The Same Sky

For our February meeting, my book club is reading “The Same Sky,” by Amanda Eyre Ward. I am a procrastinator when it comes to being told what to read and so while I am the founder, I am also usually the last one to read a book. So when two of the ladies told me they had already started this book and that I should prepare to be sad/shaken I went ahead and dove in. And they were absolutely right.

I read this book in 24 hours. Because I could not stop reading. Every single page called my name.

This book is told from the perspective of Carla a young Honduran girl who is the only 6 years old when the story starts, and that of Alice a lady from Texas who is married and helps run a family restaurant.
Carla lives with her mother and twin brothers and their grandma, until her mom saves enough money to make it to the U.S. she leaves her children behind, sending money whenever she can. The kids are raised in filth and poverty, gangs are in every neighborhood and many children do not go to school, instead they spend their days at the dump sorting trash and their nights many turn to the drug resistol, which is an ingredient in glue to numb the pain of going without food. Carla is determined to get to the United States to be with her mother, so much so that she’ll do anything to survive and anything to make it out.
Then there is Alice. She and her husband Jake are in their early 40’s and are unable to have a baby. Despite past health issues the couple tried for years, even going for IVF and a surrogate with no positive outcomes. The couple tried to adopt but that came with complications as well. Lost and unsure of where her life is headed, Alice visits her sister in Colorado who has problems of her own, and finally turns to her husband for guidance on where to go from here.
These two characters, strong and sure in their own right, have to face their demons every day. Taking what life throws at them and refusing to accept it, refusing to settle causes them to rise from the ashes. And just where do their paths cross? You’ll have to read to find out. But I guarantee you, this book will stay with you for a long time after you put it down.