Anywhere but Here (signed)

This novel about the dreams of three generations of a Midwestern family begins with twelve-year-old Ann August and her ambitious mother, as they travel to California in search of fame and fortune

Simpson's first novel opens with its two heroines, Adele and her daughter Ann, fleeing their provincial hometown in Wisconsin for a fresh start in California. The story of their journey and new life is fast-paced and entertaining, but it is Simpson's fine characterizations that are most impressive. Adele is both protector and manipulator, encouraging Ann's success as a child star but also displaying her own unrealistic expectations and selfish motives. Ann tolerates her mother's lying and eccentricity, but she longs for a rootedness her mother cannot give her. The skillfully written flashbacks to stories told by Adele's Wisconsin relatives give us a sense of the home they have left behind, and the disparity between it and their new home is immense and profound. This is an excellent novel. Lucinda Ann Peck, Learning Design Associates, Gahanna, Ohio
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.