A Heart In A Body In The World

A Heart In A Body In The World

YA fiction
"Why is she going? Well, sometimes you just snap. Snapping is
easy when you're already brittle from the worst possible thing
happening. It is easy when you're broken and guilty and scared. You
snap like that. Like the snap has been waiting around for the right
moment."
Snapping is probably the perfect word to describe what happens
to Annabelle, protagonist of Deb Caletti's A Heart In A Body In The
World. One moment she's in the parking lot of Dick's Drive-In.
Suddenly she's ditching her car, running down the road, her uneaten
food purchase in her hands. She runs through rain and a dangerous
part of the city. Her phone starts buzzing. She's a responsible
person. When she doesn't show up people worry. But when she calls
home the words she hits her anxious mother with aren't exactly
reassuring. She's decided not to come home. In fact she's planning
to run from Seattle to Washington D.C.
Any mother would freak out at a teenage daughter's decision to
run thousands of miles across unknown territory solo. I would have
done anything in my power to prevent Amber or Katie from doing that.
But Annabelle's mother has more reason to panic than most of us. Nine
months earlier there had been a very traumatic incident involving one
of involving one of Annabelle's classmates resulting in
PTSD.
Plus high school graduation is coming up. Not to mention how is
she going to bankroll this journey?
Only Annabelle's holding a few aces. She's going to turn legal
eighteen in five days. And she has a support team she hadn't counted
on. Her younger brother will work on logistics and deal with their
mother. Her best friends will handle on line publicity and fund
raising. And her grandfather is willing to trail behind her in his
camper, providing food, beverages, and a safe place to sleep at night.
Annabelle's run starts out with just her family and besties
involved. But as people learn about it they rally to her support.
You're invited to join her. You'll learn not only about the incident
that changed her life, but about how she may be able to not only
survive, but help others who have endured similar experiences.
A protagonist one can really care about on a daunting journey to
vanquish demons and take back her life...
...that's a for sure literary winner.
On a purrrsonal note, I had a wonderful Valentines Day. It started
the day before when I gave out cards in case I didn't make it on
campus Friday. When he got home from work Eugene gave me a beautiful
bouquet of roses. Friday's arctic blast pursuaded me to stay home to
do homework and bake Eugene's favorite molasses cake and chocolate
chip cookies. About a minute after I pulled the last batch of cookies
out of the oven and laid out the cake and cookies with a card Eugene
got home and asked if I wanted to go to Ruby Tuesdays for dinner. Did
I ever! We had a really nice meal. And on the way we'd stopped at
Brewer Goodwill where he paid for everything I picked out--a bunch of
clothes and a journal and jeweled pen set. When I got home I changed
into my new pink fuzzy onesie pajamas with hearts and romantic
penguins and came back into the kitchen to find a card and a box of
chocolates. Eugene is very much a romantic at heart. I am very
lucky--not just on Valentines Day but all year round.
Today when I set out for the bus stop the weather ap on my smart phone
said it was 2 below zero with an 11 below zero windchill. By the time
the bus arrived my fingers in gloves were stiff and I was about to
bust into a chorus of Swing Low Sweet Chariot. Now I'm at UMaine
feeling seriously bad ass because I took on arctic chill to make it to
work on time.
A great big shout out goes out to my one and only Eugene with hopes
that we'll have a lot more years together. With the right person 30
isn't anywhere near enough.
jules hathaway


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