David Adam lives with the fear of contracting AIDS. He knows it's not rational and not a true possibility in his life.
Adam writes about the history of OCD, some of the first recorded cases of the disease, and how having a daughter motivated him to end the cycle of his life trapped in thought.
Ernt Albright is a Vietnam veteran who is living in the trenches of PTSD. The world is oftentimes too much for Ernt to bear and he sees Alaska as an escape. In 1974, Ernt moves his wife Cora and daughter Leni to America's true frontier where they'll live off the grid.
This is a story of family, of abuse and neglect, of mental health, and of survival. Leni is the biggest victim of Ernt's tactics. At thirteen, she's too young to truly fend for herself outside of her father's wrath.
In Alaska, Leni finds out exactly what she's capable of. This story was all over best seller lists, top reads, and more. I completely understand the hype and fell in love with the story, even at it's hardest points.
These books are insanely good. Kevin Kwan is an amazing, amazing writer. Nick and Rachel are characters who are suddenly in a world beyond most of our imaginations, yet are somehow completely relatable.
It's definitely helpful to read the books in order, but Kwan set up the writing with plenty of backstory and explanations so you don't have to read all three in order to completely understand the plot.
The books are... well, rich. The characters, the plot, the settings - I loved it all.