Where the Heart Is

by Billie Letts

Book Overview

Novalee Nation has always been unlucky with sevens. She's seventeen, seven months pregnant, thirty-seven pounds overweight - and now she finds herself stranded at a Wal-Mart in Sequoyah, Oklahoma, holding just $7.77 in change. An hour ago, she was on her way from Tennessee to a new life in Bakersfield, California. Suddenly, with all those sevens staring her in the face, she is forced to accept the scary truth: her no-good boyfriend Willy Jack Pickens...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0446519723
• ISBN13: 9780446519724
• Release Date: January 1995
• Publisher: Warner Books (NY)
• Length: 358 Pages
• Weight: 1.13 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.3" x 9.3"
• Age Range: 13 years and up

Customer Reviews

Loved it

This is a heartwarming story about a pregnant teenager who finds herself alone with no money in a new town. Its a difficult way to bring a baby into the world but then she begins to thrive because of her ambition and the wonderful community she lives in

Absolutely love it

This is my favorite movie and has been for years and years. I was scared the book would either fall short, or ruin the movie. It did neither. It is spot on enough to not ruin the movie and different enough to keep you interested and captivated. Its just as moving and a wonderful read. Definitely one of my favorite books!

Where the Heart Is

I bought this book thinking it was a true story. Now, while it is a novel, it is a story that keeps you wanting to read! The author did well with great description and detail. You will be feeling what the characters are feeling at that place and time. I would recommend this book.

Joy in Sequoiah, Oklahoma

You know that you like to laugh, as well as feel sober and near tears. This is a book that should please. The well-thumbed trade paperback in our library continues to be checked out and praised. Even since the movie was released, folks still want to read the words of Billie Letts, a comic, heart-felt word crafter.Such great names as Novalee and Americus Nation, Willy Jack Pickens, Sister Husband, Moses Whitecotton, make the reader want to see what this is all about. And Novalee's superstition over the number 7 adds to the folksie manner in which Letts develops her story. As to plot, a baby born in a Wal-Mart, why not?In one episode, you find yourself laughing out loud, and in another there is suspense, sorrow, and a teary eye. Letts gives you the full experience in a book that can't be put down. Add these characters to your friends in print. And read The Honk And Holler Opening Soon, too. While not a sequel, exactly, it does depict another set of Sequoiah, Oklahomans who are a part of another good story. Letts is a talented story teller. For a relaxing good read, try her books.

Where The Heart Is Review

Meet Novalee Nation, a highly superstitious seventeen year old, seven months pregnant and stranded at Wal-Mart with seven dollars and seventy-seven cents in her pocket. Abandoned by her boyfriend in Sequoia, Oklahoma on their way to California, Novalee will soon discover that home is where your history begins. Wandering in and out of Wal-Mart in a haze of disbelief, she meets three people who end up playing major roles in her life in the years to follow. Moses Whitecotton, her mentor, Benny Goodluck, her inspiration and Sister Thelma Husband, her sponsor on life's journey. Novalee's first nightis spent, after being accidentally, or perhaps fate-ly, locked inside the store, waiting for her history to begin. Sleeping in Wal-Mart every night, surviving on canned foods from the shelves (of which she keeps an exact detailed price list, in order to pay her debt someday) Novalee sneaks out through the employees entrance into the world of small town, America. The library draws her in search of a cure for her sick tree, and here she finds a man who will grow to love her more than she loves herself. Overcoming her childhood of abandonment and growing up with neighbors, Novalee becomes a woman, a mother and finds herself along the way. Living under the tin roof of Sister Husband's trailer, Novalee loyally works at Wal-Mart while discovering her deep love for her daughter and her passion for photography. She grows to love herself as she develops from the empty frame of feeling unloved and unwanted to the picture of a confident, self fulfilled woman who learns to look fear straight in the eye. Billie Letts' debut novel is a glimpse into the every day of American people. Letts has breathed life into her characters that lead you by the heartstrings through their stories. I couldn't wait to read the next chapter, yet I didn't want the experience to end. This is a must read, not because it is on Oprah's Book Club list, but because, it is a book for all walks of society, reaching out to people where they live; Where the Heart Is.

This Book Is Worth Ten Stars

The only reason I insisted on buying this book at first was because I had seen a preveiw of the movie and I love Natalie Portman, Ashley Judd, and just about every one in it. But the first page pulled me into it, and I couldn't stop until I'd finished it. Novalee Nation is an all American teen, dealing with, an unfortunatly common problem with us teens, teen pregnancy. But she overcomes it and becomes the gem of a small town in Oklahoma. And yes, the dialogue and overall word content of the book wasn't challenging but the things suggested in it were so overwhelming that Billie Letts seemed to know her readers might not be able to handle it. Even though the names are a bit unrealistic, they add spice and character to the book. It was a great read, and I hope the movie does it justice.

A great weekend read

I started reading this book on Thanksgiving Day and finished it by the following Monday. The book is engaging with its eccentric characters, its lighthearted way of dealing with the pitfalls and tragedies of life, and its overall message of love and redemption. I'll be looking for more Billie Letts books in the future.

Letts Really Hits Home With This One!

A Walker Percy Award Winner, this believable down-home tale will melt over your senses like warm butter over thick grits! Letts tells the story of a young pregnant girl who is left stranded by her boyfriend in a small town at Wal-Mart. She lives in the store until the night she gives birth to her baby in the middle of the Wal-Mart floor. When the secret of her living, sleeping, eating, and having a baby in Wal-Mart gets out, Novalee Nation becomes an instant headliner! The people in the town fall in love with this seventeen-year old girl and her miracle baby. What she finds in this town full of strangers who open up their hearts to her is a place she can call home. Novalee is full of life and positive spirit. She is determined and overcomes each obstacle thrown her way by never giving up. Through losing her boyfriend, losing her baby, losing her best friend, and losing her job, Novalee still marches on. This book can be read easily in one sitting, no complex words or lengthy paragraphs, just an unpredictable plot full of wonderfully descriptive narative and infectiously endearing characters. Where the Heart Is can be read, understood, and loved by the whole family!