Publisher: Algonquin Books
Pages: 384
Format: eARC
Buy the Book: Amazon
Goodreads: In 1956, when divorced working-mom Ava Lark rents a house with her twelve-year-old son, Lewis, in a Boston suburb, the neighborhood is less than welcoming. Lewis yearns for his absent father, befriending the only other fatherless kids: Jimmy and Rose. One afternoon, Jimmy goes missing. The neighborhood in the era of the Cold War, bomb scares, and paranoia seizes the opportunity to further ostracize Ava and her son. Lewis never recovers from the disappearance of his childhood friend. By the time he reaches his twenties, he s living a directionless life, a failure in love, estranged from his mother. Rose is now a schoolteacher in another city, watching over children as she was never able to watch over her own brother. Ava is building a new life for herself in a new decade. When the mystery of Jimmy s disappearance is unexpectedly solved, all three must try to reclaim what they have lost.
Kritters Thoughts: Set in 1956 with a central character that is living life definitely against the grain in the current time - a divorced single mom who is in the workforce and trying to raise her son in suburbia. One would say this could be historical fiction and I may agree because it is definitely not completely contemporary, but I enjoyed reading a story where I could imagine a woman getting heat for her lifestyle, it could compare to current social issues in the news. Her son's best friend goes missing and the story takes off after that!
From the start I loved all of the characters and was rooting for them all. I wanted Rose to open up to Lewis about her feelings, I wanted Ava to feel satisfaction on the job and as a single mom, and I wanted Lewis to find happiness in his abilities as a student. Because I was rooting for them, this book read so quickly! When these three characters dispersed (promise not a spoiler), I loved how the author kept the reader up to date on each one. It was done so seamlessly.
Although I really enjoyed this book, the last 50 pages dragged just a little. I also wish the conclusion had been a little better defined, but beyond these two things, this book was really good. It is my first Caroline Leavitt book, and most certainly not my last!
Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row
Ebook 2013 Challenge: 39 out of 50
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one copy of this book free of charge from TLC Book Tours. I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.
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