Review: Light and Air

By Mindy Nichols Wendell

Holiday House, 2024. Fiction. 188 pages.

In 1935, Halle's lives with her mother and father. Every day at school, she gets to see her best friend Thelma. Although her life isn't perfect, her father is eager to criticize and hesitant to show affection, it is pretty great. But then Momma is diagnosed with tuberculosis (TB) and is rushed to J.N. Adam Hospital in upstate New York. Once it's just Halle and Papa, he becomes even less affectionate and more withdrawn, expecting her to take care of the housework and lashing out if it's not adequately handled. Halle's school life is also difficult, where she is bullied and ostracized by the children who assume that she also has TB, even though her x-rays have shown her lungs look clear. When everything comes to a head, she decides to walk the 20 miles to visit her mother in the hospital, but while on the way she becomes ill and ends up becoming a patient in the hospital herself.

This book gives you insight into healthcare during that time period, especially since it takes place in J.N. Adam Hospital, which was a real tuberculosis hospital during that time. It also delves into difficult family dynamics and found family. If you're interested in early 20th century history, this book is a winner.

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