Review: How to Walk Away

How to Walk Away How to Walk Away by Katherine Center
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

4.5 Stars

"You only get one life, and it only goes forward."

Okay, first things first. Let's get it out of the way. This is a feel-good book. It's a feel-good book that is so well written that even my husband, who despises anything feel-good, and who had the misfortune to have snatched this ARC out of my pile, read it over a weekend, and pronounced it "really a good @#%@%@$ book." He has nagged me as I worked my way through my ARC commitments, asking me when I was getting to it and when I was photographing it for social media. He even looked at my photo for social media. He also said I better not tell people he was reading feel-good stuff. (You can see how that's panned out for him.)

Second thing to get out of the way? If this book isn't already optioned for adaptation as a film I'll be stunned. (My husband, who doesn't read feel-good things, promise, thinks Jennifer Lawrence is a shoo-in to play Maggie. I can see that.)

So let the review begin!

Maggie Jacobsen hates flying. Her boyfriend Chip decides that his big marriage proposal should include a serving of what she hates most, as he shows off his almost-licensed piloting skills to give her his grandmother's ring. (Gee, can you tell I dislike this guy?) And if you can't see looming disaster you need to stop lying to yourself about needing glasses. Maggie goes up in his Cessna. Maggie's life is never the same.

This is the story of Maggie's resilience in the face of losing almost everything, her hopes for her future and even some of her ideas about her family's past. If disaster can bring about anything positive, Maggie's disaster at the hands of the feckless Chip turns out, in some ways, to be the best of misfortunes. She doesn't lose her sense of humor, and she finds reserves of courage with the help of her sister Kit, her parents, and her dour and laconic physical therapist, Ian. There are no simple solutions to her problems and she occasionally wallows in her grief and misery but always finds the courage to move forward.

Center has done a great job of giving us characters who are believable and flawed, who evolve and find ways to move beyond the adversity of their situation. Maggie's journey is poignant but never grim. I think my favorite part of the book was her relationship with her older sister Kitty, which was, after it resumed, playful and a pleasure to read. This book is filled with an abundance of quotable quotes ("When you don't know what to do for yourself, do something for someone else." "You have to live the life you have.") and characters who affirm that there are all kinds of happy endings.

If you are looking for a book that will leave you feeling truly upbeat, look no further. Katherine Center will show you how to walk away.

I received a Digital Review Copy of this book from St. Martin's Press and Net Galley, as well as a paper review copy.

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