Product Description:
Broke and knocked up, Mattie Wallace has all her worldly possessions crammed into six giant trash bags, and nowhere to go. Try as she might, Mattie can't deny that she's turning into her late mother, a broken alcoholic who never met a bad choice she didn't make.When Mattie gets news of an inheritance left by a grandmother she's never met, she jumps at this one last chance to turn things around. She leaves the Florida Panhandle for her mother's birthplace: the tiny town of Gandy, Oklahoma. There, she learns that her mother remains a local mystery a happy, talented teenager who inexplicably skipped town thirty-five years ago with nothing but the clothes on her back. But the girl they describe bears little resemblance to the damaged woman Mattie knew, and soon it becomes clear that something terrible happened to her mother. And if Mattie can discover what started her mother's downward spiral, perhaps she can figure out a way to stop her own."
Review:
"[A] pitch-perfect novel about family secrets, self-forgiveness and redemption...DeCarlo's debut novel's originality and fresh voice will endear her to readers...Every character in DeCarlo's novel is complex and richly drawn...this story is so vibrant and universally human that it's sad to see it end."--Dallas Morning News
"THE ART OF CRASH LANDING is full of heart and sass. It's about forgiveness, self-understanding, and the complicated love between mothers and daughters. Readers will root for DeCarlo's goofy, sharp-tongued heroine.... This is a sparkling, funny, and moving debut."--Edan Lepucki, author of CALIFORNIA
"I especially enjoyed the small-town feel of this novel, getting to know the Grandy residents, like the librarian, her snarky niece and the wheelchair-bound lawyer who help (and hinder) Mattie in her quest. The humor and humanity shine through in this delightful debut."--Auburn Citizen
"A success...Mattie made me laugh with some of her sarcastic remarks and her self-deprecating humor."--Oklahoman
"In this tender story of self-discovery and forgiveness, Mattie uneraths secrets about the alcoholic mom she realizes she never really knew."--Good Housekeeping, Best New Reads
"Behind the smartass mouth of Mattie Wallace, our troubled protagonist, is a whole lot of heart, soul and humor...You won't stop reading THE ART OF CRASH LANDING until all the great mysteries of Mattie's messed-up life have been unravelled by the ever-wise Mattie herself."--Jessica Anya Blau, author of THE WONDER BREAD SUMMER
"A dazzling debut that truly soars, about figuring out the tug of the past, about family mysteries and the marvels of forgiveness, and all of it features a spunky heroine readers won't be able to stop falling in love with."--Caroline Leavitt, New York Times bestselling author of IS THIS TOMORROW and PICTURES OF YOU
"Stunning...DeCarlo has loudly claimed her seat at the table of today's elite contemporary Southern women writers including Joshilyn Jackson, Fannie Flagg and Sue Monk Kidd. They continue the work of literary giants like Carson McCullers, Eudora Welty and Flannery O'Connor, crafting haunting stories about the peculiar, the impolite..."--Oklahoma Gazette
"DeCarlo has created a compulsively likable mess of a protagonist who will keep readers laughing and cringing -- even as they begin really rooting for her...surprising, poignant and page-turning...a strong debut and a thoroughly entertaining read."--Fort Worth Star-Telegram
"This first novel by an Oklahoma-born Texan is written with verve, assurance and some salty language."--Toronto Star
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