Ya'll, this is the sweetest book in the history of books! I read this one in high school, right before the movie with Natalie Portman came out. That turned out to be a bad idea, because the whole time I was in the theater I was analyzing how the book and the movie differed.

Where the Heart Is tells the story of Novalee Nation, a pregnant teenager who's abandoned by her skank boyfriend in an unfamiliar Walmart. Novalee seems to charm everyone she meets, but she is naive at times and learns the hard way that not every person is trustworthy. Still, she has a strong soul and seems to prevail despite the hardships that are thrown at her.

Novalee, despite the weird name, is one of the most realistic characters that I've ever read. I don't know what it is about her character, probably the fact that she's so freaking sweet and innocent that you can't help but like her, but she's still a favorite of mine after almost a decade.

This is a Women's fiction. I loved this book so much. I watched the movie years ago, and I love it so much. I wanted to read the book after I learned the movie was basic off the book. I have to say the book is just like the book. I loved both the book and the movie. The characters in this book came to live, and I loved how Novalee made her own family. Novalee is a strong young girl that becomes a woman in this book. This was a heart warming story that will bring so much emotions out of you.

Love it. Was inspired to read the book after seeing the movie.

I loved the first half of this book, but then the plot got ridiculous (and unnecessarily disturbing/violent) and the book didn't seem to know where to end. I was not satisfied with the ending--so I'm left feeling disappointed.

it feels like a 90s oprah book club book because it is.

This is the only book I've ever read that I wanted to throw across the room. It's very sappy and poorly written. Oh, and the story is stupid. Don't read it. Ever.

Love, love, loved it! I wish I could read it again for the first time even though I pictured the characters from the movie as I read it. A true story of love and sadness and the perseverance of human spirit. Highly recommend!

I read Billie Letts' story of Novalee and Americus Nation back in high school when it was featured on Oprah's book club. I recently saw this reviewed on a friend's page (thank you, Deanna) and felt like is was time for a reread.
Novalee Nation is 17 and pregnant when she is abandoned by her boyfriend Wily Jack at a Walmart in Sequoyah, Oklahoma. Wily Jack had promised Novalee a house in California but on the spot decided he could not deal with impending fatherhood and left her for nothing. Novalee has nowhere to turn to and makes Walmart her home until the baby is born. On her first day in Sequoyah, she meets three special people who stay with her for the duration of the novel: Sister Hubbard, who becomes her surrogate mother; Moses Whitecotton, an elderly black gentleman and photographer who along with his wife Certain acts as her grandfather; and Benny Goodluck, a boy who for all practical purposes is her younger brother.
The majority of the book focuses on Novalee and Americus and the roots they put down in Sequoyah. Interspersed with their story is that of Wily Jack and how he struggles to make it in the country music industry. Novalee has never gotten over Wily Jack and fears for him the entire book, almost as though she is afraid that he will come and take Americus away from her. After all, her life until moving to Sequoyah had been about neglect and abandonment.
Novalee meets more special friends. First is Lexie Coop, her new best girl friend. The women are there for each other through thick and thin. Then there is Forney Hull, the town librarian who opens up Novalee's eyes to the world of education and who is smitten with her from day one. How their relationship develops becomes a major plot line of the book.
The reason why I give this book 4.5 stars as opposed to 5 is because not all loose ends are tied up and I am a sucker for a perfect ending. Those who know me know that this is usually the reason why I will lower ratings. Aside from that, this is a beautiful book about what is positive about rural America. I was sad to say goodbye to the characters and can only dream that Novalee and Americus lead long and happy lives. I highly recommend this to all fiction aficionados.

I'm going to be honest: I saw the movie years ago, and I absolutely loved it. I watched it countless times with my sister, laughing and crying over Novalee and Americus, Sister Husband and Forney and Lexie. But somehow it had escaped my notice that it was based on a book, and it wasn't until years later that I read it on a recommendation from a good friend. I read it in less than 24 hours. It's not the most well-written book, a little cliched at times and underdeveloped with its characters, but there's something about the sweetness of the story that just sticks with you. I feel the dusty air of small Oklahoma towns, smell the old pages of library books, hear the monotonous chime of Wal-Mart registers, and of course feel that tiny little thump of a baby's heartbeat in utero, something that, once felt, you can't ever forget.

Didn't review at the time of reading, unfortunately, but loved this story. Heartwarming and we saw the good side of human nature in the end.

Five stars for the seventeen-year-old girl. I love this book.

I read this book when I was in high school and decided to reread it for my Oprah's book club book prompt for Pop Sugar's reading challenge. This is still a 5 star read for me, I love it just as much this time as I did back then and I love Billie Letts's writing style, she was a great storyteller.