I am not sure that Kristin Hannah can write a bad book – or if she has I am yet to find it. I decided that it was time I read another Kristin Hannah earlier this month, so I picked up ‘The Great Alone’ as that was the one that was sitting on my Kindle and being a little neglected.
‘The Great Alone’ is another brilliant study of character with another fantastically strong female lead. This is a story set in Alaska as the Allbright family move there for a new start in the 1970s, after inheriting a homestead. We follow the family as they set up their life in this extreme state of America. We follow Leni as she spends her teenage years establishing her life in this unpredictable landscape and dealing with her tumultuous home life. Her father is dealing with the PTSD of having been a POW in Vietnam and has returned as a different man, and one who is not a role model. Her mother loves him, but at what cost and, for Leni, this is a difficult life, but her friendship with Martin helps her through. Until, one day, their lives change forever…
I do not want to give too much of the story away, because this is a book that I think you have to read to really appreciate. But it does what Kristin Hannah does best and makes you really feel for the characters and their experiences. It brings the landscape and the setting in, making it as much a part of the story as the characters that we meet. Having been lucky enough to visit Alaska, I can really understand how that landscape has such a profound effect on those who choose to make their home there. I also always find that you can’t put these books down, as you need to know how the lives of the characters will play out – and you know you might shed some tears along the way.
Really interestingly, this is also semi-autobiographical, and there are some notes in the back of the book about the inspiration for this novel. Which, I think, also brings more to the book once you have finished it, and gives us all a little more to think about.
So, I think it is fair to say that I will be reading more of Kristin Hannah’s books, which I think I have probably said before, and it is such a delight that I have so many of her backlist to catch up on. I am not sure that this replaces ‘The Four Winds‘ in my affections, as that was the first time I discovered the novels of Kristin Hannah, but it is up there. So, I guess I have to bump ‘The Women’ up the tbr pile, as it has been sitting there for quite some time – so, look out for that blog post, hopefully coming soon.