Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for gifting me a digital copy of this wonderful book by Ashley Blooms - 5 stars!
In Appalachian country, where poverty and drugs are rampant, Maren is trying to be good. She's trying to avoid the path her mother took, take care of her grandmother, go to school for a better life. Maren doesn't want to sell her grandmother's pills for money, adding trouble to the already troubled area. But life is hard and the chips always seem to be stacked against her. Legends of doors that appear to people in town are real to Maren - her mother walked through her door when Maren was young and never came back, leaving her to be raised by her grandmother. When a little door appears to Maren, she has to decide whether to walk through hers or stay.
A beautifully-written magical realism book that tackles deep subjects in a way that brings them even closer to the reader. You can see how people get stuck and don't see a way out of their lives. The author doesn't portray these people as "bad" people, but rather puts a face to the problem and makes you feel the difficulties faced by each of these characters. You feel the resiliency and the need, you feel the pull of family and friends and wanting to do the right thing. I could picture Maren's beautiful door, feel its pull, and didn't want this book to end!
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