Review by Marlene Engel
What would you do if you received a
letter stating that the life you knew was all a lie? For fifteen year old Sofia, who was born in
Mexico and adopted at a young age by her mother Kate, it happened after the
passing of her stepfather, Martin.
Martin was also adopted and learned
the truth of his birth parents only when his mother was on her death bed. Knowing the pain it caused him, he vowed that
as long as he was alive, he would keep the secret that Kate was hiding. But instead chose to write a letter outlining
the events of her past, that were unknown to most, and give it to his attorney
to deliver upon his passing. A past that
included her real birthplace of Guatemala and the extreme measures Kate took to
give this child the life she deserved and Kate the child she desperately
desired.
Upon learning the truth, Sofia’s
trust in Kate is broken. Kate knows that
she must bring Sofia to the place she was born, the place where violence ran
high, the place where Kate found love in such devastation. Until Sofia learns the truth of her past, she
won’t be able to understand the sacrifice and impossible decisions Kate made in
smuggling her into the country. But is
it too late to undo the damage and move forward? And will Kate be forced to return Sofia to
her place of birth now that her secret has been revealed?
In a moving and heart-wrenching book
about love, heroism and the measures one will go to for the sake of a child,
the author gives us a first-hand perspective of a war-torn country and the
lives effected. I found myself
emotionally involved in the story, crying one minute and rooting for the
characters another. This was my first
novel by Jacqueline Sheehan, but certainly won’t be the last.
Purchase the book at:
About the Author:
Jacqueline Sheehan, Ph.D., is a
fiction writer and essayist. She is also a psychologist. She is a New Englander
through and through, but spent twenty years living in the western states of
Oregon, California, and New Mexico doing a variety of things, including house
painting, freelance photography, newspaper writing, clerking in a health food
store, and directing a traveling troupe of high school puppeteers.
Jacqueline teaches workshops at Grub
Street in Boston and Writers in Progress in Florence, Massachusetts.
Connect with the author at:
Kensington Books is giving one lucky
winner a print copy of
The Center of the World by Jacqueline
Sheehan
US only
a Rafflecopter giveaway
