Alice Sebold
This was a very different novel. I enjoyed Sebold’s other novel, The Lovely Bones, but this book was much darker. The novel begins with Helen Knightly killing her mother. Her mother is an old, bitter woman with severe mental problems, which have plagued her throughout her entire life. The remainder of the book focuses on Helen’s flashbacks to childhood, her mental state, and how she tries to deal with the fact that she killed her mother. I was a bit disappointed in this novel, especially having high expectation after reading The Lovely Bones. One interesting thing about this book is that, like The Lovely Bones, it’s set in southeastern Pennsylvania. Much of the novel takes place in Phoenixville. It’s interesting to read a book where you’re familiar with the towns and street names mentioned.