📘 She Ain't Heavy
by Arnine Cumsky Weiss
Genre Fiction ◦ Contemporary
Format & Source Print ◦ For review
Publication 2012
Rating ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
📚 What It's About
She Ain’t Heavy tells the story of Teddy Warner, a young woman who needs a fresh start in life after a less than ideal upbringing. Having never graduated from high school, Teddy spends her days working at Dunkin’ Donuts and living in a small apartment from which she’s about to be kicked out. She doesn’t have much going for her, with virtually no family or friends around, so when she bumps into a childhood friend, Rachel, she takes her up on her offer to move to Philadelphia with her, where she’s a graduate student. There, Teddy plans on making a fresh start, until Rachel suffers from carbon monoxide poisoning and falls into a coma and their lives are turned upside down. Now, Teddy is alone again in an unknown city with no friends, no money, and no real plan. Along the way, she encounters new people, tries to help Rachel recover, and tries to make something of herself through the struggle.
📝 My Review
This was an interesting story. It was sort of a coming of age story for Teddy, who has been dealt a pretty crappy hand all of her life. Despite all of the obstacles that are thrown her way, she’s a tough girl, always doing the best she knows how.
I would kind of describe this as a “quiet” tale. While nothing too exciting happens, it’s fascinating and captivating to observe Teddy’s life on a day to day basis and seeing all that she has to endure. While she could be a bit frustrating at times, all in all, I liked her and I enjoyed seeing her make progress and find her own path.
I would recommend this for fans of character driven novels and strong female leads. While it hasn’t become one of my favorites, it was an enjoyable and worthwhile read that captured my attention.
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