April 24, 2017
In her debut novel, Young introduces readers to Hannibal, Miss., a town seemingly stuck in time, divided racially and unable to escape the long shadow of Mark Twain and his notoriously mischievous adventurers, Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. Laura Brooks is on an adventure of her own. Ten years have passed since she fled Hannibal as the Mississippi River inundated the weak levies built by locals. She’s been gone a decade when she is laid off from her job in Florida and forced to return to her childhood home and figure out a new direction for her life. She tells her mother she’s come back just briefly to attend her high school reunion. However, with another flood looming and tensions among the townsfolk running high, Hannibal sucks Laura back, forcing her to face her past, including a former love interest and her absent father, while searching for stability in her future. Filled with pithy dialogue and cultural references, Young’s writing ties Laura’s journey of self-discovery squarely to Hannibal and its famous young troublemakers. As Laura reckons with her past, Young reckons with Twain’s influence on the region. This debut is a wonderful story of home, hope, and the ties that bind us to family. Agent: Claire Anderson-Wheeler, Regal Hoffmann & Associates.
April 15, 2017
Hannibal, Missouri, on the Mississippi River flood plain--not only the setting for Mark Twain's most celebrated novels, but also the hometown of Laura Brooks, who grew up to flee her trailer home for life as a nurse in Florida. But now Laura is back, and the river is rising.Hannibal resident Young's debut is grounded in a familiar scenario: "A poor kid from the wrong side of the tracks without a daddy" escapes from a difficult home to a new life and then finds herself returning, to lick her wounds and regroup. Laura has come back to her hardscrabble birthplace after losing her job to hospital cutbacks and secretly suffering a miscarriage. Hannibal offers the reassurance of the familiar--not just memories, family, and friends, but also the still-thrilling presence of Sammy, "my one big love," now a local farmer and recently divorced. On the downside, Laura's wild brother, Trey, may be dealing meth, and her best friend, Rose, is caught up in a bruising custody battle with local bad boy Josh. Young expands her simple setup by alternating Laura's story with extracts from a Twain primer written for schoolchildren who are candidates in the town's annual Tom-and-Becky contest. She also includes some politics: the local levees protect visitors and the wealthy but leave the poor and the farmers at flood risk. And then there's the issue of race, relevant both to Twain's work and the town's past and present. But at heart this is Laura's story. Will the flood destroy those she loves? Will she forgive Sammy for the sin that originally split them up? Will she and her mother find peace and reconciliation? Will she stay, or will she go? There's a teen-novel flavor to this gently educational getting-of-wisdom story. As one wise character recommends: "Bloom where you are planted."
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April 1, 2017
After running from her hometown of Hannibal, MO, Laura Brooks has returned, broken and depressed from losing her job and a pregnancy. Not much has changed at home: the town faces yet another torrential flood that could ruin families; her mother and brother live in the same rundown trailer; and her best friend Rose is still wild and irresponsible. And then there's Sammy, Laura's old love whom she left without a word when the levees broke and the town flooded ten years ago. Facing embarrassment and criticism, Laura struggles to put her life back on track even while she's pulled into Rose's divorce battle, her brother's drug habit, and Sammy's rekindled interest in her. A new job and increasing responsibilities might keep Laura in town, but will the memories of their old love and her dreams of something better get in the way of rebuilding her life in Hannibal? VERDICT Young will leave readers thinking about their own flood of memories in this debut novel. Perfect for those who liked Tommy Lee Tyson's They Tell Me of a Home and H.P. Munrow's Saving Grace.--Melissa Lockaby, Univ. of North Georgia Libs., Dahlonega
Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
May 15, 2017
When Laura Brooks returns to her hometown of Hannibal, Missouri, she tells her mother she is just there for her upcoming 10-year reunion, and herself that the move is only temporary while she figures out what comes next. But going home is never simple, especially when home is a small town with big talkers and a lot of baggage. Treated alternately as traitor and escapee, Laura is dogged by her failure to make it after getting out of town, but as she reconnects with friends and family, she finds that she isn't the only broken one. Still uncertain of her future, when things start rekindling with her high-school sweetheart, she realizes she is more tied to her roots than she imagined. With both past and future tugging at her heartstrings, which way will she turn? Debut novelist Young, a native of Hannibal, creates a delightful setting in the heart of Mark Twain country for this story of self-realization and redemption. Occasional anachronisms and social inconsistencies are distracting, but Laura's path is ultimately uplifting and heartwarming.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)