Ann Karen Dowd

How Did She Get There? Ann Karen Dowd

Caro Barrone is an acclaimed poet, highly respected in New York's literary circles. Unfortunately her personal life eclipses her professional one. Recently widowed, emotionally and geographically distant from her only daughter, and reeling from the unexpected death of her dearest friend and editor, Marcie Harrington, Caro abandons the city for the Hamptons' windswept beaches where she meets Livia Valdez. A lonely thirteen-year-old, Livia is everything Caro once was: shy, serious, and only just beginning to reveal her poetic genius. Struck by the girl's staggering beauty as well as her literary potential, Caro elects herself Livia's mentor. The isolated girl welcomes the special attention, considering her newly remarried mother foisted her off on relatives for the summer. Before long, however, their innocent friendship takes an ominous turn when Caro is shattered by a betrayal. Her benevolent interest in Livia morphs into a dangerous obsession, and ultimately, Caro must choose?selfishly fulfilling her own desires could devastate the child, even as acknowledging them could drive Caro to ruin. This provocative novella takes an honest look at one woman's struggle with love and desire, motherhood and marriage, loss and mourning. Unlike so many female characters in fiction, Caro is neither pure victim nor villain. Rather, she is a fully realized woman whose capacity for transgression is countered only by her capacity for redemption. Caro's struggle for self-discovery makes How Did She Get There? an absorbing and thought-provoking read for women of any age.