BOOK RECOMMENDATION –

March 2024 – Gritty, real, unapologetic, and long in the making, Alle. C. Hall’s debut novel displays a finesse rarely seen in a graphically written trauma narrative. Despite its powerful content, Hall delivers the harshest of accounts with a rarely seen resilience and graciousness, which tugs at something deep inside, blurring the otherness of victims and survivors and creating a oneness of the human condition.

From an intensely personal vantage point and perfected over years of soul searching and personal growth and adaptation, Hall’s perfect rendition of her protagonist, Carlie, explores not just the dissociation caused by trauma, but a strength of character far exceeding normalcy, as her healing, though marred by emotional trips and falls, moves steadily forward. Supported by a plethora of no less revealing characters, her poignant journey is only enhanced by breathtaking descriptions of her physical travels, as the two merge into an indescribably stunning novel.

Hall leads you deep into Asia with all of its spiritual wonder steeped in ancient culture. As Carlie stumbles on tai chi, her sense of true self is slowly repaired as her own life decisions metaphorically mirror her art form, enabling her to make the ultimate of decisions, leaving the reader heart-in-mouth as they follow her to the most tenuous of conclusions.

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