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A review by sarahsthoughtsonbooks
A Thousand Miles to Graceland by Kristen Mei Chase
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Thank you to the publisher, Forever, for the gifted ARC.
Unexpected emotional wallop. Knew it was an estranged mother-daughter road trip, but did not expect everything else.
Though they have a stained relationship, Grace reluctantly agrees to drive her mom, Loralynn, from El Paso, Texas to visit Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee for her seventieth birthday, after Grace's husband asks for a divorce.
I knew going into the book that it was about an estranged mother-daughter relationship and their road trip. I just didn't expect the emotional wallop from the story (see content notes).
I thought the way that Chase told the story was well done. We get flashbacks to Grace's childhood when present day events trigger the memories. That each stop and detour serves a purpose - not just because it's an Elvis related stop.
Chase also shows that the parent-child relationship is complicated. How growing up the child only sees events through one lens, but when given a chance to explain, the parent will tell you a different perspective of the same story.
In addition to Grace's relationship with Loralynn, it's a story of growth. Grace's journey - how growing up as a bi-racial child in a small Texas town with a mother that was singularly focused on Elvis and an abusive father effected her childhood, and how it relates to the choices she's made as an adult.
This book took me on an emotional journey, and I really hope to read more from the author soon.
Content Notes: physical abuse by father (flashbacks), alcoholic parent, death of sibling/child (flashback), cancer (past, and present), seizure that leads to hospitalization, divorce.
Unexpected emotional wallop. Knew it was an estranged mother-daughter road trip, but did not expect everything else.
Though they have a stained relationship, Grace reluctantly agrees to drive her mom, Loralynn, from El Paso, Texas to visit Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee for her seventieth birthday, after Grace's husband asks for a divorce.
I knew going into the book that it was about an estranged mother-daughter relationship and their road trip. I just didn't expect the emotional wallop from the story (see content notes).
I thought the way that Chase told the story was well done. We get flashbacks to Grace's childhood when present day events trigger the memories. That each stop and detour serves a purpose - not just because it's an Elvis related stop.
Chase also shows that the parent-child relationship is complicated. How growing up the child only sees events through one lens, but when given a chance to explain, the parent will tell you a different perspective of the same story.
In addition to Grace's relationship with Loralynn, it's a story of growth. Grace's journey - how growing up as a bi-racial child in a small Texas town with a mother that was singularly focused on Elvis and an abusive father effected her childhood, and how it relates to the choices she's made as an adult.
This book took me on an emotional journey, and I really hope to read more from the author soon.
Content Notes: physical abuse by father (flashbacks), alcoholic parent, death of sibling/child (flashback), cancer (past, and present), seizure that leads to hospitalization, divorce.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Medical content, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Grief, Car accident, Racial slurs, Child death, Panic attacks/disorders, and Death of parent