Thank You For All Things by Sandra Kring

Before I write anything here, I usually look around the internet to see what other people have said. While it doesn’t ever change my opinion of a book, it does let me know if my opinion is in the majority or minority. Given the heavy drama that takes place in Thank You For All Things, the subhead beneath the title on Salon.com seemed appropriate, “A messed-up Midwestern family grapples with buried secrets in Sandra's Kring's gripping saga Thank You for All Things." But the review’s opening line surprised me, when they referred to Sandra Kring’s “delightful” novel...

Gee, given the tremendous pain and suffering, overwhelming sadness, and despicable behavior, “delightful” is not a word I would have chosen. Lucy is the novel’s 11-year-old narrator, who, despite the acknowledgement that her twin brother Milo, (not her) is the “profoundly gifted” one, seems to have a little edge in that area herself. While the portrait of Milo follows typical aspergers’ type intelligence, i.e. poor social skills, genius mathematician; Lucy describes herself (many times) simply as “people smart”. I honestly didn’t hate this book, but the incessant harping on their high intelligence was tiresome. Got it, they’re gifted. Oh, and of course, they’re home schooled. (Here’s my small jab at home schooling – Tess, their mother, never graduated college, but came close. What is it in our culture that makes us think we have the skills necessary to teach when we have studied only a narrow range of topics? Do you remember seventh grade science well enough to teach it to your child?) Also, didn’t know you could support two children on the income of a Christian romance writer. That’s the official end of my teensy rant.

The story begins with an unforeseen series of events that leads Tess to drive her mother and kids from their home in Chicago back to the house in Wisconsin where she grew up. Her father is dying, and Oma, Tess’ mom, long ago promised to care for him when he died. It is a little surprising, given the events we learn about in their past, that she would feel any obligation at all to this man, who abused her for many years. Unfortunately for them, he was a man who showed a kind face to his community, so their hatred for this abusive, philandering man is a puzzle to the town they return to.

Everyone is looking for something in this novel, and the beauty of the story is that they get what they need only in varying degrees. Lucy is desperate to know the identity of her father. She goes to great lengths to discover who he is, but the truth is not nearly as satisfying as the mystery. I felt that the final unveiling of this deep family secret was almost anticlimactic. Milo, while most times a stereotype, does have his moments. Having brothers who are twins, I felt the understanding between Milo and Lucy, both spoken and not, was true to the special bonds between twins. Oma is happy to return to the town, because she has reinvented herself as a strong, new-age woman. I found her quirky character to be the most honest and I think I cared about her most of all. Tess, is just a mess, easily categorized by her psychoanalyst daughter, but pretty two-dimensional for her endless bad humor and relentless self-medication. Needless to say, there were very few heart-warming mother-child scenes.

But there are wonderful minor characters here: Oma’s friend Marie, Tess’ friends Peter and Mitzy, and of course, the wicked old sister you will love to hate. There’s even the wise old town madame, and the tragic ex-girlfriend (who we somehow pity because she was the woman he really loved; oh, and, she’s lost her mind). Despite its flaws, this is still a good read. You will expect a happy ending, and you will get one, but it’s not going to be pretty along the way.