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The Year We Left Home
The Year We Left Home
Author: Jean Thompson
From National Book Award finalist Jean Thompson comes a mesmerizing, decades-spanning saga of one ordinary American family—proud, flawed, hopeful— whose story simultaneously captures the turbulent history of the country at large.  — In The Year We Left Home,...  more »
Thompson brings together all of her talents to deliver the career-defining novel her admirers have been waiting for: a sweeping and emotionally powerful story of a single American family during the tumultuous final decades of the twentieth century. It begins in 1973 when the Erickson family of Grenada, Iowa, gathers for the wedding of their eldest daughter, Anita. Even as they celebrate, the fault lines in the family emerge. The bride wants nothing more than to raise a family in her hometown, while her brother Ryan watches restlessly from the sidelines, planning his escape. He is joined by their cousin Chip, an unpredictable, war-damaged loner who will show Ryan both the appeal and the perils of freedom. Torrie, the Ericksons’ youngest daughter, is another rebel intent on escape, but the choices she makes will bring about a tragedy that leaves the entire family changed forever. 

Stretching from the early 1970s in the Iowa farmlands to suburban Chicago to the coast of contemporary Italy -and moving through the Vietnam War’s aftermath, the farm crisis, the numerous economic booms-and-busts - The Year We Left Home follows the Erickson siblings as they confront prosperity and heartbreak, setbacks and triumphs, and seek their place in a country whose only constant seems to be breathtaking change. Ambitious, richly told, and fiercely American, this is a vivid and moving meditation on our continual pursuit of happiness and an incisive exploration of the national character.
ISBN-13: 9781439175880
ISBN-10: 1439175888
Publication Date: 5/3/2011
Pages: 336
Rating:
  • Currently 3.2/5 Stars.
 12

3.2 stars, based on 12 ratings
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Book Type: Hardcover
Other Versions: Paperback, Audio CD
Members Wishing: 17
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed The Year We Left Home on + 175 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 3
3.0 out of 5 stars - Lives of quiet desperation...
I wanted to like this novel much more than I actually did. When I closed the book after reading the last chapter (which, in my opinion, was the best in the entire saga, actually), I was left with vague feelings of disquiet. As Blake states when his brother Ryan wonders how the "old-timers" felt about their lives: "They didn't think in terms of happy."

This novel was a series of disjointed vignettes spanning 1973-2003, told in alternating points of view, that give us a snapshot into both the banal and the significant moments in the lives of the large extended Nordic, Lutheran, Erikson family who were born and raised in the rural Midwestern small town of Grenada, Iowa. Each child tries to "leave" in his or her own way, and the picture that emerges as each person tells their story is one of hopeful alienation and the pain of self discovery. It was all somewhat depressing. The tales related in each section reflect the events going on in each of the main characters' lives -- Anita, Ryan, Blake, Torrie -- but also involve their cousins, parents and other relatives and how they all are a part of a family that was "built to last" despite all the trials and tribulations. There are some unfinished stories that left me with questions about what happened "after" or how things ended up the way they did, but though the author sometimes picks up that story line again in a later chapter, some were left dangling. The brothers and sisters seemed to limp painfully toward adulthood, but there are a few triumphs amidst their struggles. The last paragraph -- as one of the children sums up his analysis of his ancestral past and his hope for the future -- is absolutely one of the best parts of this book and one I will remember for a very long time. Any curious reader will simply have to get the book and read it.

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nightprose avatar reviewed The Year We Left Home on + 112 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
This is a complex story, spanning thirty years in the life of a Midwestern family. We are taken through events in their lives collectively and individually, yet each is personal.


Events open with the Vietnam War in progress, and span through the War in the Middle East (Iraq and Afghanistan). This has effects on the characters throughout the book.


There are many events that we can all relate to, from graduations, weddings, economic struggles, the trials of youth and independence, age and resignation. There are triumphs and tragedies, decisions and consequences. Each event impacts each character in seen and unseen ways.


The characters are very honest in their roles. They are true to themselves and their interactions are sincere. This epic family portrait can take its rightful place next to the other classics of this genre.
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nightprose avatar reviewed The Year We Left Home on + 112 more book reviews
This is a complex story, spanning thirty years in the life of a Midwestern family. We are taken through events in their lives collectively and individually, yet each is personal.

Events open with the Vietnam War in progress, and span through the War in the Middle East (Iraq and Afghanistan). This has effects on the characters throughout the book.

There are many events that we can all relate to, from graduations, weddings, economic struggles, the trials of youth and independence, age and resignation. There are triumphs and tragedies, decisions and consequences. Each event impacts each character in seen and unseen ways.

The characters are very honest in their roles. They are true to themselves and their interactions are sincere. This epic family portrait can take its rightful place next to the other classics of this genre.


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