The World In Half

The World in Half
by Cristina Henriquez
305 Pages
Fiction
April 2009
Riverhead
Advanced Reader Copy
978-1594488559
Rating: 4/5

Miraflores grows up living with her single mother. Her mother had an affair with her father while she and her husband were stationed in Panama. She was the result. Was she the deal breaker? Miraflores longs to know more about her father, about the decisions and why she never knew him, why her mother left Panama. When she goes back home to take care of her ailing mother her questions are answered, her mother and father loved each other deeply, and there is one secret that kept them from being together to raise their daughter.

The World in half is a book of family drama, but not the way that you'd think. It is settled so far in the past that all the emotions have cleared and the story that lives under them is able to shine through. Stunningly written, with life filled characters, it is a read full of mystery, intrigue and true deep love. The story has turns and twists and things that wouldn't be expected. This was a hit for me for many reasons, but mainly because of a family's love that overcomes the separation of time and space.