A Place to
Belong
Paul Miller
Reviewed by
Jenny Salyers
When eight year old
Paul sees
his parents returning early from a trip to Florida, the last thing he
expects to hear is that his
family will be getting smaller, as he and his parents move to Florida. The move means
leaving his older siblings (who
are married or grown enough to support themselves), and his mentally
disabled
brother Johnny in Detroit, MI. Paul finds his
world spiraling out of control
as the move to Florida turns into a
zigzagging trip across the country.
When they reach California, life settles down
enough to allow Paul to return
to school, make friends, and hope that the constant uprooting will end.
Then Paul’s
mother dies,
leaving him with a father who is becoming more violent, and unstable.
Believing
that his wife had been cheating on him, and that Paul knows who the
supposed
boyfriend is, he beats Paul for not answering his questions. Paul,
deciding
enough is enough, borrows the bus fare back to Detroit from one of his older
brothers. Unfortunately for
him, no one in his family wants him back.
So, he lives in an unhappy
situation at his sister Mattie’s house until he finds himself with a
choice to
make. To stay in Detroit, living with family
who don’t want him, or to move
to Dearborn, MI and become the foster
child to a childless couple
named Montayne. Paul chooses the latter, moves and stays with them for
a year,
until his itch to wander kicks in, along with the slow failure of the
Montayne’s marriage.
Paul leaves to hitch hike
across the country. He goes from Michigan south, and then heads
west again. Finally he finds
himself back in California, in the town where his
mother died, and his father
still lived. Paul was given a chance to try and come to some closure
with his
father, find out why they had moved so much and to try and find what he
wanted
with his life.
A Place to
Belong is a story of a young man whose life has been turned into
turmoil. We witness Paul as he deals with abandonment as his parents
leave him
alone for
days and weeks at a time, and slowly get caught up in a life of petty
theft. It
isn’t until Paul meets some very spiritual people in his travels that
he starts
praying to a god that has suddenly become a more friendly and
approachable
being. This book deals with some pretty heavy issues as Paul struggles
to find
the strength in him, and a place where he will finally belong. I found
the book
to be gripping, and found myself feeling for Paul as his travels bring
him from
a confused boy of eight to a sixteen year old finally finding his place
in the
world.