The Way Back to Happiness
Ratings1
Average rating3
"Fourteen-year-old Alabama knows next to nothing about her aunt Bev. When her mother's death leaves her in Bev's care, Alabama sets out to find her late father's family, but instead "learns the complicated history between her mother and aunt, how guilt can shut down a life - and most important, how love and forgiveness can open a door and make us whole again." -- Publisher.
Reviews
Popular Reviews
Reviews with the most likes.
The Way Back to Happiness could have used a little more actual happiness. This story of a 14 year old orphaned teenager Alabama, and her spinster aunt Bev who takes her in after the sudden death of her mother, has its moments. Bass, who has written two other women's fiction novels (as well as several romance novels as Liz Ireland), obviously has a soft spot for the relationships between sisters and among women in general. She does a good job at capturing these complex dynamics, but her plotting is a little bit off. There is too much angst and conflict between Alabama and Bev, and a last-minute sudden resolution in the final pages that is less than satisfying (and the decision to tell but not show a key climactic scene is puzzling). The book's problems are partly mitigated thanks to the authentic 1980s setting (complete with Sony Walkmen and Culture Club references), Alabama's unabashed gay best friend (a proto-Kurt Hummel from Glee), and the lively elderly gentleman who courts Alabama's grandmother. Recommended for those who enjoy the novels of Marisa de los Santos, Juliette Fay, Karen White and Cathy Lamb.
