Home Field audiobook

I can sure see the stated resemblance especially to Friday Night Lights -an understated but powerful rendition of a family torn apart by tragedy. It made me reflect on mental illness, specifically depression and suicide, and how it impacts loved ones and causes unintended reverberations.

I received this book in a goodreads giveaway and I'm so glad i did because it's a beautifully written novel about family drama; a father, his teenage daughter, his two young sons, and the small town they live in. For anyone who grew up in the 90's or raised children during the 90's this book will remind you of home. I loved the characters and got attached to them instantly. The plot is both heartbreaking and heartwarming (I'll admit I cried more than once). Overall, I loved this book and highly recommend it! A must read!

Hannah Gersen's debut novel Home Field is billed as a combination of Friday Night Lights and My So-Called Life. That's quite a high bar to set, and Gersen clears it with room to spare.Dean is a successful high school football coach in a small Maryland town. He runs a terrific program, and is known and respected throughout the town. Years ago he married a young widow, Nicole, whose husband was a high school football hero. Nicole and her husband were high school sweethearts and had a young daughter, Stephanie, when he was diagnosed and died.Nicole suffers from depression, perhaps she never got over the loss of the love of her life. Dean was smitten with her and young Stephanie, and they married and had two boys of their own, Robbie and Bryan.As the story opens, Nicole commits suicide and is found by her eleven-year-old son Robbie. Stephanie is set to go away to college, and struggles with leaving her brothers and father to go so far from home. Robbie begins cutting class and acting out, and finally finds salvation by participating in the high school play.Bryan has spending more time with Nicole's sister and her family, devoutly religious people. Bryan finds solace in religion, much to Dean's concern. He feels that his sister-in-law is unduly influencing his young son.Coaching a successful high school football program is a time-consuming profession, and Dean comes to the conclusion that he needs to step down for the sake of his children. He also becomes involved with Robbie's school counselor, a woman he knew when she was a substitute teacher at his school.Stephanie is trying to find her way in the world, and Gersen really nails the feelings of a young woman adrift. She is grieving the loss of a mother she loved, feeling angry that her mother abandoned them all, and sad that her mother was suffering so. She also feels guilty that she has left her brothers behind.Reading this part of the story took me back to my own time going away to college, so vivid is the connection between Stephanie's experiences and most young women. Bravo to Ms. Gersen.Just when Dean thinks he is losing it all, an opportunity to temporarily coach the girls cross country track team falls in his lap. He misses football, and he forms a connection with the girls that gives him a sense of control and accomplishment he is lacking in his personal life.Gersen does a wonderful job with the setting and characters of her story. She has the small town atmosphere just right, and we care deeply about these people, even as we see them making mistakes. Dean in particular needs to learn the importance of verbal communication with his children. They need to talk about what happened to them, and he, like many men, has trouble with that.Home Field is an emotional, moving book that touched my heart. Gersen's ability to write so beautifully and realistically in the voices of Dean, Stephanie and Robbie is quite an accomplishment. I recommend Home Field to anyone who loves a good family story.

I grew up in the county over from where "Home Field" takes place and I started high school in 1999 so I was excited to get a look at a world I knew through this book. Aside from the familiar setting, this book has a really good family drama at its center. Dean is his small town's football coach. His wife was the beauty queen. They have two kids that seem like they're on their way to success. It was an all-American story until Dean's life and the life of his kids is shattered when his wife commits suicide. Each person will have to find their own way to pick up the pieces.The story mostly focuses on Dean and his daughter, Stephanie, who is desperate to get away from her small town for Swarthmore. I loved the way the author divided the book between these two. Dean is trying so hard not to show what a hard time he is having with his wife's death. I really liked how the author was able to get inside his head and show a really fascinating character that has more going on inside than he would ever admit. I also really liked Stephanie's character in the book. She is on the cusp of being an adult but has so much turmoil rolling through her due to her mother's death.This is a family that I will be thinking about for a long time. I really felt close to them throughout the book. The author really captures realistic emotions throughout the book so that the characters felt like real people to me!

i love so much about this novel: its sensitive, well-observed depiction of depression and grief; its careful but also incredibly natural structure and plotting; its serious treatment of small towns and small town life; the choice to alternate between the perspectives of high school football coach dean and his daughter, swarthmore freshman stephanie, and its ability to handle the two equally well; gersen's prose, which is always a pleasure to read but never tries too hard to dazzle you. the novel begins with nicole, long-depressed wife to dean and mother to stephanie, committing suicide. we spend the rest of the novel watching dean and stephanie grieve and try to rebuild their lives. dean struggles to handle the demands of his job; he tries to repair his relationships with his increasingly aloof daughter and sons; he searches for companionship. stephanie, meanwhile, adjusts to college life; she wonders who her friends are, and struggles to balance school with family obligations. this is a novel about ordinary people trying to rebuild their ordinary lives after an extraordinary tragedy.i interviewed hannah for the lit pub! we talked about this book, among other things.http://thelitpub.com/lives-in-the-wak...

Full review on my blog: http://www.thebookwhisperer.org/2016/...

This book is lovely. It's like FNL+MSCL. Bonus points if you know what that means!

This book is heartbreaking, beautiful, poignant, and more. Not only is the style poetic, it's easy to read without being flowery. All of the characters are interesting and complex with different journeys of growth so that by the end of the book, each of them has grown and changed (except for maybe Bryan, but he's like, eight years old and far more of a lesser supporting character). I found myself relating to Stephanie in so many ways, and it brought back my first year of college, which was only five years ago, so that experience is still fresh in my mind.I would've loved to learn more about Nicole since she's such a major character, even though we never get to see her except for brief flashbacks through one of the characters' perspectives. She felt more like a ghost than a person who had once been a part of their family, and I get that that was on purpose, but I definitely would have like to know more about her background without it necessarily coming through the perspective of her daughter or her husband. That's just a minor thing for me, and it didn't even take away from the novel as a whole. I would recommend this book to anyone in a heartbeat.

I started reading this book yesterday morning and did not stop until I finished. Needless to say I found the story compelling and the book held my interest until the end - even then I wanted at least another chapter or two. Reflecting on it now, I wish there were a couple of conversations that needed to happen (between some of the characters) that the author didn’t write, so you are left wondering and maybe that’s not all bad. Sometimes it’s ok to not have everything wrapped up in a nice neat bow.

This book came highly recommended from Goodreads but it seemed depressing, so it sat for a long time. But alas, i finally read it. Yes, it starts depressing, but in the end, you really want to know what’s going to happen when the story ends. This is Hannah Gersen’s first novel and it’s pretty good. Suicide and depression is a big topic in this book, just FYI.

I enjoyed Home Field although I thought it would be more about sports. I like Ms. Gersen's writing style.The various family dramas were communicated well as each character was developed sufficiently. It was interesting how each family member coped with the suicide of the wife/mother.

Heart warming first novel from Hannah Gersen. The story line touched me, hard to put into words my feeling. An unforgettable read, yes, similar to a "Friday Night Lights" story, but with the sensitivity and emotional flow of "The Shack".

The story about the Renner family is filled with sadness, grief and guilt. My heart went out to the children as they dealt with the loss of their mother. Their dad, Dean, had his demons to deal with and has a hard time finding his way through his grief and guilt.

Heartbreakingly honestHome Field is a heartbreakingly honest look at love, loss and depression. How depression effects this family of children and their father after their mother’s suicide.

Not at all what I envisioned. Picked this up as I enjoy reading about sports. This was so much more. Highly recommend.