The Year We Left Home, by Jean Thompson

The Year We Left Home, by Jean Thompson.  Ho-hum.  The plot (I use the term plot loosely, as there isn’t any) follows an Iowa family from 1973 to 2003.  Chapters jump from one character to another, one part of the country to another, as they leave home, mature, (usually) and often find their way home again.  Sadness, folly, dull routine, stupid mistakes, fumbling, healing.  A daughter has an alcoholic husband and she has an “Is that all there is?” feeling.  A son escapes the Iowa small town life and finds there are problems in other places and relationships.  Another son stays home struggling to make ends meet.  A daughter spends years recovering from a terrible accident.  A cousin is a Vietnam vet with drug problems and restlessness. As soon as one becomes involved with a character the book jumps to someone else and their problems, with years of gaps between.  The story of the characters could easily be fleshed out for a good book, but this is like going to a disco where the lights flash on and off.  You find your date in the crowd, but when you look next they are gone and someone else in in the light.  6 out of 10.  More reviews: http://queenbeewritings.blogspot.com/