The Great Alone
By Kristin Hannah
The Great Alone is a bold, beautiful ´stay-up-all-night story´ about love and loss, and the fight for survival. The story opens in 1974 when army vet Ernt Allbright inherits a cabin and 40 acres in Alaska from a buddy he served with in Vietnam. The timing was just right since Ernt could not seem to stop drinking long enough to hold down a job. ¨Just think of it,” he tells his wife. ¨A home of our own. No one to tell us what to do. We can be free and self-sufficient.” Cora will go anywhere and do anything for the man she loves. 13-year-old Leni is caught in the middle of her parent’s stormy relationship. She dares to hope that Alaska may be the answer to a better future for all of them.
When they arrive it´s summer and the mood is great. There is much work to be done in preparation for winter. The cabin is in disrepair but the family sets to work right away. The days are long and full of hard work and the locals are eager to lend a helping hand. However, as winter approaches and darkness falls, the familyś lack of preparation becomes a problem and Erntś mental state becomes more fragile. In their small cabin covered with 18 hours of darkness, Leni and her mother soon figure out the terrible truth: they are in the wild with no one to save them but themselves. They are surrounded on all sides by danger and darkness, living with a man who has darkness within himself. Reading this book will not be a disappointment to those who appreciate a chilling and well-written plot!
HS
