Randy’s Reviews: Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah

Randy’s Reviews: Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah (Randyjw; August 3, 2017

Firefly Lane is a fictionalized account of female friendship, which could deftly stand-in for the bonds formed in our own lives. Kristin Hannah relates a sisterhood which would be familiar to many women, as they read along through the decades of Tully Hart’s and Kate Mularkey’s interactions and emotions.

The two girls meet at age fourteen in the decade of the nineteen-seventies, becoming fast friends despite drastically different expressive styles. Their upbringing is also at opposite poles, inspiring “grass-is-greener” envy by both girls for the other’s lifestyle.

They swear fealty forever in friendship, and form a pact to follow the same career together, but maturation and life events effect reconsideration and change in later plans. The inner roiling of the girls’ thoughts as they deal with these repercussions and their impact on their relationship elicits sympathies of the reader on many levels. It did the same for me, as well, as I thought back on the same kind of situations and, even, actual details, which reminded me of female friendships shared with my own best friends.

Given these coincidences, the book really resonates with me. Based on the fact that it made a bestseller’s list, it apparently held appeal for many others, too. I did think the material-culture references too overdrawn, but also often nodded in appreciation of their nostalgic mention.

I’m afraid to encounter the seemingly wistful conclusions alluded to in other reviews, as I’ve not yet reached the end. I’m rooting for these fast, forever-friends to pull through.