March 27, 2026 · 2:35 pm
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Books Get Me Through The Great Alone

It’s been two weeks since I left Nevada and one week since I arrived at my new Michigan home. All of these days have been solo; I drove alone, I arrived alone to an empty house, I spend my days here alone. There’s a theme building . . . For now!

The Way In

But husband and kitties will be joining me soon.

The Dreaded Cot (I do not love it)
A Lonely Room (but I love it!)

As an introvert, this hasn’t been particularly tough. I love people, but I also love solitude. I just got the internet yesterday, and that’s fun because now I can write and publish my writing more easily. No TV here yet. No furniture to speak of. I have one little lamp table that fit in my car, a folding camp chair, and a cot. That’s it. Everything else will come in the moving van next week. So, what do I do all day?

I clean and I read. Often, at the same time, by listening to audiobooks using the Libby library App. One of the books I’ve enjoyed so far during this extended period of solitude is aptly The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah. It’s a tough book about a tough time and a tough place, but I liked it. Alaska in the 1970s, mental illness, abuse . . . it’s got it all, but it isn’t only that, of course. It’s also a book filled with nostalgia, love, and the awesomeness of nature.

Other books I read either just prior to moving, during the drive, or since my arrival are: We All Live Here, Moyes; Sandwich, Newman; The Secret Book of Flora Lea, Henry; Remain, Spark and Shyamalan; The Missing Half, Flowers and Kiester; and currently, The Island of Sea Women, See. Each book has its merits.

I found both We All Live Here and Sandwich charming and humorous. Both are light, contemporary novels with women protagonists wrestling with life changing events and the love of family.

The Secret Book of Flora Lea took me to one of my favorite historical settings, World War II England, in the countryside and also to London in the 1960s. It’s a delightful book about sisters, families, love, and the importance of stories.

Remain and The Missing Half are mysteries, with Remain being the more entertaining of the two for me. The Missing Half helped pass the time, but Remain’s ghostly love story captivated me at times, including during several memorable scenes that made me shiver.

And now I’m listening to The Island of Sea Women. It’s taken me to a part of the world I know very little about, which I love, because I am learning so much. It’s set in Korea from the story’s beginning in the 1930s and will move through the war years and take me to the present day. It’s about women sea divers (an amazing group of female divers who earn the money for their families while their husbands care for the children), and it’s the story of two friends Mi-ja and Young-sook.   

As you can see, I’ve not been alone, not really, for I’ve been traveling through time and place along with the characters created by the authors of these varied and appealing novels, carried away by their stories. It’s a kind of magic really, the way a reader lives both inside and outside of a book—simultaneously in the room, and also somewhere else far away.

I love this line about reading from Stephen Chbosky from his young adult novel, The Perks of Being a Wallflower:

“Sometimes, I read a book, and I think I am the people in the book.”

Exactly.

29 Comments

Filed under Authors, Books, Commentary, Fiction, HIstorical Fiction, Home, Identity, Literary Fiction, Nature, Personal History, Reading, Uncategorized, Winter, World War II

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29 responses to “Books Get Me Through The Great Alone”

  2. Victoria's avatar Victoria
    March 27, 2026 at 3:45 pm

    Ohhhh! Love all of this! I need to read the Kristin Hannah book — Great Alone. My sister in law moved to Alaska in the 70s and her life had so many ups and downs…a writer and a deep thinker and wounded soul. Your description of Great Alone is drawing me in. ❤️
    Thanks so much for this post and your pics! The beams! The wood…gorgeous!!! Sending loads of love.
    Xo! 😘

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  3. Michael Williams's avatar Michael Williams
    March 27, 2026 at 6:33 pm

    that is a beautiful window front window! I can imagine how much reading and writing you will get done with so much natural light coming in.

    and the cot size bed, lol. yes, I learned the hard way that it was not “another word” for a twin size designation 😀 Mike

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    • Lori Pohlman's avatar Lori Pohlman
      March 27, 2026 at 6:38 pm

      Ha, ha! Yes the horrible, hard, and oh so very tiny cot! But, with those windows at the front of the house . . . I believe I can bear almost anything! The light is amazing, even on the most overcast days. And the birds and squirrels and deer . . . it’s a writer’s dream, or at least one of mine. I will be placing my desk right in front of the windows when it arrives. So great to hear from you, Mike! Thank you!

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  4. Rose's avatar Rose
    March 27, 2026 at 10:23 pm

    Thanks for introducing us to your reading selections during this time. Us introverts do manage quite well under circumstances when we have lots of alone time to process changes. I hope your husband, kitties, and furniture all make it there safely to your lovely new home. Your last paragraph sums up how I feel about reading. And the quote, as you say – exactly. As I read, I always feel like I’m in the story.

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  5. beth's avatar beth
    March 28, 2026 at 8:50 am

    that was a hard read, but I loved it overall. I’m a michigander, what part of the state will you be living in? I love the windows in your new home-

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  6. Wynne Leon's avatar Wynne Leon
    March 28, 2026 at 11:09 am

    I love that you take us along as you travel through time and place. Nice job getting there! I love that you are in good company as you wait for your husband and cats!

    And I totally think I’m the people in books too. Glad to know I’m in good company!

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    • Lori Pohlman's avatar Lori Pohlman
      March 28, 2026 at 12:23 pm

      Thanks so very much, Wynne! I love the way we all share so many different perspectives and experiences here. Your weekly photos, for example, always warm my heart and make me smile. Your adorable family life and the all the pretty places and faces! 💞

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  7. Pam Webb's avatar Pam Webb
    March 29, 2026 at 7:41 am

    Books can get me through more than chocolate—and that’s saying something.

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  8. roughwighting's avatar roughwighting
    March 29, 2026 at 9:08 am

    Wait. We’re NOT the people in the book?? I’m quite positive that I become the main character while reading, particularly when I like the main character. Perhaps that’s why I won’t read a book in which there is no redeeming quality to any of the characters.
    I’ve read almost all the books you list here – The Great Alone (depressing, deep, great writing), Remain (fun while spooky and romantic), Sandwich (dysfunctional family and glad to read it not live it), just finished listening to We All Live Here and liked it the more I got into it; and now I’ll put The Secret Life of Flora Lea in my TBR pile.
    Congrats on making the drive, on living alone while you wait for “your people,” and for readying yourself for the new adventures to come.

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    • Lori Pohlman's avatar Lori Pohlman
      March 29, 2026 at 9:43 am

      Ha! Thanks so much for your fun response. Pamela! I absolutely agree with you about needing to identify with the characters in the books we inhabit. 😻 I love it, too, that we’ve read so many of the same books. I hope you enjoy the Flora Lea story. ✍️-Lori

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  10. mariezhuikov's avatar mariezhuikov
    March 29, 2026 at 2:11 pm

    Thank goodness you have books to keep you company! I suppose a bit of shoveling has also been involved in your move. 🙂

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