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Some Things That Stay | 
 enlarge | Author: Sarah Willis
Publisher: Berkley Trade
Category: Book
List Price: $14.00
Buy New: $12.97
You Save: $1.03 (7%)
New (5) Used (8) from $11.39
Avg. Customer Rating:  45 reviews
Sales Rank: 596815
Format: Bargain Price
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 288
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.9 x 5 x 0.8
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
ASIN: B0013L2F08
Publication Date: May 1, 2001
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Brand new! Beautifu!! May have a small remainder mark (ink mark) along the edge. gift quality, crisp, clean, multiple copies available, prompt shipping, excellent service.
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Product Description
A stunning first novel about a young girl's coming-of-age in the 1950s. Tamara Anderson's father is a landscape artist who quickly tires of the scenery, so every year her family seeks out new locations for his inspiration. When the Andersons move to a farmhouse in Sherman, New York, in the spring of 1954, fifteen-year-old Tamara and her mother want to settle down and make it home. Sherman begins to work a strange magic on Tamara and her siblings: there's the proselytizing family in the tar-paper house across the street; the dairy cow that becomes a beloved pet; the dead boy who used to live in Tamara's bedroom; her friend Brenda, who teaches her to swear; and Brenda's big brother, Rusty, an irresistible freckle-faced redhead. While Tamara experiences her first real year of happiness, her mother is diagnosed with tuberculosis, forcing her into a sanatorium. Tamara struggles with her desire to stay in Sherman, her fear of losing her mother, and her anger at being left in charge of two younger siblings while her father escapes into the world of his art. Deeply moving, with a profound understanding of family dynamics and adolescent anguish, Some Things That Stay introduces an unforgettable narrative voice and marks the arrival of a distinctive, new American talent. Sarah Willis is a Pushcart Prize nominee and has published several short stories. This is her first novel. She lives in Cleveland Heights, Ohio.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 40 more reviews...
Tender Story of Love, Heartache & Finding Home September 25, 2008
This story centers on Tamara, a young woman living in rural Mayville, NY in the 1950's. By the age of 15, she's moved more times than she can count. Well, she can count them, but she's not happy about the loose ends she always feels upon relocation. Once she realizes that the other kids in school have histories with their classmates and roots, she feels cheated and wants to settle down.
Her family is somewhat dysfunctional but very loving - her father, a landscape artist and the traveling nature of his job is the reason behind their frequent relocations. Her mother is beautiful and a little wild, but she has a strong bond with Tamara's father and allows his lifestyle to effect their family. Tamara has a younger brother and sister who have their own difficulties leading such a nomadic life and at times, Tamara takes out her frustrations on them and even on herself.
Sarah Willis adds the concept of atheism to the story, as both Tamara's parents practice it. The neighbors across the street are devout Christians and manage to get their permission to take Tamara & her siblings to church, which opens up a whole new world for Tamara and she starts to question her beliefs and make bargains with God to keep her in one place.
Tamara's life gets even more stressful when she learns that her mother has an illness that takes her away from the family, perhaps permanently and Tamara is forced to fill her shoes around the house. This is where Tamara begins to rely more heavily on God and asks him to help heal her mother. She also discovers that her complex feelings for her mother are a foil for the love she feels in her heart and through letters, they grow to understand each other better.
Tamara also finds the stirrings of her first love when she connects with Rusty who also lives next door. Sarah Willis portrays the feelings of wonder, fear and joy that we all feel when we find what we think is love and the other person feels it too. Willis does a fine job of providing excellent, solid characterization, and precisely detailing their neurosis so precisely that we can relate to them and their shifting, complicated connections to each other.
I loved the way she uses words to create pictures in the mind of the reader. I enjoyed the section where she uses colors to stress the importance of the situation comparing them to the colors her father uses in his artwork - a unique way to show the similarities between father and daughter when neither feels they have anything to share - masterful! I thought about this book and its characters for a while after I finished reading it and that is always a sign of an excellent story - I have found a new favorite author in Sarah Willis and look forward to reading more of her novels.
Excellent book- I read it in one day! August 23, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I bought this book because of the price and it looked interesting but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it. It was one of those cannot put down type of books and I actually finished it in one day. It was a captivating coming-of-age story and Sarah Willis did a beautiful job of bringing her characters to life. This would be an excellent book club book as there is so much meaty stuff to discuss. I loaned my copy to a friend just so we could talk about it. I highly recommend this book!
 A Nice Coming of Age Story April 16, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is a really touching coming of age story in the 50's. The mother has to go to a sanitarium with Tuburculosis. The father is stuck in his own world of painting. There are 2 siblings, Robert and Megan, that are coping in their own ways with the abandoment issues that arise from not only the mother's illness, but the father's inability to handle the situation. Tamara is left basically in charge of everyone. Besides the obvious issues that are going on, there is the storyline of the number of moves the family has endured and how much they are wanting a permanent home.
I enjoyed reading this book very much, but it didn't touch me as much as some of the other coming of age stories like, Whistling in the Dark, The Book of Bright Ideas and Cold Rock River. Those stayed with me after I was done and while I really enjoyed this coming of age story, it's not one that will stay with me like some other ones.
Still it is well worth reading and I highly recommend it.
What a good book! March 24, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is a story you were waiting to read, full of life-size characters... the type of book you don't want to finish.
And a first novel? ... wow. I can't wait to read her next one!!!!
Just LOVED this book! January 26, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I just love Sarah Willis' writing style and felt this book was equally as wonderful as her book: THE SOUND OF US. It didn't take too long for me to be totally drawn into this story of Tamara and I felt myself rather sad at where the story ended. I just wanted to keep knowing about her and her family and how their lives turned out. I highly recommend this book and hope anyone who reads it becomes a Sarah Willis fan. If you haven't yet read THE SOUND OF US, do yourself a favor and read it! It's real good reading. There isn't a single downside to SOME THINGS THAT STAY. I loved Tamara and her view of her world. The characters seemed utterly real and engrossing. The last sentence of the book was the perfect uplifting end to Tamara's story.
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