****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
Today We Go Home brought magically united two heroines, modern-day Larkin and nineteenth-century Emily, struggling to survive the horrors of war. Ms. Estes spares us few details through the obstacles and brutal losses in the Civil War, where Emily dwells, and the Afghanistan War where Larkin served and lost her best friend, Sarah. The PTSD or "nostalgia," as it was called in the 1800's, is evident as each of these women struggle through soldiering and then finding their way home, It deals with issues such as women seeking recognition, with their nightmares, and with forgiveness, both of themselves and others. The dairy penned by Emily was a healing object in Larkin's path forward, as well as a talisman for Emily. There were some tender moments and some heart-wrenching moments through their stories, some unexpected helpers, as if angels easing such difficult paths chosen by these characters. A couple places in the story came across, to me, as modern-day social issues (curious language for nineteenth century) where I felt such had been more appropriately relayed through the story and the actions of the characters. Of course, Throughout, Grandma was a godsend. I will not reveal the novel's end, but I did tear up in that one scene in the last chapter. So evocative and made all the connections come alive.
