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The Great Alone: A Novel
#1 New York Times Instant Bestseller
In Kristin Hannah's The Great Alone, a desperate family seeks a new beginning in the near-isolated wilderness of Alaska only to find that their unpredictable environment is less threatening than the erratic behavior found in human nature.
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Community Reviews
I'd give this a 3.5 if it were an option. . . I found it mostly compelling, but like many of this author's novels, overwritten (by a lot) and often melodramatic.
The author clearly loves Alaska and its natural, rugged beauty, as well as the people who "rough it" by living in its outer regions. But it was hard to believe that Cora, the young wife and mother who had been raised in affluence and even during the first years of her marriage lived a city life, was suddenly making her own sourdough starters, gutting and smoking fish for the winter, and canning preserves as if she'd been doing it all her life.
Cora's tumultuous marriage to Ernt (that name was so jarring every time I read it: why did she pick such a weird name?) becomes a focal point of the story, as well as its impact on their young daughter, Leni, who learns to love the wilds of Alaska while trying to simply survive the emotional volatility of her abusive father.
The book is unevenly paced. A great deal happens in the last 100 pages that either deserved a fuller treatment or would have seemed more balanced had the first 300+ pages been trimmed, as they could easily have been. Also, elements of the final resolution of the drama felt extremely unlikely.
The author clearly loves Alaska and its natural, rugged beauty, as well as the people who "rough it" by living in its outer regions. But it was hard to believe that Cora, the young wife and mother who had been raised in affluence and even during the first years of her marriage lived a city life, was suddenly making her own sourdough starters, gutting and smoking fish for the winter, and canning preserves as if she'd been doing it all her life.
Cora's tumultuous marriage to Ernt (that name was so jarring every time I read it: why did she pick such a weird name?) becomes a focal point of the story, as well as its impact on their young daughter, Leni, who learns to love the wilds of Alaska while trying to simply survive the emotional volatility of her abusive father.
The book is unevenly paced. A great deal happens in the last 100 pages that either deserved a fuller treatment or would have seemed more balanced had the first 300+ pages been trimmed, as they could easily have been. Also, elements of the final resolution of the drama felt extremely unlikely.
Word : enabling
Loved how detailed this book was regarding living in Alaska. Great character building and descriptions; could visualize each character in my head
Disturbed at the mother’s lack of instinct to protect child from the very beginning and letting her go through everything she went through with the family dynamics but also to grow up watching and learning a toxic relationship.
Great story about how strong and how weak a woman can be at once. Great story which has left me wanting to read more of her books.
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