Rating- 6/10
This is the first time ever that i read a book by someone I personally know like in real life! Kinda cool that I now know some awesome authors. I have known Amy for a while and had no idea she had published a book till quite recently so I thought, oh I gotta read that! So I did.
Ford Road by Amy Kenyon is a novel about history, family ties, & nostalgia. It follows Kay Seger, she comes down with a case of Nostalgia after her mother passes away. She suddenly leaves her well paid job in California as a historian consultant for various glamorous movies and shows/productions, and returns to her childhood home in Michigan. While she is in Michigan, she seeks out to meet her past teenage love Joe Chase (Such an American name lol). Joe still lives in his childhood home and works for Ford automobiles and is a Vietnam war veteran too. The more time they spend together, the more they rekindle their romance from many years back, and ignite the urge to delve into Kay's past and find hidden answers in her family's history and secrets. She tracks down various ancient family boxes and belongings such as photos, letters & articles and the more she discovers, the more she gets sucked into this nostalgic state of mind. This book is about long lost relationships, old flames and how history can truly affect the future, it can be rewarding as well as damaging to any relationship.
Ford Road is not a book that I would particularly go for if I came across it in a book store as I'm not that big into history and the past. With that said, this story was told very well, it was a slow burner and the type of book you would want to read over a long period of time, like a long summer or winter. It sort of paces itself and is in no particular rush to tell this tender tale. Which totally fits the story! I would say if you are from or live in Michigan, you gotta read this book. You learn a whole lot about Michigan as a state and various cities in it, particularly Detroit. I learned so much about their baseball team just by reading this book you guys. I would also recommend this book if your a fan of all things historic and nostalgic. It also goes real deep into explaining about Henry Ford, the creator of Ford automobiles and what life was truly like in those olden days when the company began to truly flourish. It's not all peaches and candy, and I liked that about this novel. It told the true story of what it was like for the people who were directly affected in this particular area of Michigan. If your a baseball fan, particularly the Detroit Tigers, you should add this to your reading list too. I now know why the Detroit Tigers are called 'The Tigers'. Books are awesome! The story was told through various characters in different time spans which was cool, but I have to admit it was a little hard to keep track of who was who as there were lots of characters in it.
I'm not particularly a nostalgic and history kinda gal, so I found that I didn't really relate to the book as much personally. I'm more of a what's next, who's doing what with who and a 'future developments' kinda girl. But honestly, if you love history then this is a great read. I also am a sucker for a nice book cover so the fact that there wasn't one took off a couple of points, as well as the lack of 'blurb' as I like to call it. A paragraph that tells you a little about what the story is about. I pretty much went into this book blindfolded not knowing what it was about (probably should have googled it). Although it was kinda nice in a way.
All in all, a nice read. It was thought provoking, complex, nostalgic and bittersweet.
To check out Ford Road by Amy Kenyon for yourself, Click Here for Amazon Books.
Comments