Becca Reviews: The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah

Our protagonist, Leni, lives with her mother and father, who's complex and problematic relationship leads to much turmoil and upheaval for the entire family. We learn that Leni's father, Ernt, fought in the Vietnam War and was a POW, as a result he came back a changed man with, what was then undiagnosed, PTSD.

Ernt is left some property in Alaska by a fellow soldier who he developed a relationship with. Yet again the Allbright family is uprooted as they attempt to make their way in the wilds of Alaska.

They quickly learn that they need to accept help from their neighbours in order to survive their first winter. They learn all about running a homestead and living self sufficiently. However, Leni and her mother, Cora, also quickly learn that Alaska's treacherous weather is not what they fear the most as the nights get longer and the days colder. The narrative tracks that Cora and Ernt's tumultuous relationship is as a result of them 'loving each other too much', although I understand the sentiment this annoyed me on a personal level. Long story short Ernt is very jealous of any attention that Cora gives to other people, and, unhelpfully, Cora plays up to this by 'testing' him by flirting with other men around him... This, of course, doesn't justify Ernt's resulting violent outbursts but it does point to the fact that their relationship is nothing but toxic and should end. They constantly see-saw between Ernt being violent and storming out the house, eventually coming back and apologising, and Cora forgiving him virtually immediately. It's exhausting to read but, unfortunately, it is realistic.

Leni begins thriving in the wild's of Alaska, she admires and enjoys the beautiful landscapes, and so did I! The writing is beautiful and very evocative of Alaskan imagery. She meet's Matthew at school and they develop a friendship. Unfortunately, Ernt and Matthew's father, Tom, clash. Tom wishes to focus on bringing some more tourism and trade to the area, whereas Ernt and a couple other local's firmly believe that outsiders should stay away. They begin teetering towards doomsday preppers until Ernt goes all in and preps bug out bags and builds a wall around the homestead. Everything begins to unravel as the story comes to a climax. I won't tell you anymore!

If you're a fan of The Outdoor Boys on YouTube I am so sure you'll like this story. You experience the hunting, fishing, foraging, cutting firewood, crazy weather, and everything else in between.

My favourite element, as with most books I read, was how the story transported me to a time and place I wouldn’t otherwise be able to access, Alaska in the 70s/80s. The first person narration is incredibly strong and captivating as we experience Leni’s coming-of-age story. Hannah beautifully captures many different forms of love, romantic love, maternal love, a complex post trauma love, the love of a father in a carer role, and the love of neighbours as well as the love of strangers. For me, and for most people I think, the primary selling point is following the fantasy of moving away to the wilderness of somewhere like Alaska to escape the world. 

I couldn't put this book down and was particularly pleasantly surprised that I remained so captivated even over such a long period of time in Leni's life. The messages of neighbourly comradery and the companionship of women in a trapped situation really stuck with me.

Some part are particularly hard to read but that isn't a complaint against the story or writing but instead an observation that some realities are hard to face - but easier to face if your neighbour is Large Marge!

Read: 19/10/2024

Published: 06/02/2018

ISBN: 9780312577230

Price: £6.63 (GBP)