Recovery Road by Blake Nelson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I loved Blake Nelson’s earlier books, like “Girl” and “Paranoid Park.” I have to say, though, that this is his first book that made me cry, and I think it might be his best book yet.
It tells the story of Maddie, a teenage girl with major anger and drinking issues, who falls in love while in rehab. The bulk of the book, though, takes place after she gets out and has to integrate back into her life — finding new friends, dealing with the fallout of her past actions, and trying to work out a relationship with her sweetheart, who, having met in rehab, also has some issues of his own.
It has all of Blake’s trademarks: a kind of wry, smart voice, funny and vivid characters (I love how there’s usually a dorky boy who attaches himself to a cool girl in many of his books), humor (particularly hilarious one-liners). He has such an ability to nail the way people sound, both in dialogue and in their heads. But I felt this novel delved into some dark corners that his work hadn’t gone to before, but in a real, non-condescending way. Being a romantic, I loved the story of Maddie and her beautiful boyfriend Stewart, but I think the strength of the narrative was actually how she puts her life back together after getting out. She makes a lot of mistakes, but she learns resilience, and it’s pretty hard won.
I’m also impressed with just how keenly Nelson observes people and life — I think there’s some pretty sharp but subtle observations about class here, and about why some characters make it and some don’t.
A great, moving read — I highly recommend it.
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I am a writer, secret hippie and subversive romantic. I write 
