Baby Doll by Hollie Overton

Reviewed by Brenda G.

Overton, Hollie. Baby Doll. New York; Redhook Books, 2017. 405 pages.

            If this book were a weekly television show, the lead-in would boldly proclaim, “Ripped from the headlines.” It is instead a novel, a first effort by a now twice-published author.  This first effort, published in 2016, was well-received, proclaimed “international bestseller’ on the front cover of the paperback edition I read. The real life escape and rescue of Ariel Castro’s kidnapping victims in Ohio in 2013 perhaps lent credence to this story.

            The book begins with Lily, the “Baby Doll” realizing her high school English teacher and captor Rick has failed to use the deadbolt on the door that granted access to her basement prison, a place where she has dwelt for 10 years and borne a child, {thus providing another parallel to Castro’s hostage Amanda Berry.) Lily knows exactly how long she has been away; she counted every day, hour, and minute. At first fearful the unlocked door is one of Rick’s tests, Lily decides to take the risk; Rick does not make mistakes. She steps outside to a snow-covered world. She and her daughter Sky do not have adequate clothing or shoes, so Lily wraps herself and Sky in as much clothing as she can find, wraps her daughter in a blanket, and for the first time in 10 years, begins to run.

            The book now explores the aftermath of Lily’s escape and recovery and the author throws in various unexpected complications. What has happened in the lives of Lily’s family during the 10 years she was away? Her mother? Her father, whom she loved dearly? Her twin sister Abby, burdened with guilt because she left Lily at school that fateful day due to a minor dispute; what has happened in her life? Her boyfriend Wes - is he still around? What has happened in Rick’s life out in the world? Rick is a respected member of the community. What if no one believes her?

            I did read the book twice from beginning to end. It is well-written, though not every detail is as I would want it to be in a perfect world. The characters are flawed, as we all are, and sometimes make decisions difficult to accept. A true surprise at the end brings some resolution to what could have been an ongoing problem in the characters’ lives, yet the solution creates other problems. Life. I also occasionally became impatient with the author’s style, similar to that of several authors I often read when younger but do not read now.

            Obviously, the book is intense and highly emotional. It leads the reader to consider what strengths would be needed to fight one’s way back to everyday life after such experiences. In two books, Michelle Knight, one of Castro’s victims, who is now known as Lily Rose Lee, attempts to answer that question. Knight’s books are titled Finding Me: A Decade of Darkness, A Life Reclaimed (Hatchette, 2015) and Life After Darkness: Finding Healing and Happiness After the Cleveland Kidnappings (Hatchette, 2018.)  In addition, Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus, Castro’s other victims, wrote Hope: A Memoir of Survival in Cleveland (Penguin, 2016.) These books may help to answer reader question.

Nevermore: Sliver of Light, Wrong Enemy, Maine, Star Called Henry, and Close My Eyes

Summary by Jeanne

One of our Nevermore regulars was unable to attend a meeting, but she insisted on phoning in a review.  She was most enthusiastic about A Sliver of Light:  Three Americans Imprisoned in Iran by Shane Bauer, Joshua Fattal and Sarah Shourd.  This is the story of the three young hikers who were captured and held for two years, at least in the case of the two men.  Our reviewer said it was a beautifully written book and the story was absorbing.  According to the book, they were actually lured across the border to be used as political pawns.  Much of the rest of the story concerns how they were able to survive imprisonment, the relationships they forged with each other and with their captors, and how they were finally released. The story is told by all three in alternating chapters.  A Sliver of Light is highly recommended.

Another book receiving much praise is set in the same region.  The Wrong Enemy: America in Afghanistan, 2001-2014 by Carlotta Gall is an overview of the U.S. involvement in the area.  Gall, a foreign correspondent for the New York Times, brings over a decade’s worth of observation to this insightful, well written, and—in the words of our reviewer—scary book.  Gall views Karzai as both inept and corrupt, but makes a case that our real problem is actually Pakistan where the ISI has supported the Taliban for its own purposes.  Again, the book is highly recommended.

Moving from non-fiction to fiction and from Iran to Ireland, our next reader touted Roddy Doyle’s A Star Called Henry.  This is the first book of “The Last Roundup” trilogy which tells the story of Ireland in the 20^th century as viewed by Henry Smart.  In this book, we meet Henry as an impoverished child, son of a hit man with a wooden leg and a teenage girl.  By 14, Henry is involved with the Irish Republican Army and is a witness to the 1916 Easter Rising. Later books follow Henry as he goes to New York, encounters film director John Ford, and back to Ireland.  The other books are Oh, Play That Thing and The Dead Republic.

Maine is the second novel for J. Courtney Sullivan, following Commencement.  Once again, Sullivan explores the intricacies of relationships, but this time between three generations of women in the Kelleher family.  Each year, they all meet at the family beach house in Maine.  The point of view rotates between the characters, giving the reader multiple viewpoints to consider.  Our reader praised the book for its great dialog and well-written characters.  She commented that while the reader does see the mistakes of one generation repeated in the next, that it all “felt real.”

In Close My Eyes, Gen Loxley is still grieving for her stillborn daughter eight years later.  Then one day a woman shows up at her door with a fantastic story about the baby being stolen and that Gen’s husband Art was in on the scheme.  Desperate for answers, Gen doesn’t know who to turn to for help or who to trust as she tries to discover the truth about her child.  Our reader found this thriller by Sophie McKenzie to be a very satisfying book, and thinks any suspense fan would enjoy the book.