“The way I see it, if everybody ran from bad things instead of trying to stop them, bad things would be all there is.”
Elsie never wanted to be a coal miner’s wife. In fact, she did everything she could to leave West Virginia and stay away, falling in love along the way. When her love interest leaves her in Florida to chase his own dream in New York, she returns home to visit – just to visit – but sees Homer Hickam and ends up marrying him. A wedding present arrives from her old flame and Elise and Homer settle into life with an alligator named Albert.
Homer Hickam is best known for October Sky and this book is a story of his parents. He is known for saying the book is true except for the parts that aren’t. Parts of the tale are almost unbelievable, but then there are pictures of the alligator’s pond in West Virginia and pictures of the people they meet in the book. I saw in a store at a rest stop in West Virginia that Homer had written other books after October Sky so I put Carrying Albert Home on my to-read list. I only had to wait a few weeks for the ebook to become available.
One day, Albert attacks Homer’s pants and chases him, so he tells Elsie that either the alligator stays or Homer stays. She chooses Homer after some thought, but says they have to take Albert back home to Florida. The book is about their adventures traveling without maps, but with a rooster who catches a ride. They run into outlaws, famous authors, run an inn and find odd jobs along the way. Interwoven in the story is how Elsie and Homer learn to truly love and cherish each other.
I really enjoyed reading this novel. It was incredible, but also believable. Even if the story is in doubt by the reader, it is all told as a love story between two people who have to find a way together if either are going to make it. I smiled at the end and plan to read more of Hickam’s books.
