The Great Alone: Kristin Hannah: A Story of Love, Heartbreak and Survival, From the Bestselling Author of The Nightingale

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ON A COLD, BLEAK MORNING in mid-April, Leni got up early and staked out her place on the ratty floral sofa in the living room and turned on the Today show. She adjusted the rabbit ears to get a decent picture. When it popped into focus, Barbara Walters was saying “… Patricia Hearst, now calling herself Tania, seen here in this photograph holding an M1 carbine at the recent bank robbery in San Francisco. Eyewitnesses report that the nineteen-year-old heiress, who was kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army in February…” The Great Alone” does not disappoint. This was another fascinating, thought-provoking, and captivating read. Heartbreaking at times... but there were also moments of great love and unbelievable kindness. A gripping story where I was desperate to know what was going to happen next. A bittersweet but satisfying ending topped off this amazing read. I thought Hannah did a good job with the topic, though ultimately it is largely about abuse, which I think is inherently a dark and (to put it lightly) “unpleasant” topic. It’s just something to be aware of going into the book that the story spends a substantial amount of time on that issue.

Hannah paints a vivid and memorable image of a family and a community making a life and surviving out in the wilderness. The small community she depicts is sparse, but vibrant, providing warmth and softening the edges of the harsh Alaskan landscape. How do you think Ernt and Mad Earle’s friendship impacts Ernt’s wife and daughter? Do you think conspiratorial thinking was inevitable for Ernt at this point? How do you think their relationship impacts Leni? Do you think either of them really understands how hard it is for her?They have a funeral for Geneva. Leni meets Aly, Matthew's sister. Cora gives Tom Walker her condolences and Ernst gets jealous. They argue after the funeral, and Ernst hits Cora. Leni realizes that it has happened before but this is the first time she's seen it. Leni used books and photography to help her process her turbulent childhood. How did they help her remain steady and process her life?

I’m so glad you found your way here. The Nightingale is a book that really means a lot to me. To be completely honest with you, I Hello and welcome! In the meantime, Leni, Cora, and Ernt learn to live in Alaska. Ernt teaches his wife and daughter how to shoot and fish, and other members of the Kaneq community teach the family how to garden and save food for the winter. Though Ernt initially feels better in Kaneq, his rage begins to grow. He spends a lot of time with Earl Harlan, Bo’s father. Together, the two drink heavily and complain about the downfall of civilization. Both are convinced that a war will erupt soon, and people will come to take their land. Nearly everyone else thinks their claims are ridiculous but find the men themselves to be concerning. The day of Geneva’s funeral, Ernt is in a particularly nasty mood and when the Allbrights arrive home, he drags Cora inside and hits her twice in the face in front of Leni. Leni always knew that her parents argued, but this is the first time she witnesses physical abuse.Then Dad went off to Vietnam and got shot down and captured. Without him, Mama fell apart; that was when Leni first understood her mother’s fragility. They drifted for a while, she and Mama, moved from job to job and town to town until they finally found a home in a commune in Oregon. There, they tended beehives and made lavender sachets to sell at the farmers’ market and protested the war. Mama changed her personality just enough to fit in.