Erin's Book #43: The Kindness of Strangers by Katrina Kittle

I have one major beef with this book: its marketing. The Kindness of Strangers is largely about the sexual abuse of a child and yet nowhere on the book's jacket does any indication of that appear. I would think that many people would find themselves unable to finish this book and might want to know what they're getting into ahead of time.

That said, this book is terrific. We begin with Sarah, a woman who lost her husband to cancer two years ago and struggles to raise her two sons alone. She is helped by her friend Courtney Kendrick, a wealthy woman whose son, Jordan, is the same age as Sarah's youngest, Danny (10 or 11). Sarah also has an older son, Nate, who has had a few run-ins with the cops and is frequently in trouble at school.

One day Sarah encounters Jordan walking in the rain, late for school. She offers to give him a ride. That day, both of their lives change.

It turns out that Jordan has been suffering from sexual abuse (the publishers may not feel that potential readers should know this before reading, but I do). The question becomes, was Courtney involved? Did she know? If so, why does Jordan seem dead set on living with her again? Sarah is dumbfounded, at first blindly refusing that it was even possible. It raises an interesting question - do we really know anyone? Sarah was convinced that Courtney was a dedicated, concerned, wonderful mother. Was she capable of molesting her son?

I won't reveal more about the plot, but Sarah's family bands together to come to Jordan's aid, ultimately strengthening their own ties. There are certainly some very disturbing parts to the story, and it's incredibly tragic, but it's also honest and somewhat uplifting.