pair of snails, and a gang of animated coins who have lessons to offer about making choices. Though the author suggests in the introduction that adult readers might enjoy the book on their own, those looking for a follow-up to the memoir or a foray into adult fiction should be warned that this is not that book.
A sweet bedtime story.Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2024
ISBN: 9780593729960
Page Count: 128
Publisher: One World/Random House
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
A dramatic, vividly detailed reconstruction of a little-known aspect of the Vietnam War.
A young woman’s experience as a nurse in Vietnam casts a deep shadow over her life.
When we learn that the farewell party in the opening scene is for Frances “Frankie” McGrath’s older brother—“a golden boy, a wild child who could make the hardest heart soften”—who is leaving to serve in Vietnam in 1966, we feel pretty certain that poor Finley McGrath is marked for death. Still, it’s a surprise when the fateful doorbell rings less than 20 pages later. His death inspires his sister to enlist as an Army nurse, and this turn of events is just the beginning of a roller coaster of a plot that’s impressive and engrossing if at times a bit formulaic. Hannah renders the experiences of the young women who served in Vietnam in all-encompassing detail. The first half of the book, set in gore-drenched hospital wards, mildewed dorm rooms, and boozy officers’ clubs, is an exciting read, tracking the transformation of virginal, uptight Frankie into a crack surgical nurse and woman of the world. Her tensely platonic romance with a married surgeon ends when his broken, unbreathing body is airlifted out by helicopter; she throws her pent-up passion into a wild affair with a soldier who happens to be her dead brother’s best friend. In the second part of the book, after the war, Frankie seems to experience every possible bad break. A drawback of the story is that none of the secondary characters in her life are fully three-dimensional: Her dismissive, chauvinistic father and tight-lipped, pill-popping mother, her fellow nurses, and her various love interests are more plot devices than people. You’ll wish you could have gone to Vegas and placed a bet on the ending—while it’s against all the odds, you’ll see it coming from a mile away.
A dramatic, vividly detailed reconstruction of a little-known aspect of the Vietnam War.Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781250178633
Page Count: 480
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2023
PERSPECTIVES
BOOK TO SCREEN
SEEN & HEARD
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
