Where We Belong

By: Catherine Ryan Hyde

Narrated by: Vanessa Johansson

Fourteen-year-old Angie and her mom are poised at the edge of homelessness...again. The problem is her little sister, Sophie. Sophie has an autism-like disorder and a tendency to shriek. No matter where they live, home never seems to last long. Until they move in with Aunt Vi, across the fence from a huge, black Great Dane who changes everything.

Sophie falls in love immediately and begins to imitate the "inside of the dog", which, fortunately, is a calm place. The shrieking stops. Everybody begins to breathe again. Until Paul Inverness, the dog's grumpy, socially isolated owner, moves to the mountains, and it all begins again. Much to Angie's humiliation, when they're thrown out of Aunt Vi's house, Angie's mom moves the family to the mountains after Paul and his dog. There, despite a 50-year difference in their ages, Angie and Paul form a deep friendship - the only close friendship either has known. Angie is able to talk to him about growing up gay, and Paul trusts Angie with his greatest secret, his one dream.

When the opportunity arrives, Angie decides to risk everything to help Paul's dream come true, even their friendship and her one chance at a real home - the only thing she's dreamed of since her father was killed. A place she can never be thrown out of. A place where she can feel she belongs. By the best-selling author of Don't Let Me Go, When I Found You, and Walk Me Home, Where We Belong is a poignant, heartfelt, and uplifting story about finding your place in the world no matter how impossible it seems.

©2013 Catherine Ryan Hyde (P)2015 Audible Inc.

Critic reviews

"Hyde has a sure touch with affairs of the heart." ( Publishers Weekly)

"Hyde is a remarkable, insightful storyteller, creating full-bodied characters whose dialogue rings true, with not a word to spare." ( Library Journal)

Mixed Review

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Yes. I would take out the political agenda and just tell the story of the girl, her severely autistic sister and her mother. The swearing and the sexual preference did not ring true to the character but felt like a deliberate attempt to normalize her supposed sexual preference.The girl's relationship with the owner of the bookstore came across as a young teen looking up to an intelligent and kind young woman as a mother figure. The part about the girl's supposed feelings towards the older woman didn't fit with the description of their relationship. Some of the conversations between the girl and the older gentleman were disturbing.

Has Where We Belong turned you off from other books in this genre?

It has made me wary to read other books by this author.

Which scene was your favorite?

I loved the autistic girl's relationship with the neighbor's dog. It was touching how the dog and the girl both seemed to understand each other.

Do you think Where We Belong needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No because it rang false. When I read a book or listen to a book I want to be able to believe the story. This story described a girl with a very hard life but the hints about her sexuality were not supported by her own narrative or her interactions with others.

Any additional comments?

I would have loved this book if the author had not pushed her political agenda onto her characters. I could see this teenage girl and the retired gentleman as becoming friends but I could not see him talking about his sex life with her. That part seemed highly inappropriate boardering on creepy. Just because someone is a close friend does not mean healthy boundaries are not important.

Another Great Book By This Author

After reading a couple of okay to pretty good books by this author I enjoyed her return to a great book immensely. Once again it's about finding family in the the world, when the family you have isn't up to the job. It's the story of a child that stumbles upon and then chooses to act in loco parentis for someone they happen to meet in their life. The actual parent is not so much a bad person as they are a poor parent and thus the child is in need of a real adult in their lives. The author's ability to create a few very likable characters and relationships is good enough that I've listened to six of her audiobooks ranging from good to really good or great and mostly enjoyed listening to very similar stories six times. This one might be the best of the six and at worst is third best. A full five stars for the story of a child who is forced to become an adult far too soon; and the adult who chooses to take on something very close to a parental role. I recommend both this author and this book heartily.

Good traveling entertainment

Great story line, likable characters, and it was also very uplifting. Just the thing to listen to on a long drive. Made the time fly.

Wonderful

I simply loved this book...I felt as if I knew these people...the writing was excellent and the Narrator was one of the best I've ever listened to. I f you are thinking of giving it a listen...you won't be disappointed.

Hated it to be over

I found myself looking forward to listening to it.
Some readers aren't great, but this one did a good job.
I loved the relationship that slowly developed between them. I cried when Rigby left us.
A really warm, human interest story.

an enjoyable story

A story about trust and honesty in a personal relationship . And a child growing up too fast. The author had the right balannce of hard life and good things happening to the young character to keep the reader interested and searching for more.... The characters were well developed and captured this readers interst.

The narrator was quite good and added enough nuance to each characters voice without going overboard? A job wee done...

Loved the experience!

Great story and was well read. I thouroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end.

a story of an unusual friendship

an unusual friendship, leads to a great story. this book is filled with things that make you stop and ponder what I would do in that situation. The book is filled with great character development, that by the end leaves you knowing you will miss them once the story is over.

Bravo!!!

Chills, heartbreak, and all the feels. If you are looking for a story that will restore your faith in humanity, This is it.

Where we belong

Good book very interesting, shows many types of emotions and how people live alone and find a friendship through strange situations.