A review by bethreadsandnaps
The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

5.0

So glad I got this one in before the end of the year! 

In Amanda Peters' debut THE BERRY PICKERS Joe was in the vicinity as a 6 year old when his 4 year old sister Ruthie disappeared. Then, ten years later, he was there when his older brother Charlie was killed in a fight. These traumas impacted him deeply, and he turned to alcohol to drown his sorrows. I have such empathy for Joe, and I've never met a character who has resembled my own father so much in a novel. I wish my father was still here so I could learn about what happened when he was young. 

Anyway, back to the story. As a reader, you learn early on that Ruthie was actually kidnapped by the wife of a judge. She had been through her own traumas of multiple miscarriages, and she made a wrong choice when she drove past an unattended little girl sitting on a rock. Ruthie became Norma. 

I loved just about everything about this novel, and I liked that the story wasn't overly long. It was the perfect story in the perfect package for me.