What readers think of The Same Sky, plus links to write your own review.

This was my first book by this author, but after reading this I will be looking for others by her. Although there were some aspects of this story that weren't quite believable and there were a few inconsistencies in the details of the story (which hopefully will be corrected before publication), it was overall a good read. Both of the parallel stories were compelling, but I thought the characters in Carla's story were a little better developed than those in Alice's. Carla's story is especially relevant now, when immigration is an often hotly debated issue.

I am a big fan of Amanda Eyre Ward's novels and looked forward to this latest book. I was not disappointed. As in her earlier novels, her characters are so well-developed and the story so compelling, it was impossible to put down once I started reading it.

This is the story of two parallel lives - Alice, a young woman struggling with infertility and her dream of being a mother, and Carla, an 11-year-old girl desperate to cross the border from Mexico to join her mother in America. Told in alternating narratives, their stories initially do not seem connected, although you suspect that their paths will cross at some point. As the book unfolds, the parallels become more evident, not in the events they experience, but in their journey of self-discovery. Both experience terrible loss. How they overcome and triumph over this is the heart of the novel. It is a hopeful and uplifting journey.

I also found the story of the young immigrant especially compelling. It put a human face on the recent stories of children crossing the border illegally - the desperation and brutality they experience. It reminds us that they are children who need our compassion and understanding.

Amanda Ward has written a very relevant novel considering today's headlines. This is a story of Alice and Carla. Carla is a young Honduras girl who has been left alone to care for her two younger brothers while her mother has illegally emigrated to the USA. Carla's life is exceedingly difficult and each day is a fight to survive. Alice is a successful restaurant owner with her husband in Texas who is unable to conceive and desperately wants a baby. Not until the very end does the reader understand how Alice and Carla's lives intersect.

The book is very well written and Ward emotionally engages you in the story. The underlying message in Ward's book is that the USA is a beacon of hope to today's immigrants and they, in turn, have something to offer us. Ward does an excellent job describing the immigrant's lives in their home countries and their rationale as to why they traverse such dangerous terrain to get here.

I rated the book a '4' because I enjoyed the story and how well Ward writes. I don't agree with her assessment of how to handle refugees; thus my inability to rate the book a '5. I don't the solution is as simple as Ward describes.

I really enjoyed reading "The Same Sky". I absolutely loved both of the storylines that are told - one of a Honduran immigrant trying to get to her mother in America, and one of a middle class woman trying to become a mother (in America). I thought I knew where the stories were headed but I ended up being wrong - there was a twist that was very sweet. The depiction of the struggles & hardships that each woman experienced, and the ways they evolved over the course of the story, were painfully felt by the reader - in the way of a wonderfully told story. It was real and raw and I understood (felt) their struggles. There were a few moments glossed over that I felt could have been more thoroughly developed otherwise I'd give a rating of 5. This will appeal to book clubs, and anyone who loves to read of characters who evolve and find joy in spite of circumstances as they fight their inner demons.

This was a fast and predictable read. I read most of the book in one long evening. You wanted to find out how the trip to the United States was completed.

Alice's emotions regarding the desire to have a child led her to try to give support to a very troubled teen.

Once Carla was on the train I felt certain that I could anticipate where the story was going and the fact the two women would eventually cross paths.

It was amazing the many hardships eleven year old Carla experienced and was able to handle. She actually had no choice. I suffered with her when she needed to make the decision regarding her brother.

It certainly was a vivid insight into the hardships hundreds of immigrant families and single children are experiencing today in order to reach the "promised land"

Alice and Carla immediately become alive in this well-written, captivating novel about two people from very different backgrounds searching for belonging, love and family. Ward provides us with an opportunity to see the struggles of Carla as she makes her way to the U.S. on the "beast" and Alice as she tries to fulfill her life in the absence of a "family". The Same Sky is a page turner and an excellent read.

The Same Sky reads fast but deals with tough issues that cannot be ignored. The novel covers the lives of Alice who lives in Texas dealing with the heartache of not being able to have a child and Carla, an eleven-year-old girl, who with her brother tries to make her way from Honduras to Texas. What I liked most about these two characters is their resilience and their faith to believe that they will get what they want. They never gave up on their dream. I found Carla's story particularly compelling because it was like something ripped right from the headlines and is an ongoing and volatile issue within this country. Hope is what drives these two and with it comes the possibility of happy endings.

I enjoyed this book a great deal. It was an easy read. I came to care very much for the characters in both story lines. I ached for the young girl, Caria, and her brother trying to come to America. I became frustrated with Alice and her desire to have a child. I could relate to her need for children but was frustrated with her indecisiveness. The story was definitely not predictable and kept me interested to see where their lives would intersect. I am interested to see what others think of these tso very different characters.