Last weekend I drove my little red car nearly 900 miles from Camden, Maine to Lake Gaston, North Carolina. For someone who spent the last 11+ years traveling thousands of miles all over the US on cross-country road trips big and small, it may not seem like a big deal. But if you know me, you know I never drive on those road trips (for my own enjoyment and for the safety and sanity of my family). This time though, there was no getting around it — we had to take two cars, so I had to drive. And drive I did.

Alone in my car for 15+ hours over two days, I read one of the best novels I’ve ever encountered The Grace Year by Kim Liggett (on audio, of course) ⤵

It’s a deeply moving, beautifully written book with a page-turner of a plotline and a main character (Tierney James) you’ll be rooting for from the first page.

Most who have read it would call The Grace Year a well-written dystopian novel, but I would also call it a cult thriller. (I love cult stories ~ more on that later.) For me, it’s part Lord of the Flies, part Hunger Games with a little bit of The Giver in the very best way. Others compare it to The Handmaid’s Tale and The Power.

In short, it’s a story about the magic of girlhood, the power of womanhood, the forces that cause us to give that magic and power away, and what it takes to get it back.

I adored it.

I adored it so much in fact that when my GPS mistakenly steered me off the interstate into Washington Heights barreling towards the depths of Manhattan and New York City, I didn’t even notice until it was too late. Suddenly there I was, a country girl driving in NYC for the first time, a little teary and more than a little lost. “I better turn off this book for a minute,” I said aloud. But as soon as I was over George Washington Bridge and back on the interstate, on it went.

I finished the nearly 12 hours of audio far too quickly. And when it was over, I wanted to start over from the beginning.

Here’s a review I love from Bookshop.org ⤵

"The Grace Year is a book for every woman who has ever screamed at the top of her lungs and still felt like no one heard her.
A book for every person who has ever been made to feel small or less than.
A book for all of us who have been told to sit down and be silent, to grin and bear.
Tierney's captivating story reminded me that sometimes existing is itself an act of bravery-and this book's existence is an act of courage that I'm very grateful for.
Brutally smart, devastatingly lyrical, and so capital i-Important, I want everyone to read this book!"
~ Jasmine Warga

I want everyone to read this book, too. And if you read the audio version, you’re in for a HUGE treat at the end when narrator Emily Shaffer interviews the author Kim Liggett — you’ll feel like the luckiest fly on the wall for their sweet conversation. (Warning: their tears are contagious)

This weekend, I’ll be driving the remaining 6ish hours to finish my family’s “on the road again” trek from Maine to Georgia for the winter. You can bet I’ll be reading something completely delicious the entire time (on audio, of course).

I’ll let you know how it goes in the email group.

Sending big hugs your way,

Celeste

💛

P.S. This is me in my “art college mama” element a few weeks ago at Friends & Family weekend with my college kiddo ~ a goofy smile (my specialty in every photo these days for some reason) I hope will bring a smile to your face today.

Getting Lost in The Grace Year