I think it's interesting that people want to escape their lives by moving to Alaska - the last frontier. I would guess that most of them don't know what they are getting into! Certain people choose to live off the grid.There are always people that believe that America is going to hell in a hand basket. There are people who build their bomb shelters or live off the land, rejecting the creature comforts of America. There are people who live with provisions for the end of the world; who have gas masks in store for their family members; who are preparing for, or are prepared for, doomsday. Ernt's life was a tragedy. By Cora's account, he was a family man who adored his wife and daughter when he went off to Vietnam. The veterans from that war were thrown back into a world that despised them for going to Vietnam. America's participation in this war was considered a blight on our country. Not only did Ernt have PTSD, he had zero support from his country, despite being a veteran. Then, on top of that, battered women had no defense. People had the attitude that domestic abuse was a "private family matter". That nothing could be done. Heck, even now domestic abuse and child abuse occurs constantly - despite America's vast understanding of abuse! I read about a 6 year old being beaten to death by his caregivers in this morning's paper!
There is an extremely fine line between supporting someone with a mental illness and protecting yourself from someone you love that has a mental illness. I actually understood Cora when she said she couldn't leave Ernt because he would never give up looking for her. And when he found her, there would be hell to pay. What an impossible situation. Cora loved the man Ernt was before Vietnam. She refused to abandon him. She needed help to run away from him, but by doing that, she would jeopardize the safety of anyone who helped her. I had to keep putting down the book because I was so afraid that he would kill one of the Walkers. The relief I felt when Cora killed him to protect Leni was almost a physical sensation for me! All I could think of was "it's about frickin time"!
The Walkers were amazing. I really loved all of them. How traumatic for Matthew to lose his mother that way. It's interesting that Leni had the same sense of responsibility and love of Matthew that her mother had for Ernt. You can't deny that their love for people ran very deep. They both had a difficult time knowing when to protect themselves, since it meant leaving the man they loved. The Walkers had a lot of bad things happen to them, yet they remained loving, caring, generous people. Of course I need to mention Large Marge too! She was awesome. Where would they have been without her?? She taught them so much about living in Alaska - and aided in their survival. Then, when TSHTF, she certainly came through for Cora and Leni. What an interesting thing - the use of TSHTF in the book! I have never seen an expression like that used repeatedly in a book. Ernt must have said it a lot!
Kristin Hannah writes such different type of books. Her themes are so different. She doesn't choose one part of the USA or another country as her settings either. They are different settings, different eras, different stories. This was an emotional read for me - especially after Cora killed Ernt. I did not put the book down again. I was extremely happy that Matthew survived, despite his scars and chronic pain. He deserved a happy ending - and I know he made the best life he could for himself, Leni and their children.
Wendy' Rating: *****
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