In this heartrending and poignant novel, award-winning author Amanda Eyre Ward tells the story of Alice Conroe, a forty year old Texas barbecue owner who has the perfect life, except she and her husband long for a child. Unable to conceive, she’s trying desperately to adopt but her destiny is quickly altered by a young woman she’s never met.
Fearless thirteen-year-old Carla Trujilio is being raised by her grandmother in Honduras along with her four year old twin brothers. Her mother is sending money home from Texas where she’s trying to make a better life for her family, but she only has enough to bring one son to her. When Carla’s grandmother dies, Carla decides to take her fate into her own hands and embarks on a dangerous journey across the border with Junior, the twin left behind.
Two powerful journeys intersecting at a pivotal moment in time: Alice and Carla’s lives will be forever and profoundly changed. Heartbreaking, emotional, and arresting, this novel is about finding the courage to trail blaze your own path in life with faith, hope and love, no matter the struggle or the tragedy.
Fearless thirteen-year-old Carla Trujilio is being raised by her grandmother in Honduras along with her four year old twin brothers. Her mother is sending money home from Texas where she’s trying to make a better life for her family, but she only has enough to bring one son to her. When Carla’s grandmother dies, Carla decides to take her fate into her own hands and embarks on a dangerous journey across the border with Junior, the twin left behind.
Two powerful journeys intersecting at a pivotal moment in time: Alice and Carla’s lives will be forever and profoundly changed. Heartbreaking, emotional, and arresting, this novel is about finding the courage to trail blaze your own path in life with faith, hope and love, no matter the struggle or the tragedy.
The Same Sky is a deeply affecting novel about two people from very different backgrounds. I wasn't really sure what to expect from this book. When I was offered the chance to read it I accepted without knowing anything about it. The blurb didn't really give too much away so I got stuck in. The book is short and easy to get through, I got through the pages quickly even with the heavy subject matters the book tackles.
I really like what Amanda Eyre Ward has done with this book. The story is about Carla, a South American girl living in the slums desperate to join her mother in America. And Alice an American woman who has survived cancer but is unable to have the one thing she wants, a child. Ward was not scared to tackle tough subjects in this book. Poverty, addiction, rape, loss of a child and cancer are all a feature of this novel. It would have been easy for the writer to really focus on these things and fill this book full of angst but she didn't. I thought all of these horrible subject matters were treated with great respect.
I really liked Ward's writing, it was easy to read and packed full of emotion. I do think she could have gone a little deeper into the characters feelings at times. The story was well told but there were a few things that were not concluded like Alice and Jake's marital problems. I really liked how this book came together at the end, it was a nice conclusion to this book, however, I do think the ending was a little hasty, a bit more time could have been spent on it.
The character's were great they were both such strong females which were fantastic. Carla was a brilliant character her inner strength and determination were ferocious. She made tough decisions, often out of desperation but she owned everything. There was a sad air of acceptance about her like she knew not to expect more from her life which was so sad. It was the complete opposite of Alice, who refused to accept what life had thrown at her. Alice was the less likeable of the two there were times where she and her husband came across as a little petulant. I don't know if that is because they really were petulant or because the reader is forced to compare their life to Carla's, which was a lot more harrowing. That is not to say that Alice's problems are less heartbreaking. What I loved about both characters was their refusal to stop fighting, it was inspiring to read about two women with such inner strength.
The Same Sky is a well-rounded book with some great characters. It is not a perfect book but it is a short read that is well worth your time.
I really like what Amanda Eyre Ward has done with this book. The story is about Carla, a South American girl living in the slums desperate to join her mother in America. And Alice an American woman who has survived cancer but is unable to have the one thing she wants, a child. Ward was not scared to tackle tough subjects in this book. Poverty, addiction, rape, loss of a child and cancer are all a feature of this novel. It would have been easy for the writer to really focus on these things and fill this book full of angst but she didn't. I thought all of these horrible subject matters were treated with great respect.
I really liked Ward's writing, it was easy to read and packed full of emotion. I do think she could have gone a little deeper into the characters feelings at times. The story was well told but there were a few things that were not concluded like Alice and Jake's marital problems. I really liked how this book came together at the end, it was a nice conclusion to this book, however, I do think the ending was a little hasty, a bit more time could have been spent on it.
The character's were great they were both such strong females which were fantastic. Carla was a brilliant character her inner strength and determination were ferocious. She made tough decisions, often out of desperation but she owned everything. There was a sad air of acceptance about her like she knew not to expect more from her life which was so sad. It was the complete opposite of Alice, who refused to accept what life had thrown at her. Alice was the less likeable of the two there were times where she and her husband came across as a little petulant. I don't know if that is because they really were petulant or because the reader is forced to compare their life to Carla's, which was a lot more harrowing. That is not to say that Alice's problems are less heartbreaking. What I loved about both characters was their refusal to stop fighting, it was inspiring to read about two women with such inner strength.
The Same Sky is a well-rounded book with some great characters. It is not a perfect book but it is a short read that is well worth your time.
3 stars
Find out more
Goodreads
Published February 4th 2016 by Blackfriars
A free copy of this book was provided in exchange for an honest review. Image courtesy of Goodreads.
Posts
what n interesting review. It made me really interested in reading this book. It seems to be really interesting.
ReplyDelete