From Christina Baker Kline comes a novel about two women: one about to
age out of the foster care system, the other 90 years old and carrying
both a tremendous secret and a story of a life formed by a part of
American history almost entirely forgotten: the Orphan Trains
Molly Ayer has one last chance, and she knows it. Close to being kicked
out of her foster home -- just months from turning 18 and "aging out" of
the system -- Molly should be grateful that her boyfriend found her a
community service project: helping an old lady clean out her home. Molly
can't help but think that the 50 hours will be tedious, but at least
they'll keep her out of juvie, and right now that's all she cares about.
Ninety-one-year-old Vivian Daly has lived a quiet life on the coast of
Maine for decades. But in her attic, hidden in trunks, are keys to a
turbulent past. Molly is about to discover -- as she and Vivian unpack
her possessions, and memories -- that Vivian's story is a piece of
America's tumultuous history now largely forgotten: the tale of a young
Irish immigrant, orphaned in New York City and put on a train to the
Midwest with hundreds of other orphaned children whose destiny would be
determined by luck and chance. As Molly digs deeper, she finds
surprising parallels in her own experience as a Penobscot Indian and
Vivian's story -- and Molly realizes that she has the power to help
Vivian find answers to mysteries that have haunted her for her entire
life.
Rich in detail and epic in scope, Orphan Train is a powerful novel of
upheaval and resilience, of second chances, of unexpected friendships,
and of the secrets we carry with us that keep us from finding out who we
are.
