Allie and Bea: A Novel

Enjoyed the book.

A great easy read, your soon rooting for them, wanting them to succeed.

I've loved every book from this author I've read so far. Her writing captures the trials people face so beautifully and I always find myself fully immersed in the plot and rooting for the characters. This book is no different and it charmed me from the start. After the passing of her husband, Bea has lived alone, struggling to make ends meet. When she falls victim to a scammer and is left penniless, she has no choice but to leave her home and live in her van. Taking only her cat, favourite chair and a few necessities, she sets off on the road, unsure how she will survive each day. Then she meets Allie, a young girl who through no fault of her own has also found herself homeless. As they embark on a journey in the van, they begin to form a friendship that sees both of them change their outlook on life. Thoughtful and truly heartwarming, I loved this uplifting story about hope, kindness and friendship.

really good read!

To my surprise I really enjoyed this book. There were serious events written about but it was light hearted too. Showed the difference between the poor & well off in the US & the lives they lived. A satisfying ending too.

I had this on audio, although it failed after a while. The narration was good. The story kept my attention throughout. Both Bea and Allie were very well drawn and credible. Their developing relationship was fun, realistic, sparky and rather joyful. I couldn't help feeling concerned for the cat but she was having a good time with almost constant company. In that small van though, the odours.....!! Some touching interludes with brief encounters. Equally, some scary and brutal moments. The theme of mixing generations isn't new but is dependant on the authors approach and ability to create a credible and convincing relationship. This relationship more than ticked those criteria.

A teenager and a pensioner get together under different circumstances. They decide to go on a road trip, have an adventure. They meet a couple of people along the way. The police catch up with the runaway teenager, she ends up going back home and asks the pensioner to stay. That's about it really. Not much of an adventure but an easy read.

Great insight into character and change.. In its own way a beautiful story but with such a strong message underneath. In fact a highly moral tale with a happy ending.

A well written book about how a teenager and an old woman's paths cross and how they get along. I would recommend this book to everyone.

The protagonists in this novel are at opposite ends of the age spectrum, and neither at an age usually associated with the Coming of Age, but that's where they're at in this book.. This is a delightful story about two incongruous personalities on an equally incongruous life journey. The whole book only covers a short period of time, but because of the 'adventures' these two have, it seems much longer. The dialogue is fast-paced and witty, matching the characters perfectly. The characters themselves are very convincing and well crafted. It would be sad to suppose that the events portrayed in this book actually happen regularly in real life. I am sure they do, and we are all the better for being reminded of how good our lives are.

An excellent way to go from the past time to understanding the reasons for the present. It’s mixed with suspense and enough almost tragedy to hold one’s interest

I really enjoyed reading Allie and Bea, as it is a story of two characters, who could not be any more different, coincidently run into each other and set out on a journey together that is pretty much doomed right from the start. But as they travel together they start to learn from one another. They begin to see the world from the eyes of their companion, and it makes them both so much richer. There is a lot of heart ache to feel with the two protagonists, but there is also so much hope. A must-read!

What a nice story…social systems, family and non-family relationships. The type of story that should be made into a feel-good movie. It would be beneficial for families to look at it together.