I read this book over 20 years ago. I just remember I liked it

A beautiful read! I've had this book in my stacks forever, and decided to read it now. Novalee Nation is just great. She has a warm heart and plenty of courage. This book took me by surprise at how much I enjoyed it.

I loved everything about this book. I especially loved all the different characters. I’ve wanted to read it for years, and I’m so glad I finally did.

I...LOVED...THIS...BOOK!!!!!!!!!!!! And it's so hard for me to explain why, if YOU haven't read it! It's quirky at times, I admit that, but that just added to the total overall appeal of this ever-growing, heart-warming story. I fell in love with Novalee, the main character, right from the beginning, but I can't exactly pinpoint WHY..but trust me when I say that as the story goes on, you will see very quickly why she is so lovable! I laughed, and cried, and worried, and celebrated, and shrieked throughout the entire book. It's an awesome story about HOME, love, TRUE friendship, family, and how you need to grab onto what's RIGHT when it finally hits you on the head!

Here are some of my favorite lines from the book:
".....No, not a lot of folks do. But listen. You're gonna die. But your name's not. No. It's gonna be written in somebody's Bible, printed in some newspaper. Cut into your gravestone. See that name has a history. And home is the place where your history begins...and that history is gonna be there when you're not."

"...Novalee could hardly imagine that one tiny creature could create so much love. And that was the problem: the more Novalee loved her, the more she feared she might lose her."

"...Well, sometimes love seems easy. Like...it's easy to love rain...and hawks. And it's easy to love wild plums...and the moon. But with people, seems like love's a hard thing to know. It gets all mixed up. I mean, you can love one person in one way and another person in another way. But how do you know you love the right one in every way?"

"...Why does anyone lie? 'Cause we're scared or crazy, maybe just 'cause we're mean. I guess there's a million reasons to lie, and I might've told that many...but none like that. I guess there's always that one lie we never get over. Oh, maybe you don't know about it yet. Maybe you never told a lie so big it can eat away a part of you. But if you ever do...and if you get lucky...you might get a chance to set it right. Just one chance to change it. Then it's gone. And it never comes again."

I wish I had chosen THIS book as my Book Club selection!!!

(Working my way thru the FOREVER-growing pile of books I have.)

4 STARS

"A funny thing happens to Novalee Nation on her way to Bakersfield, California. Her ne'er-do-well boyfriend, Willie Jack Pickens, abandons her in an Oklahoma Wal-Mart and takes off on his own, leaving her with just 10 dollars and the clothes on her back. Not that hard luck is anything new to Novalee, who is "seventeen, seven months pregnant, thirty-seven pounds overweight--and superstitious about sevens.... For most people, sevens were lucky. But not for her," Billie Letts writes. "She'd had a bad history with them, starting with her seventh birthday, the day Momma Nell ran away with a baseball umpire named Fred..."

Still, finding herself alone and penniless in Sequoyah, Oklahoma is enough to make even someone as inured to ill fortune as Novalee want to give up and die. Fortunately, the Wal-Mart parking lot is the Sequoyah equivalent of a town square, and within hours Novalee has met three people who will change her life: Sister Thelma Husband, a kindly eccentric; Benny Goodluck, a young Native American boy; and Moses Whitecotton, an elderly African American photographer. For the next two months, Novalee surreptitiously makes her home in the Wal-Mart, sleeping there at night, exploring the town by day. When she goes into labor and delivers her baby there, however, Novalee learns that sometimes it's not so bad to depend on the kindness of strangers--especially if one of them happens to be Sam Walton, the superchain's founder." (From Amazon)

I loved this novel and the characters are so great. Letts' writes so well and her sense of humour in this novel is perfect.

I loved this book and (most of) the characters. Novalee is such a sweet person that all the way through I felt I was cheering for her and hoping that all would work out for her in the end. She did have many disappointments to get over but the friends she had made along the way helped her through them. Her tribulations and those she sees happening to those around her might have made another person nasty and bitter. As she advises her friend Lexie to say to the children, "...tell them we've all got meanness in us...", " But tell them that we have some good in us, too. And the only thing worth living for is the good. That's why we've got to make sure we pass it on."

I was introduced to this book since i watched the film first, and thought it was beautiful. This book didn't dissapoint me, it had beauty and love. Some may say its unbelivable or incourages teenage pregancy, since all ends well. But i don't believe thats true this book is about the good and bad in life, how sometimes a bad situation that looks like it will never get better, can be the begginning. A start to someones history, a start to someones life, a chance to become someone new. I related to this book, and i'm only 15 and i could see the wisdom and advice this book gives you, i could relate to the teenage Novalee Nation, she was knocked down and abandoned so many times and still found the best in people, she never lost hope that the next time would be differnet, the next person would be the right one to trust, some say its a naive belief but doesnt it also show courage, that this teenage girl counld still find it in her heart to trust those who offered help.
I admire that in her, and the others in her life, they all gave chances to people who may not deseve them, its something that sometime i wish i could do, trust those who i should. The book shows that some people are bad and some are good, but sometimes theres a time to trust, time to understand, to forgive. To help someone get home, or let some else help you, to build a home or to go home.
Because after all Home is Where the Heart is.

WOW JUST WOW!!!! Where The Heart Is written by Billie Letts was earth shattering amazing!!! Billie Letts has a way of connecting her readers with the story, but let me just say, this story definitely doesn't disappoint. This book was so moving, gut wrenching, but also filled with humorous moments. I was hooked from the very first page, and I couldn't put it down until I knew what the outcome of the story was going to be. Unfortunately, I didn't know Billie Letts passed away until I finished the first book I read by this author, so very sad. I loved all of the characters. This story will make you cry and laugh all throughout the book. I apologize to anyone who reads my sappy reviews. Where The Heart Is was so touching, it hits the core of your heart is so many ways. I will continue to read other books by this author because she just writes amazing and moving stories.

In Where The Heart Is we follow the journey of Novalee Nation with her pregnancy and after she gives birth. Novalee has always been unlucky with sevens. She's seventeen years old, seven months pregnant, thirty seven pounds overweight, and now Novalee finds herself stranded at a Wal-Mart in Sequoyah, Oklahoma, with just $7.77 in change. Novalee was on her way to Bakersfield, California from Tennessee with her rude and ignorant boyfriend, Willy Jack Pickens. Novalee and Willy Jack were traveling in a beat up car with a hole in the middle of the floor, Novalee fell asleep, and when she woke up she realized her only pair of shoes fell out of the car. Novalee doesn't want to say anything to Willy Jack because she knows he'll throw a fit. Novalee sees a Wal-Mart and tells Willy Jack she needs to stop for a pair of shoes. Willy Jack gives Novalee $10, but when she comes back out Willy Jack is gone.

Novalee has no where to stay, so she lives inside this Wal-Mart when the employees leave. While Novalee stays at Wal-Mart she meets so many deeply caring people, among them we have, blue haired Sister Thelma Husband who hands out advice and photocopied books of the Bible. Next we have Moses Whitecotton, who is a wise, soft spoken photographer. Moses learns that Novalee is pregnant and she doesn't have a name picked out for her baby yet, Moses tells Novalee to name her baby something that will always be remembered. Next we have Forney Hull, who is the town librarian who also hides his own secrets. When Novalee and Forney first meet at the library their first connection starts off on the wrong foot, Forney is so sour towards Novalee. Novalee gives birth to her beautiful baby girl, who she named Americus in Wal-Mart. As Novalee is in the hospital recovering, the owner of Wal-Mart comes to the hospital and offers Novalee a job at the Wal-Mart she was staying at.

After Novalee has her baby and she's ready to be discharged from the hospital, Sister Husband comes and takes Novalee to live with her. Sister Husband was such a sweet and caring soul who decided to take Novalee and Americus under her wing and cares for them. Novalee knows she has a long road ahead of her after being known as the girl who gave birth inside of a Wal-Mart, but she's so ready to tackle what she needs to do. Novalee forms a friendship with the nurse at the hospital who brought her breakfast one morning, Lexie Coop. Lexie is a single mom of five children. Lexie and Novalee have a strong connection with each other. I loved reading about these characters and their journey with each other. Where The Heart Is will definitely be one of those books that I will never forget. Just do yourself a favor and pick up this book because you will love it!!!!

This is the book that started my hatred of those "book club questions" that seem to always show up at the end of books that don't deserve them. I remember this book was our required summer reading book in high school, and I haaaaaaated it. It was long enough ago I don't remember all the details, but I just remember feeling that there were so many forced "quirky" characters that didn't read as real people but as quirky for the sake of quirky and that my expected response was supposed to be "ha ha how wonderful and quirky and charming!" and with very few exceptions I emphatically did not find them wonderful and charming for all their quirkiness.

And then I got to the end, and there were all these questions like "What do you think the MEANING is of Novalee's daughter's name?" And I was like NO. I REFUSE TO BELIEVE THIS IS A CONTEMPORARY WORK OF ART IMBUED WITH MEANING THAT I'M SUPPOSED TO ANAYLYZE. BOOOOOOOO.

Would I feel differently about it now? I'm not sure. But 16 year old me did. not. like. this. book.

I liked it well enough for what I used it for, light quick reading while convalescing but not earth shattering literature that I will remember or pass along. Surprised that this was an Oprah pick and made into the movie with Natalie Portman. Liked the Walmart baby concept and the ignorant white trash America viewpoint. However, found the rest of the storyline hard to swallow. First place, Forney seems like he's autistic and I find it hard to believe that Novalee went from being attracted to soulless Willy Jack to selfless Forney. Secondly, she met too many good and quirky people who helped/saved her throughout the years all in succession within the first 24 hours of being abandoned at Walmart. Last, it was over the top that Willy Jack seemed to be repeatedly punished for his sins. In the 7 years after abandoning Novalee, he lost all his possessions and car, went to prison, was gang raped, had his song rights stolen, became broke again, then his legs were severed. The one realistically traumatic thing that happened was the attack on Lexie and her kids. However, it seemed out of place and glossed over in the way that she predictably found Prince Charming in the end as did Novalee. Cliched, predicable storyline but palatable to get you through a plane ride.

This was a very easy read. A very good story. Of course considering I've seen the movie 1000 times the whole way through it I was comparing the two. Of course the movie didn't have all the personal relationships Novalee gains but as a whole the movie kept the same story. The movie just mixed the events up.

Have you ever been so "daw-gone" tired, that you're visualizing the comfort of your solitary bed? That warm down comforter. Your plush pillows. You keep pumping yourself up with the thought that you're nearly home. You've finally made it. You want to ensure that you really enjoy your night's rest, so even though you can hardly move, you go through your nightly hot shower ritual. Finally, you settle into bed, turn out the lights. All is quiet save for the steady breathing of your furry friends, and the soft noises of the house settling. And there it is! That moment when you shut your eyes and relish how wonderful it finally feels to completely let go. It feels so good, you can almost taste it! You find yourself unconsciously smacking your lips right before you drift off.

That is this book! It's so...tasty! Each time I settled in to read a few passages, I was just overcome with so much love and concern for all the characters. Despite having more than a few heavy themes and scenes, it all came together in a warm, comforting way. Definitely at the top of my comfort reads.