Home Front, by Kristin Hannah
Summary (from www.bn.com):
All marriages have a breaking point. All families have wounds. All wars have a cost. . . .
Like many couples, Michael and Jolene Zarkades have to face the pressures of everyday life—-children, careers, bills, chores—-even as their twelve-year marriage is falling apart. Then an unexpected deployment sends Jolene deep into harm’s way and leaves defense attorney Michael at home, unaccustomed to being a single parent to their two girls. As a mother, it agonizes Jolene to leave her family, but as a solider she has always understood the true meaning of duty. In her letters home, she paints a rose-colored version of her life on the front lines, shielding her family from the truth. But war will change Jolene in ways that none of them could have foreseen. When tragedy strikes, Michael must face his darkest fear and fight a battle of his own—-for everything that matters to his family.
At once a profoundly honest look at modern marriage and a dramatic exploration of the toll war takes on an ordinary American family, Home Front is a story of love, loss, heroism, honor, and ultimately, hope.
Thoughts:
I literally just finished this book five minutes ago and I have to say Kristin Hannah NEVER disappoints me. As usual, I feel close to the characters, I learn a lot, and I cry. I always cry. During Home Front -- which I read in three days with an infant in my house -- I cried at least three times. Maybe more. Sometimes I was so engrossed with the story that I would realize that I had been crying and didn't know when the tears started.
Kristin Hannah delves deep. She gets people. She gets human emotions. She is not afraid to show a character's ugly side in a very real way. Not only does she expertly show these faults, but she is able to embrace them and to makes these downfalls and dark thoughts normal. I love that. In Home Front she faces the less talked about part of marriage head on. It isn't uncommon for people who have been married for years to become strangers that share children and a home.She shows how married couples with children, can, over the years, lose their "couple-ness" and take one another for granted, and in the process lose their passion that was the reason they got married in the first place.
I also was riveted by the children in this story. Ms. Hannah does an extraordinary job of seeing the war from the children's point of view. Their reactions made this story real to me. I am a teacher by trade and am always interested in the difference between what emotion a child portrays and how they really feel. Sometimes it is hard to see past the surface. Now, as a new mother, I am obsessed with making sure I know my child and how he is feeling regardless of the front he may put on for me. I have to see past the surface. Ms. Hannah showed these children as children sometimes are, warts and all. Betsy, a twelve year old middle schooler, is more interested in what other kids think of her than how she treats the people who love her. She is easily embarrassed by her parents and can be pretty rotten to both of them. Lulu is four and doesn't quite understand what is happening in her family. She is adorable, asks a million questions, sometimes the same one over and over, probably hoping for a more agreeable answer.
Michael, Jolene's husband, has lost his father before the story started, and has thrown himself into his work to try to handle his grief. I really did not like this man when I first read about him. I thought Jolene and the kids would be better off without him as he was barely present and available to them anyway. However, he grew on me as the story continued and I thought better of my original instinct to vote him off the island.
I have never been in the military or to war. I have never flown a Black Hawk helicopter, but I feel like I just spent the last three days with someone that did. I couldn't tell you how factual it was, but it sure felt real to me. I have a new found pride of our men and women in the military and a compassion for their transitions back home after war. I am also in awe of women, mothers specifically, in the military. Leaving one's children to defend this country is THE greatest sacrifice. Jolene, the book's protagonist, is a true hero. She tries to do right by her country, her fellow soldiers, her children, and her husband. I really fell in love with her and, with all her faults, was a little jealous of her outlook on life and her focus.
I highly recommend Home Front to readers who love strong, well-developed character drama set in real life situations. Loved this book.
Link to Home Front through Barnes and Noble
