Run For The Hills Kevin Wilson On an ordinary Saturday morning, Mad Hill is working on her organic farm when a PT Cruiser pulls up and out steps Reuben Hill. He introduces himself as her half-brother, believing that they share a father that neither of them has seen in decades. He asks Mad to join him on a pilgrimage west to locate two more half-siblings, college basketball star, Pep and eleven year old aspiring filmmaker, Tom, with the intent of proceeding on to meet their father. As they travel, they trade stories of the man who was radically different for each of them. Charles became Chuck, then Chip then Carl. A writer in Boston became a farmer in Tennessee, a basketball coach in Oklahoma and a filmmaker in Salt Lake. Rube, Mad, Pep and Tom, four sibling strangers on an unconventional journey, discuss, question and ruminate about the very essence of their father’s identity and in turn their own, along the way learning to revel in the peculiarities of humanity and what it really means to be a family. It’s the loveliest of quirky stories, told with heart and hope and whimsy.
One Plus One Jojo Moyes Jess Thomas might be an eternal optimist, but she is also a struggling-to-make-ends-meet mum to ten-year-old math genius daughter, Tanzie and Goth, eyeliner wearing 16-year-old step-son, Nick, who is perpetually being bullied. Ed, meanwhile, is a nerdy tech millionaire, who, in a clumsy attempt to extrapolate himself from a messy relationship has found himself being investigated for insider trading. When Tanzie has a chance to go to a prestigious school and winning a competition in Scotland might just provide enough money to make it happen, Jess is determined to get them all there. When Jess’s best intentions go horribly awry, a series of events result in Ed offering to drive them to Scotland himself – stinky old dog Norman included – in part to distract himself from his own problems. Told through the differing viewpoints of each character, we journey along (at a ploddy 40 mph so Tanzie doesn’t get car sick) with this disparate bunch as they endure hiccups and detours and dodgy kebabs. A luminously heartwarming story of love and connection with a profusion of gentle wit and oodles of fizzy charm.
The Road To Tender Hearts Annie Hartnett Sixty-three year old PJ Halliday, million dollar lottery winner, might be considered lucky, if not for all his tragedies—the death of his eldest daughter on prom night, the collapse of his marriage, his alcoholism and his three heart attacks. But when he learns that his high school sweetheart, Michelle Cobb, is newly widowed, PJ is filled with new hope and enthusiasm. He decides to travel to Arizona to the Tender Hearts Retirement Centre and propose to Michelle – the one that got away. But life throws him yet another curveball and he finds himself the guardian to his estranged brother’s grandchildren – nine-year-old Ollie and ten-year-old Luna who have just experienced the violent deaths of their parents. Undeterred, PJ decides to take them with him, along with Pancakes, a nursing home therapy cat with an unerring talent for predicting death, and daughter Sophie who he has asked to come along to help babysit. Dragging along their individual heartache and grief, two adults, two children and a cat set out on both a literal and metaphorical journey, healing slowly through the power of human connection and shared stories. It’s a darkly comic, absurdly delightful tale about mending fences and second chances which will have you feeling all the feels.
The Road Trip Beth O’Leary Addie, her sister Deb and Deb’s breast pump set out on a long drive to Scotland to attend the wedding of close friend Cherry. The playlist is ready, the snacks have been carefully curated and the stops have been planned with military precision. But before they are even able to leave the starting gate, they are rear ended by a Mercedes, out of which climbs Addie’s ex, Dylan. The two haven’t seen each other for 18 months after their relationship ended badly, but with the Mercedes not drivable and the destination the same, Dylan, his toxic bestie Marcus and random wedding guest Rodney, stuff themselves into the space starved Mini and set out on what proves to be an awkward and disastrous 24 hour road trip. Told in turn by Addie and Dylan and alternating between “then” and “now” we learn of how the two met and fell in love amidst the beauty of Provence and what happened after their idyllic summer ends. I am not a rom-com fan but this book rather surprised me with its crisp, biting energy and witty banter. It’s light-hearted, despite touching on heavy issues, is entertaining despite some silly aspects, and the slow, slow unwinding of what caused the demise of Addie and Dylan’s relationship despite their crackling energy, adds a nice layer of complexity.
The Mostly True Story Of Tanner And Louise Colleen Oakley Tanner is a college student when an unfortunate incident puts pay to her soccer career—and her scholarship. Now unable to pay tuition, she is at home, licking her wounds and angry at the world, playing video games in her sweats all day. When her mum gets tired of being her punching bag and tells her she has to move out, she takes a job as a live-in aide to 84 year old Louise. Neither are happy with the situation and the two grouse about each other’s presence and bristle at each other’s foibles. When Tanner takes note of a few odd happenings and then is forced to do a double take at the photo of a jewelry heist suspect on the nighttime news who looks, unbelievably, a lot like Louise, she dismisses her suspicions—until Louise wakes her up in the early hours of the morning insisting they leave town immediately. A wildly entertaining adventure ensues as the two fugitives hightail it to California in a not-at-all-attention-grabbing vintage jaguar. Amidst detours and hijinx (and the addition of hot guy, August) their impulsive car journey west becomes a journey of self-discovery and vulnerability as Tanner and Louise come to understand that they have grossly underestimated each other. This isn’t written with quite the same whimsy as Run For The Hills or The Road To Tender Hearts but there is an entertaining dynamic between young and old, lots of witty banter and some surprising revelations as the real story of Louise’s past comes to light.
The Last American Road Trip Sarah Kendzior I’m not a lover of memoirs, but this book is more American culture than family saga. It tells of Kendzior’s road travels with her husband and two kids over the years roughly between 2016 and 2024. It’s an ode to small towns, roadside oddities, and forgotten American history. We learn about Kentucky caves which were used as a hideout by Jesse James between crime sprees, the history and politics of Route 66, national parks (the renowned and the little known), and the Burger King Museum of Navajo Code Breakers. It’s a journey of nostalgia for an America slipping away, an embrace of the good, the bad and the ugly of a country currently insistent on only acknowledging the good. And because no Sarah Kendzior book would be complete without references to organized crime and conspiracy theories, there are a handful of those thrown in too. I found Kendzior’s last book to be a touch grating—this one felt warmer and more earthy, a touch wistful. Maybe the presence of her family had something to do with that. Regardless, it is hard not to admire her deep love and appreciation for a country she feels is being stripped and sold for parts, and her embrace of all it has to offer in the weird, the wonderful (and the huckleberry).