I read about While I'm Falling, by Laura Moriarty, in the August Indie Next List newsletter. The blurb: "While I'm Falling is a gripping story of what happens to good people blindsided by unforeseen circumstances of divorce and financial insecurity. Like the best writers of suspense, Laura Moriarty keeps the reader engaged with her vulnerable and heroic characters as she exquisitely mines the murky terrain of families and people in crisis and recovery."
From Amazon:
Moriarty exposes the underbelly of family strife in this coming-of-age
college drama set near Lawrence, Kans. One day, Veronica Von Holten is
happy, med-school bound, in love with her boyfriend and not far from
her supportive family. Then her father finds another man in the bed he
shares with his wife of 26 years. As a messy divorce ensues, Veronica
struggles to keep her own life in check while her mother's unravels,
and a car accident, a house-sitting gig gone bad and an illicit kiss
turn Veronica's personal life upside down. Things come to a head when
her mother shows up on Veronica's dorm doorstep with the elderly family
dog, Bowzer. Veronica is faced with the difficult task of navigating
personal strife on top of her family's struggle to define itself anew.
Moriarty delves into this realistic but
narrow world with an inviting honesty and creates a cast of vivid and
flawed characters that will hold readers rapt with a queasy sense of
unease.
I've read a bunch of positive reviews of this book, one that compared Moriarty to Jodi Picoult, and one that called the book boring. I can't decide if it's worth pursuing or not. Also, is it YA or literary fiction? (Does it matter?)
Would love to know if anyone has read this and can weigh in..