Book Review: All The Forgivenesses

I absolutely loved the novel All The Forgivenesses by Elizabeth Hardinger. It told the story of hardships, and trauma, and family, and addiction, and sacrifice, in such a beautiful way. All of the experiences of the main character were real and raw and the reader could feel the pain she was feeling.

On a farm in rural Kentcuky, 15 year old Albertina, also known as Bertie, Winslow has learned a lot from her mom, Polly. She knows how to take care of the house, cook, and most of the chores, but what she does not really know, is how to take care of children, how a mother should. When Polly is overtaken by an illness and dies, Bertie takes on the care of her four younger siblings. No matter how hard she tries though it is all just too much. Her father is also an alcoholic who is unreliable. Bertie makes the difficult decision to break up the family, in order for them all to survive and thrive. She sends the younger boys to live with one of her older brothers and she takes the girls. Bertie marries young and is grateful she found a husband willing to take on the care of her younger sisters. But Bertie quickly realizes marriage can’t fix everything, and it seems the grief and heartache from her past will always catch up with her.

Bertie was a very well written character. She was strong, but also vulnerable. The pain she experienced throughout the novel was palpable. Throughout a majority of the novel Bertie was only 15 and at times I would forget that because she had to take on so much. Lately I have been really loving historical fiction and coming of age novels, and this one did not disappoint. It was exactly what I needed.

I gave this book 4/5 stars. I would not hesitate to recommend it, especially if you like historical fiction and coming of age novels. This book was included with my kindle unlimited and I just randomly picked it one day and I am so glad that I did. The cover is what initially drew me in and from the beginning I could not stop reading it. I highly recommend this novel if you have not read it.