A Soft Place to Land: A Novel

Susan Rebecca White

Apr 2010 · Sold by Simon and Schuster

About this ebook

From the award-winning author of Bound South comes a powerful, moving novel of family loss and sisterly redemption.

For more than ten years, Naomi and Phil Harrison enjoyed a marriage of heady romance, tempered only by the needs of their children. But on a vacation alone, the couple perishes in a flight over the Grand Canyon. After the funeral, their daughters, Ruthie and Julia, are shocked by the provisions in their will…not the least of which is that they are to be separated.

Spanning nearly two decades, the sisters’ journeys take them from their familiar home in Atlanta to sophisticated bohemian San Francisco, a mountain town in Virginia, the campus of Berkeley, and lofts in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. As they heal from loss, search for love, and begin careers, their sisterhood, once an oasis, becomes complicated by resentment, anger, and jealousy. It seems as though the echoes of their parents’ deaths will never stop reverberating—until another shocking accident changes everything once again.

Ratings and reviews

I don't understand why an author feels so compelled to write a book filled with so much vulgarity. The "F" word may be used as everyday language among many, who I feel uneducated for the lack of a better word, but is offensive to many others. The story, while intriquing, could have easily been told without all the offensive language. While it seems much of the world uses this kind of language, I personally don't feel it added anything to the story other than a desperate attempt by the author to "shock" it's readers. Too bad, because many of us who have had complicated relationships with our sisters, could relate and might possibly want to share the story with daughters, but I certainly don't and won't because I can't reinforce this kind of trash, nor condone it's use in any form. I threw my book immediately into the trash bin.

A not uncommon theme, but a greatly narrated story. I couldn't put the book down.

Beautifully written.

About the author

Susan Rebecca White is the author of four critically acclaimed novels, Bound South, A Soft Place to Land, We Are All Good People Here, and A Place at the Table. A graduate of Brown University and the MFA program at Hollins University, Susan has taught creative writing at Hollins, Emory, SCAD, and Mercer University, where she was the Ferrol A. Sams, Jr. Distinguished Chair of English Writer-in-Residence. An Atlanta native, Susan lives in Atlanta with her husband and son.