Bound on Earth

16. Bound on Earth
by Angela Hallstrom
A sincere and well-written story, told from the various perspectives of family members.
Fiction - LDS
Appropriate for adults and older teens ready to deal with more mature themes
My Library

This book was very well done.  It is rather somber in tone, but that fits the subject matter.  I am not generally a fan of LDS fiction (sorry!) but this book was definitely worth the read. Hallstrom addresses mental illness, the realities and challenges of marriage, and parenting; all without sugar-coating or over simplifying. My only criticism was that telling the story from so many perspectives didn't give me a singular character to connect with.

Favorite Quotes:

Nathan took a deep breath.  He wasn't good at these conversations, never had been.  He had a hard time understanding Alicia's eagerness for complication.

And that's the prayer she prays as she rocks, over and over, as insistent as the Indian chants she hears sometimes, throbbing down from the mountains at night.  I've had all I can bear.  She knows that he can hear her.  She doesn't know if he agrees.