Kissing the Sky: A Novel

by Lisa Patton

From the bestselling author of Whistlin’ Dixie in a Nor’easter comes a soulful, nostalgic novel about a young woman coming of age in the ‘60s to the blare of the music that shaped a generation.

It’s the summer of ’69. While her peers revel in free love and rock and roll, Suzannah is home from college, sequestered inside her conservative Southern home. Her domineering father has condemned rock music and driven away her best friend. She’s counting the days until fall.

But everything changes when her free-spirited best friend, Livy, resurfaces, urging Suzannah, a talented singer, to join her for three days of peace and music in upstate New York. Fed up with her father’s rules and fearful for her brother’s fate in Vietnam, Suzannah agrees to the road trip, sneaking off without her parents’ knowledge.

Miles outside her comfort zone, the electrifying bedlam of Woodstock jolts her into a journey of self-transformation. But it’s not all incense and peppermints. Suzannah’s falling hard for Leon, a boy she meets at the festival, and the seductive bud of first love conceals a thorn of heartache. Lies uncover betrayal, and Livy’s wild behavior leads to a startling revelation.

A nostalgic trip through the turbulent ’60s, the music becomes a powerful force for social change. This is the story of a lovable heroine who lets go of the girl she was, to embrace the woman she’s becoming, and learns to lift her voice—for herself and perhaps for the world.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Romance, Coming Of Age, Historical, Audiobook, Music

399 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2026

About the author

Lisa Patton, author of Whistlin' Dixie in a Nor'easter, Yankee Doodle Dixie, Southern as a Second Language, and Rush, and Kissing The Sky is a Memphis, Tennessee native who spent time as a Vermont innkeeper until three sub-zero winters sent her speeding back down South. She has over twenty-five years of experience working in theater, radio, TV, and music, including a decade with Doobie Brother Michael McDonald, who, along with his wife Amy, helped Lisa cowrite and produce “If Not for You,” an original song for Kissing the Sky. A graduate of the University of Alabama, Lisa is the proud mother of two sons, eight bonus children, and twelve grandchildren. She and her husband live in the rolling hills of Nashville with their four-legged furry son named Ziggy, and furry daughter named Daisy.

To find links to the original song “If Not for You,” please visit Lisa’s website at www.lisapatton.com or go to the streaming platform of your choice: Amy Holland/ If Not for You Connect with Lisa on Instagram, @lisapattonbooks, and on Facebook, Lisa Patton.author.

Reviews

[Karren Sandercock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Memphis, Tennessee, August 1969. Suzannah is home from Union college for the summer, her father is religious and strict, he doesn’t allow her to sing, dance, listen to rock music, he forced her older brother Ron into signing up to fight in Vietnam and when he was exempt.

Suzannah hasn’t seen her best friend Livy in three years, out of the blue she appears and convinces SuSu to sneak out of the house and travel with her to upstate New York and attend a music festival or as it was advertised an Aquarian Exposition and where boyfriend will be waiting for them.

The traffic is jammed, she and Livy join masses of others walking to Max Yasgur’s farm in Bethel and they meet two guys Leon and his cousin Johnny along the way and she has no idea the next three days will change her life. Suzannah is a church attending, rule following goody two shoes and Woodstock is shocking, eye opening revelation and here she finds both her courage and voice.

I received a copy of Kissing the Sky from NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing in exchange for an honest review. Lisa Patton’s story blew me away, took me back to what it was like to be a young person in America in the late 1960’s, to Woodstock where hundreds of thousands conversed to listen to music, get drenched and covered in mud, find peace, love and most all share their dislike for the draft and Vietnam war.

A true coming of age story, I found Susannah's character refreshing, I laughed out loud when she was shocked, her insecurities, I cheered when she decided to seize the moment, I felt her joy, pain and shed a few tears. I didn't see the big plot twist coming and five stars from me and I highly recommend.

[Erika Bazzle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kissing the Sky puts you right at the center of the beautiful, iconic disaster that was Woodstock… and even more complicated era of the Vietnam war-focused United States.
This book tackles youthful rebellion, love, complicated family dynamics, a reckoning of faith, forgiveness, and the importance of having the freedom and opportunities to make way for self-discovery!
With historically accurate research and details, specific to the timeline of the actual events of that crazy weekend in 1969, you’ll learn some things and you’ll feel even more.
If you liked Daisy Jones and the Six, get ready to love this one, too.

[Sharon_🌺 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lisa Patton’s “Kissing the Sky,” touched my heart!
If you’re of a certain age,and care to take a little walk / dance / trip down memory lane?
Consider listening to the 🎤🎵🎶 🎸 music found on the Woodstock 1969 (Album). ☮️❤️🌻🌼

🌺 Read what you love! 🌺

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Welp, that was just delightful! 😃
Not my normal read,
but it was brought to my attention
(thanks a bunch, Crystal! 😊)
and I do love historical fiction.
I've not read anything set during Woodstock
and that aspect greatly intrigued me.

This was so very well done,
giving the Vietnam War political upheaval
and protests a personal portrayal
through Suzannah's family and
weaving it into the Woodstock experience...
just brilliant!
This was absolutely everything
I hoped it would be...
and then some!
Five thumbs up! 👍👍👍👍👍

[Sabrina Ingram · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazon First Reads Choice!

Dirty Dancing Parents Meets Woodstock
Vietnam War Brother
Narcissistic Best Friend
Grandmother Telling Daughter Life Story

I ate it UP. So Good!

[Annette Gregorio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read it one day. I couldn’t put it down. Woodstock was described as epic and the main character and the division in her family because of her dad’s religious views and the Vietnam War. Vietnam war was is still is the division of this country. But, throughout the whole time I was reading I was reading I was so invested in Suzannah and Leon staying together after Woodstock that I never saw a right time to put it down for the night so I didn’t sleep until I finished. Also, about what was happening with her peace loving brother in Vietnam. Not spoiling it. Must go read! Love it!!!!!

[Amy · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was one of my FREE Amazon First Reads.

This is a case of getting what you pay for....

For a book being set at Woodstock (well, most of it was), this was one of the SQUAREST books I've ever read, to borrow some 60s slang.

Our intrepid protagonist Suzannah is a prudish, sheltered 20-year-old who acts like she's 12. Yes, she grew up in a hyper-religious household with a super-strict dad. BUT she was friends with a 'normal' girl and talked about spending lots and lots of time with her friend's family...you'd think some emotional maturity would've rubbed off on her, but you'd be wrong. And for being at Woodstock, she skips most of the acts so she can go chase butterflies, have snit-fits towards her best frenemy and tell the object of her affection the woes of her life (forced to picket a Beatles concert, no rock music, literal broken records, being the cause of her brother being sent to Vietnam...but not really because COME ON). When she does watch the concert, 80% of the action is recounting the announcer telling festival goers to get down off of the scaffolding and not to take the brown acid. Suzannah has a big ol' case of the Mary Sues, too. She's told approximately 589 times in the course of the story that she is the BESTEST SINGER EVER and when she gets up in front of a hippie commune at Yasgur's farm to sing, she's hailed as the 2nd coming of IDK Janis Joplin. (Seriously, I half-expected her to be invited onto the Woodstock stage to perform or duet with Jimi Hendrix.) OF COURSE we find out at the very end that everything came up roses for Suzannah: she married the boy she met/fell in love-at-first-sight-with-at Woodstock and became a famous singer (who's friends with John Fogarty & Joni Mitchell, natch).

There's a weird kind-of-religious vibe throughout the book, even though the zealotry of Suzannah's dad leads to a lot of the events of the book She slut shames her frenemy in both 1969 and 2019 (Livy had sex at 17! With Suzannah's brother! She skinny dipped! She posed for Playboy!). She stops mid-book to give her granddaughter a speech about no weed. She judges her granddaughter for having a navel piercing and nose ring. Her Woodstock love becomes a pastor out of no where.

This book also employed one of my LEAST FAVORITE storytelling devices: split timelines. And not just two as usual...this one has approximately **5** timelines (1966, 2-weeks-before-Woodstock, 2-days-before-Woodstock, Woodstock, and 50 years after Woodstock).

But the #1 thing I'll remember about this book is that it contains the CRINGIEST SCENE I'VE EVER READ. When sheltered Suzannah sees her first naked man, it's a hairy beast of a hippie. When confronted with seeing "the burly upside-down toadstool between his legs", how does she react? Avert her eyes? Giggle? Scream? Nope, she REACHES OUT AS IF TO SHAKE HANDS WITH IT. I'm not even lying. Then apparently the guy waves at her with it. (Then a fight involving a hot dog occurs between Suzannah and her crush, Leon. I think it's the author's attempt at humor? Is she 12? It sounds like sometime my friends & I would've written in a fanfic in the 6th grade.) She also refers to other Woodstock penises [penii?] as a "willy" and a "tallywhacker" and compares another to Apollo 11 blasting off. She finally does come up with the actual word "penis" roughly 75% of the way through the book. Is this meant to signal character growth? I wouldn't be surprised.

[Deb Byrne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was very cool to read. It takes place at Woodstock. I’ve never read a book in this setting and it kept me captivated. It is a little slow in the middle and the end was a little cheesy, but I really enjoyed this book.

[Tiffany Romeo-Peragine · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have to clue how this book has a 4 star rating. It was so bad and repetitive. I gave up halfway through because it was so boring. I had no attachment to the characters and couldn’t care less how it ended.

[Literary Redhead · Rating 5 out of 5]

A completely absorbing dual timeline novel of the '60s, Woodstock, and a young woman who escapes a smothering Southern life and is transformed by the iconic concert and the wider world. Loved it!

[Tammy · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars. 📖🎧

[Corina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome

This was truly a wonderful description of the Woodstock experience. I want there but this gives an authentic sounding look at what it was like. Don't miss this one! Excellent.

[Crystal Frost · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.3 stars! What a gem of a story this was. I may have not been born when the first Woodstock happened, however, I am well aware of the event. Just like the MWC in the book, a best friend and I packed up and drove over 12 hrs to New York at the age of 20 to Woodstock 1999. This book brought flashbacks to my own experiences of living outdoors amongst thousands of people for three days just listening to music and enjoying life. When it came to this story, I heard of most of the bands and knew a few of the songs during that time period. But what was most joyful while reading this book was when I looked up bands I never heard of and I listened to their music. This story had a fun little love story, friendships, family dynamics and the hardships of the Vietnam war. I would definitely recommend this book.

[Maura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was about 8 years too young for Woodstock, but it was certainly a part of the psyche of my younger years. This book does a fantastic job of taking you there through the eyes and mind and heart of a 20 yr-old sheltered girl from Tennessee. The author made an exceptional effort to research and represent the truth of the event. Kudos for her integrity. We also get a bit of the family realities of the war in Vietnam, and the cultural revolution to question authority, but to a large extent this is a love-story. And the story is expanded by jumping a generation where the once 20 yr-old is bringing her granddaughter to the 50th Anniversary of Woodstock. Well written, easy reading, twists and turns in important relationships, and lots of music and musicians' references from that era... worth the read!

[Kristina Clement · Rating 2 out of 5]

The description of the book was compelling, but the delivery was disappointing. The characters were flat and such extreme caricatures that I found I didn't really care what happened to them. This is the first book in a long time that I seriously considered not finishing. My only takeaway from it is that it must have been physically miserable to be at Woodstock.

Amazon First Reads

[Annette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book brought back a lot memories of Woodstock, Vietnam War, drugs, names of bands and the music during the late 60’s.

[Leah Hoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun read! I know very little about Woodstock, but this book put me there. Embarrassingly, I admit to not knowing a lot about the Vietnam War, so I appreciate the author’s ability to weave it into the story. This is by far my favorite Amazon First Reads choice!

[Ana Saavedra · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid 3 stars. I LOVED the Woodstock vibes, but the characters were all incredibly annoying and there was a lot of time jumping and flash backs throughout the book that I didn’t care as much about.

[Tony Hodson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not my usual read at all. However I’ve always enjoyed the music of the late 1960s, synonymous with Woodstock and thought I’d try it. Surprisingly enjoyed it more than I thought. Terrific references to the groups starring at Woodstock. A great plot twist along the way. A more enjoyable read than I expected. Five stars for the entertainment value!

[Linda Langford · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this story. The author obviously did her research. I was only 9 years old when this happened in Woodstock. I liked Susannah and Leon, and was glad they had a happy ending.

[Dawn Bartlett · Rating 5 out of 5]

WHAT an awesome book!

[Jessica Lewis ☔️ · Rating 4 out of 5]

what a ride!! loved this book. a “trip to woodstock” was completely unexpected and a feel good book. livy annoyed the stew out me and i wanted to smack her… susannah ends up with the realization that so much of her rudeness is rooted in her insecurity which is solid, but she annoyed me. there is explanation but it took awhile … one of those situations that a good conversation could have solved it all but alas we wouldn’t have such a book.

i understand the stuck feeling savannah had between her uber religious and rigid dad and her quest for freedom. i do love how she still honored herself by not doing anything that would cause deep regret but overall it was a phenomenal journey i was thankful to take. im going to look into more lisa patton books. i really like they way she writes; easy to read without being stupid and a great story that sucks you in from the beginning. loved it!!

(i finished the book in line for velocicoaster! 🦖)

[Deb Darling · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the story of my growing up era. While I was definitely too young for Woodstock, I was very aware of what was happening, the music, Vietnam, etc. While my family wasn't Southern Baptist, my father thought long hair on boys was just as slippery slope (the domino theory) as allowing North Vietnam to control South Vietnam. I really enjoyed the naive girl see life on the other side. I think anyone born in the 50's would love this book.

[Molly Neville · Rating 5 out of 5]

Born just a few years before Woodstock, I've only known the little I've read or heard about it. This book made me feel like I was there!!! I was completely immersed in the pages reading about a time of senseless war where so many simply wanted peace, love and rock 'n' roll amongst a few other things 😉. Loved this book so much!!!
Just as wonderful, also a story about coming of age and self-discovery.
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[Kristen Willis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful coming of age novel during Woodstock.
Book Clurb review

[Traci Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

Nicely written. I really enjoyed this. I was too young to attend woodstock too. I did attend the anniversary concert and visit Be the l often for concerts.

[MikeLikesBooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5. I was born in the early sixties but too young to remember Woodstock that occurred when I was seven. Of course I heard of it and I love the music of the sixties. As a young adult I worked with older men who were Vietnam Vets. They had so many demons.

I enjoyed the audiobook. Some of the slang like “groovy” was fun. Loved the ending. If you love historical fiction and want to read something other than a World War II novel, pick this one up. I gave it 3.5 because of the topic. The story was ok and there were tidbits of wisdom that I really appreciated.

I want to thank NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing for a free copy of the audiobook. My review is voluntary.

[Wendy Salvatore · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

Two young girls, who couldn’t be more different stemming from very different upbringings, set off for Woodstock in 1967.
It was entertaining enough, but seemed a little juvenile or like a young adult novel perhaps.

“Real beauty is not about how we look on the outside.
It is found in who we are as human beings. the way we treat one another, the way we love one another, and our willingness to consider someone else’s feelings before our own.”

[Paige Zeigler · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is without a doubt the worst, most garbage book I’ve read in 2026 so far. I never imagined a book about Woodstock could be SO BORING and lame. I knew I should have dropped it at the 18% mark, but I kept going in hopes that it would improve, and that our MC Suzannah might gain some perspective and grow. It didn’t!

This book is rifled with gross religious undertones. Our main character slut shames her best friend from start to finish. I think I was meant to dislike Livy, but honestly I just felt sorry for her the entire time. Susannah is a pick me final boss. Taking the I’m not like other girls trope to a whole new level. She constantly calls Livy stupid for daring to experiment with drugs. She abandons her “best friend” while she is having a bad acid trip and leaves her with strangers. She is enraged with her for having the audacity to skinny dip, and have sex before marriage. And even when it turns out that Livy is in love with Susannah’s brother and literally SAVES HIM FROM THE WAR and helps him escape into Canada, she remains judgmental toward her. Even 50 years later it’s mentioned that Livy and Ron do not end up together, that she poses for playboy and gets tricked, and her husband leaves her. Because of course a woman who owns her sexuality and experiments with drugs at a music festival has horrible sense and isn’t worthy of a happy ending! Not like our prude, virginal main character! She gets the guy (the first guy she ever kisses by the way and meets at Woodstock) of course, because she would never be “messy and complicated” (her words!) like those other stupid women who engage in such behavior! In fact she even becomes a famous rock star who is friends with other notable rockstars, while she preaches to her grand daughter to never try marijuana and judges her for having piercings! She never once lightens up on her judgment of others.

It also irked me that Susannah never actually has a lightbulb moment of empathy or compassion for others. She only has small moments of forgiveness or growth when the boy she’s known for 48 hours, who she has declared she’s in love with no less, convinces her to. She never has a moment of confidence without Leon pushing her to do so. Even when she almost has sex with Leon, she never has that realization of “Hey, maybe what I feel for Leon is what Livy felt for my brother.” The entire book is how this incredibly lame, naive, and painfully insecure girl is saved by a man essentially. She only decides to switch out of her conservative university to follow Leon around as well. Oh and of course Leon ends up as a pastor at the end of the book as well. YUCK!

Not sure who the target audience of this book was, but it sure as hell wasn’t me.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic BookBub purchase! The book hits all the high notes of two 20 year olds making their way to and participating in Woodstock. Patton explores the protests of the Viet Nam war, the draft, the mental consequences of war for the soldiers and families left behind and those that went to Canada. And then there was the music...Joplin, Hendricks, Baez, Crosby,Stills,Nash, & Young, The Grateful Dead, Jim Morrison, etc. I could hear all the music and remember the days of buying their albums and listening to the music (Still listen to that era in my car at least once a week). I couldn't help but think about the parallel of then vs now as we face a potential long term unpopular war, ground troops, rumblings of raising the age of and restarting the draft. The protests of today vs then. While not a sophisticated book, it was the perfect capture of the times and anti-war movement with the spot on dialog and situations. Woodstock serves as an important event in history and this book captures the time perfectly. I loved it!