The Smell of Other People's Houses

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Review ------ "The physical landscape of Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock's Alaska is raw, beautiful and wholly unfamiliar, but the true wonder of this thrilling, arresting debut novel is that the emotional landscape feels just as powerful-and just as untrammeled." (Gayle Forman, author of If I Stay) Hitchcock's debut resonates with the timeless quality of a classic. This is a fascinating character study-a poetic interweaving of rural isolation and coming-of-age. (John Corey Whaley, author of Where Things Come Back) An honest, gritty and moving portrait of growing up in Alaska. Only someone who knows and loves this place through and through could tell this story. From coastal rainforests to the salmon fishing grounds and on to the vast interior of Alaska, Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock follows the lives of teenagers who struggle against great odds to believe in themselves, redefine their ideas of family, and find each other. Do not expect a rose-tinted view. Hitchcock does not shy away from hard truths such as alcoholism and teenage pregnancy. But with its bunny boots, tough characters, fish slime, three-wheelers, kindness where you least expect it, and touch of romance, this book is Alaska. The poems from Alaskan writers and Rebecca Poulson's woodcut prints are a beautiful addition. (Eowyn Ivey, author of the New York Times bestseller The Snow Child) Using alternating narratives, debut novelist Hitchcock deftly weaves these stories together, setting them against the backdrop of a native Alaska that readers will find intoxicating. The gutsiness of these four teens who, at heart, are trying to find their places in the world and survive against challenging odds, will resonate with readers of all ages. (Publishers Weekly) Book Description ---------------- Love, tragedy, luck and salvation in the interweaving stories of four teenagers in this extraordinary 1970s Alaskan set debut novel.