#BookReview - Allie and Bea by Catherine Ryan Hyde

Title:  Allie and Bea
Author:  Catherine Ryan Hyde
Genre:  Literary Fiction, Womens Fiction
Release Date:  May 23, 2017

About the Book:

Bea has barely been scraping by since her husband died. After falling for a telephone scam, she loses everything and is forced to abandon her trailer. With only two-thirds of a tank in her old van, she heads toward the Pacific Ocean with her cat—on a mission to reclaim what’s rightfully hers, even if it means making others pay for what she lost.

When fifteen-year-old Allie’s parents are jailed for tax fraud, she’s sent to a group home. But when her life is threatened by another resident, she knows she has to get out. She escapes only to find she has nowhere to go—until fate throws Allie in Bea’s path.

Reluctant to trust each other, much less become friends, the two warily make their way up the Pacific Coast. Yet as their hearts open to friendship and love from the strangers they meet on their journey, they find the courage to forge their own unique family—and begin to see an imperfect world with new eyes.

Buy Links: Amazon 
Available for Pre-Order prior to release date of May 23, 2017

My Review:

The first few chapters of this book were so emotionally charged and depressing I actually had to put the book down.  But once Allie and Bea met, the only time I stopped turning the pages was when I had to stop to grab a tissue.

This is one of the most heart-warming books I have read in quite some time.  The characters were so real and so loveable.  This author is one that I will follow in the future, grabbing everything I can find of hers to read.

Bea is an elderly lady who lost her husband a few years earlier.  She lived alone in a trailer, depending on Social Security as her only source of income, and a small savings account that became smaller and smaller each month.  When she is scammed by a supposed IRS agent who empties her bank account just prior to her rent check and other bills clearing her bank, Bea is left feeling desperate.  Her only option was to live in her van, using what little money she had for food and gas.

Allie is a teenage girl whose parents are suddenly both arrested on tax fraud charges and Allie is taken to a group home to wait for foster care.  With her life turned upside down, things go from bad to worse for Allie and she ends up running from a kidnapper with plans to do her more harm than she could possibly imagine.

Allie takes refuge in Bea's van and at first Bea is not happy about that.  Through their encounter, however, the two unlikely friends build a bond that is so heartwarming and real that it will bring tears to your eyes.  If two people on this planet ever needed each other more, it was Allie and Bea.

Lessons learned, life lived, and an unbreakable bond... that's what this book gives you.  I absolutely loved it and would highly recommend it to anyone!

*Disclosure:  A complimentary advance copy was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts, opinions and ratings are my own.

My Rating:

About the Author:

Catherine Ryan Hyde is the author of more than 30 published and forthcoming books, including LEAVING BLYTHE RIVER, ASK HIM WHY, WORTHY, THE LANGUAGE OF HOOFBEATS, TAKE ME WITH YOU, WHERE WE BELONG, WHEN I FOUND YOU, WALK ME HOME, SECOND HAND HEART, DON'T LET ME GO, and WHEN YOU WERE OLDER. 

An avid hiker, traveler, equestrian, and amateur photographer, she has released her first book of photos, 365 DAYS OF GRATITUDE: PHOTOS FROM A BEAUTIFUL WORLD.

She is co-author, with publishing industry blogger Anne R. Allen, of HOW TO BE A WRITER IN THE E-AGE: A SELF-HELP GUIDE.

Her novel PAY IT FORWARD was adapted into a major motion picture, chosen by the American Library Association for its Best Books for Young Adults list, and translated into more than 23 languages for distribution in over 30 countries. The paperback was released in October 2000 by Pocket Books and quickly became a national bestseller. Simon & Schuster released PAY IT FORWARD: YOUNG READERS' EDITION in August of '14. It is suitable for kids as young as eight. A special Fifteenth Anniversary Edition of the original PAY IT FORWARD was released in December of '14

LOVE IN THE PRESENT TENSE enjoyed bestseller status in the UK, where it broke the top ten, spent five weeks on the bestseller lists, was reviewed on a major TV book club, and shortlisted for a Best Read of the Year award at the British Book Awards. Both BECOMING CHLOE and JUMPSTART THE WORLD were included on the ALA's Rainbow List, and JUMPSTART THE WORLD was a finalist for two Lambda Literary Awards. WHERE WE BELONG won two Rainbow Awards in 2013 and THE LANGUAGE OF HOOFBEATS won a Rainbow Award in 2015.

New Kindle editions of her backlist titles FUNERALS FOR HORSES, EARTHQUAKE WEATHER AND OTHER STORIES, ELECTRIC GOD, and WALTER'S PURPLE HEART are now available. Also available is THE LONG, STEEP PATH: EVERYDAY INSPIRATION FROM THE AUTHOR OF PAY IT FORWARD, her first book-length creative nonfiction. 

More than 50 of her short stories have been published in The Antioch Review, Michigan Quarterly Review, The Virginia Quarterly Review, Ploughshares, Glimmer Train and many other journals, and in the anthologies Santa Barbara Stories and California Shorts and the bestselling anthology Dog is my Co-Pilot. Her stories have been honored in the Raymond Carver Short Story Contest and the Tobias Wolff Award and nominated for Best American Short Stories, the O'Henry Award, and the Pushcart Prize. Three have been cited in Best American Short Stories.

She is founder and former president (2000-2009) of the Pay It Forward Foundation, and still serves on its board of directors. As a professional public speaker she has addressed the National Conference on Education, twice spoken at Cornell University, met with Americorps members at the White House and shared a dais with Bill Clinton. 

For more information and book club questions, please visit the author at catherineryanhyde.com