A Heart in a Body in the World by Deb Caletti (review)

Annabelle is running. It starts as a momentary impulse, when emotions over a recent trauma crash in on her as she waits in a fast-food line, but now she thinks it's her purpose, and the former high school track athlete decides she's going to run from her home in Seattle to Washington, D.C. Annabelle has the support of her staunch little brother and beloved hometown friends, and soon her retired grandfather trundles along in his RV to provide her with a backup vehicle, home-cooked meals, and Italian curses. As Annabelle runs, her past acquaintance with a boy she labels only as "The Taker" plays out in brief flashback scenes that spiral down into guilt and grief and that gradually accrue into a high-tension, dread-infused leadup to a catastrophic event. Caletti takes the familiar road-trip genre and changes it up for a story of foot-driven travel, infused with the pounding rhythm of Annabelle's stride and involving intimate encounters with scenery and people all across the country. This is also a story of the dilemma of being young and female, of being inculcated with the message that it's important to be nice and that you are responsible for the emotions of other people, and straining to find messages about your own wants or even safety to counterbalance. The book's slow reveal of the harrowing tragedy is executed here with rare meaning as Annabelle herself, alone on the road, inches closer to the pain she's attempting to survive. What makes this book particularly affecting is the overwhelming kindness of people, whether her intimates or strangers along the way, who cheer and help Annabelle along her journey. Annabelle exemplifies persisting nevertheless, with her running body and with her heart, and readers will understand her turmoil and cheer her resilience.