We Are All Welcome Here

Here is a little review of the book I read on Sunday. It is the newest installment in the Elizabeth Berg collection. I say collection, because she has written a ton of books.

We Are All Welcome Here is based on a true story. A fan of Berg's books wrote her and asked if maybe Elizabeth could write a story based on a remarkable woman-the fan's mother. Berg was reluctant to do so, but once she heard the story, she decided to turn it into a work of fiction.

I don't want to give away too much, but the mother was 22 and 9 months pregnant when she was diagnosed with Polio and was going to need to spend 3 years in an iron lung. Her husband split, but not before offering to help adopt the baby out. The mom was convinced she would keep her daughter and would fight to live. So, she had the baby, hired help to take care of her, and after 3 years came home paralyzed from the neck down. Later in her life, she went back to school and became an addictions counselor and an advocate for the disabled.

The book takes place during the summer of 1964 when the daughter is 13. The story is told from the point of view of the teenage daughter. One of the things I love about Elizabeth Berg is her ability to capture the little details of what it feels like to be a little girl and how intense everything is. She focuses on the little details that mean so much when you were a budding young lady like nail polish, magazines and the secrets you share with your best friend. While she talks to your inner child, she makes the story and the characterization complex enough that it holds your adult mind hostage-caught up in the whirlwind of memory.

I really don't want to give many more plot details away, but this story paints such a nice picture of the nuclear family, which is one of my favorite kinds of stories. It is also set in Alabama during a very tense summer for race relations in our country. When I read it, I felt like I could feel the world of possibility and change just about to split open.

It was a very nice story. A fine summer read that makes you feel good without being sappy or silly. A return to form for Elizabeth Berg after 15 or so books. I highly recommend it.