Katie Willard

In the small town of Ridley Falls, NH, Hope Teller, who has just had her 12th birthday, has been raised by two women, neither of whom is her mother. Bobby Teller, Hope's father, left infant Hope with his sister Ruth and his high-school flame Sarah Lynn after Bobby's wife died giving birth. Ruth and Sarah Lynn have known each other all of their lives; Sarah Lynn was the well-to-do daughter of a lawyer and Ruth was the daughter of the woman who cleaned Sarah Lynn's family home. Sarah Lynn was the perfect child who was beautiful and talented and smart - valedictorian of her high school, graduate of law school with a boring job at a prestigious Boston law firm. Knowing this is not the life she wants Sarah Lynn quits her job and returns to Ridley Falls. Ruth joked that she would have won the award for "most detention" at her high school graduation. She was a tough, outspoken girl who worked with her mother cleaning houses until her mother's death and now she waitresses at the local diner. To say the two women were not fond of one another would be an understatement but they come together as a family unit to raise Hope in a happy, loving environment.

This was such a sweet story about love, acceptance and forgiveness. I loved both of the characters of Ruth and Sarah Lynn and much of the novel is about their backgrounds which helps the reader to understand why they became the women they are. Hope was the least likeable of the three because she seemed terribly bratty to me at times. I certainly felt sympathy for her, however, because she spent her young life thinking her father abandoned her because he did not want her and she lashes out in anger at times. Then again, she's 12 so I guess it's understandable. There is a good deal of humor in the book and a bit of romance so if you're in the mood for a feel-good, light read I recommend this one.
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