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Hearts
Recently widowed Linda Reisman and her thirteen-year-old stepdaughter, Robin, travel from New Jersey to California to find a new home for Robin, and their experiences on the road force both women to mature quickly
324 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1980
40 people are currently reading
674 people want to read
About the author
Hilma Wolitzer
30 books173 followersHilma Wolitzer (b. 1930) is a critically hailed author of literary fiction. She is a recipient of Guggenheim and National Endowment for the Arts fellowships, an American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Literature, and a Barnes & Noble Writers for Writers Award. Her first short story appeared in print when she was thirty-six. Eight years later she published her first novel. Her novels and stories have drawn praise for illuminating the dark interiors of the American home. She lives in New York City.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
March 10, 2023
It's been a long time since I've read a book in just three nights, staying up until 1am each night to do so.
I woke this morning at 7am, knowing I didn't get enough sleep, and my left eye has this weird puffiness around it.
It was worth it.
As much as I read, it is still rare for me to find a book that inspires this type of savage page turning.
Savage page turning, as I rode along with Linda and Robin in their 70s Ford Maverick, wondering what in the hell they were going to do next.
Almost the entire novel is set in this little car, its passengers a 26-year-old widow and the 13-year-old stepdaughter she recently inherited. The widow's goal: to flee Newark and the depression of the sudden death of her husband, after only six weeks of marriage, and to hand the unwanted stepdaughter off to a relative, somewhere. Their destination: Iowa. No, Arizona. No, California.
Manifest destiny? More like: destiny unknown. And their money's running out, and more setbacks occur along the way.
My copy of this novel was nearly set to fire by my eyes. It was excellent to feel like a Firestarter again.
(This book inspired a new shelf: On the road. Please, offer me more titles, of stories centered around road trips!).
I woke this morning at 7am, knowing I didn't get enough sleep, and my left eye has this weird puffiness around it.
It was worth it.
As much as I read, it is still rare for me to find a book that inspires this type of savage page turning.
Savage page turning, as I rode along with Linda and Robin in their 70s Ford Maverick, wondering what in the hell they were going to do next.
Almost the entire novel is set in this little car, its passengers a 26-year-old widow and the 13-year-old stepdaughter she recently inherited. The widow's goal: to flee Newark and the depression of the sudden death of her husband, after only six weeks of marriage, and to hand the unwanted stepdaughter off to a relative, somewhere. Their destination: Iowa. No, Arizona. No, California.
Manifest destiny? More like: destiny unknown. And their money's running out, and more setbacks occur along the way.
My copy of this novel was nearly set to fire by my eyes. It was excellent to feel like a Firestarter again.
(This book inspired a new shelf: On the road. Please, offer me more titles, of stories centered around road trips!).
January 17, 2022
I had never heard of Hilma Wolitzer until last year when I came upon her short story collection Today a Woman Went Mad in the Supermarket: Stories. She’s 92 now and a pretty prolific writer. I was surprised that I had not come across her writing, but glad I have discovered her.
First published in 1980, this novel is the story of two lost souls, connected in more ways than they realize, needing each other in more ways than they know . Linda Reismann, a widow at 26, having been married only six weeks to thirteen year old Robin’s father, feels an obligation to take Robin to her father’s family or to find the mother who abandoned her.
It’s a cross country trip, but also self realizing journeys for both of these characters. A little quirkiness, some quirky characters met along the way, and a growing understanding of each other and themselves makes for a compelling read. I couldn’t help but care about Linda and Robin and I discovered that there’s a sequel Tunnel Of Love. I will certainly read it to see what is next for them.
First published in 1980, this novel is the story of two lost souls, connected in more ways than they realize, needing each other in more ways than they know . Linda Reismann, a widow at 26, having been married only six weeks to thirteen year old Robin’s father, feels an obligation to take Robin to her father’s family or to find the mother who abandoned her.
It’s a cross country trip, but also self realizing journeys for both of these characters. A little quirkiness, some quirky characters met along the way, and a growing understanding of each other and themselves makes for a compelling read. I couldn’t help but care about Linda and Robin and I discovered that there’s a sequel Tunnel Of Love. I will certainly read it to see what is next for them.
April 16, 2022
3.5 Stars
Hearts is my 3rd Hilma Wolitzer novel in my undertaking to read all 10 of her adult novels by year end.
Wright, Linda's husband of 6 weeks has a heart attack and dies. So Linda and her 13 year-old stepdaughter Robin, whom she barely knows, set off on a road trip from New Jersey to Iowa to Arizona to New Mexico to California. Along the way they learn more about each other and their selves.
Plan A is to take Robin to live with her father's relatives in IA. Wright is estranged from his family, and Robin has never met these folks. Can you imagine losing your only family, being taken halfway across the country, and knowing you'd be in a strange place dependent on people you don't know? Well as frequently happens, Plan A gets replaced by Plan B.
One of this novel's themes is loneliness. Linda is an only child whose mother was frequently away for her job as a baby nurse and whose father was ill with emphysema. Orphaned at 18, she has to make her own way in the world. Robin, also an only child, feels compelled to prop her father up emotionally after her mother leaves the family when Robin is 5. Neither have a network of friends or other people in their lives.
"It was the caverns that had upset them both, Linda thought. . . . It was the caverns and their lousy coming attractions of death, their promise of consummate loneliness. Then why did we have to be so lonely while we were still here? Restless, she turned from side to side, but with exquisite care not to touch or jostle Robin, who did not move at all".
"But it wasn't marriage she missed, or even Wright. She knew that the mindless body itself could experience loneliness, without memory, without thought. Even when she was a child, it had this same blind desire for touch. What if it never went away?"
We know touch is necessary for humans to thrive. During the early days of the pandemic, touch was what was missed more than anything else by those who lived alone.
By the end of their journey Linda and Robin realize that "you can become a family by the grace of accident and will."
Wolizter also takes on the social issue of attacks on abortion facilities. During the course of their journey, Linda discovers she is pregnant and considers having an abortion. She makes an appointment at a clinic in Ohio and has to cross through a group of protesters carrying graphic signs while a group of counter protesters demonstrate on the other side of the street and a patrol car is parked against the curb.
"Linda stared at them and had her first conscious feminist thought. This was a civil war, women against women, and the policemen were out of it, non-partisan, merely keepers of the law. But they were men and therefore, in their own language, the alleged perpetrators."
After the clinic is attacked while Linda is within she says, "Somebody . . . was willing to murder me and a few other people in the name of life."
According to Wikipedia, "In 1978, there were three arson attacks and four bomb attacks on abortion facilities in the United States. All but two of these took place in Ohio." These events were probably on Wolitzer's mind in 1979 when she was writing this book. I was 16 at the time and remember watching these scenes on the television news. Then and now the irony does not escape me that some people are willing to commit murder or significantly harm others in order to prevent what they deem to be murder. Personally, I think there are other ways.
Wolitzer's writing is strong, her characters well developed, and her overall story thoughtful. There are one or two scenes that are a bit implausible. And there is a plot point that is mentioned and then dropped.
I really liked this book, and it is not her best.
Hearts is my 3rd Hilma Wolitzer novel in my undertaking to read all 10 of her adult novels by year end.
Wright, Linda's husband of 6 weeks has a heart attack and dies. So Linda and her 13 year-old stepdaughter Robin, whom she barely knows, set off on a road trip from New Jersey to Iowa to Arizona to New Mexico to California. Along the way they learn more about each other and their selves.
Plan A is to take Robin to live with her father's relatives in IA. Wright is estranged from his family, and Robin has never met these folks. Can you imagine losing your only family, being taken halfway across the country, and knowing you'd be in a strange place dependent on people you don't know? Well as frequently happens, Plan A gets replaced by Plan B.
One of this novel's themes is loneliness. Linda is an only child whose mother was frequently away for her job as a baby nurse and whose father was ill with emphysema. Orphaned at 18, she has to make her own way in the world. Robin, also an only child, feels compelled to prop her father up emotionally after her mother leaves the family when Robin is 5. Neither have a network of friends or other people in their lives.
"It was the caverns that had upset them both, Linda thought. . . . It was the caverns and their lousy coming attractions of death, their promise of consummate loneliness. Then why did we have to be so lonely while we were still here? Restless, she turned from side to side, but with exquisite care not to touch or jostle Robin, who did not move at all".
"But it wasn't marriage she missed, or even Wright. She knew that the mindless body itself could experience loneliness, without memory, without thought. Even when she was a child, it had this same blind desire for touch. What if it never went away?"
We know touch is necessary for humans to thrive. During the early days of the pandemic, touch was what was missed more than anything else by those who lived alone.
By the end of their journey Linda and Robin realize that "you can become a family by the grace of accident and will."
Wolizter also takes on the social issue of attacks on abortion facilities. During the course of their journey, Linda discovers she is pregnant and considers having an abortion. She makes an appointment at a clinic in Ohio and has to cross through a group of protesters carrying graphic signs while a group of counter protesters demonstrate on the other side of the street and a patrol car is parked against the curb.
"Linda stared at them and had her first conscious feminist thought. This was a civil war, women against women, and the policemen were out of it, non-partisan, merely keepers of the law. But they were men and therefore, in their own language, the alleged perpetrators."
After the clinic is attacked while Linda is within she says, "Somebody . . . was willing to murder me and a few other people in the name of life."
According to Wikipedia, "In 1978, there were three arson attacks and four bomb attacks on abortion facilities in the United States. All but two of these took place in Ohio." These events were probably on Wolitzer's mind in 1979 when she was writing this book. I was 16 at the time and remember watching these scenes on the television news. Then and now the irony does not escape me that some people are willing to commit murder or significantly harm others in order to prevent what they deem to be murder. Personally, I think there are other ways.
Wolitzer's writing is strong, her characters well developed, and her overall story thoughtful. There are one or two scenes that are a bit implausible. And there is a plot point that is mentioned and then dropped.
I really liked this book, and it is not her best.
November 23, 2025
This is a character study of two unlikely people who find themselves suddenly thrown together. Written in 1980 by author Hilma Wolitzer, this is her story of Linda Reismann (age 26) and her 13 year old stepdaughter, Robin. Per the Goodreads blurb:
"Linda and Robin barely know each other. The only thing that connects them is Linda’s six-week-old marriage to Robin’s father, who has suddenly died. Widowed at twenty-six, Linda is heading to California to start over, uncertain what the future holds. In the trunk of her car, she carries her husband’s amateur paintings, along with his ashes. Robin, her silent, angry teenage stepdaughter, about to be left with relatives she’s never met, carries a private stash of pot and some closely guarded secrets."
Robin is not prepared to give Linda a chance and thinks of her as an "assh---." Even though Linda herself has had a tough life and is only in her 20's, she feels maternal towards Robin and is unfailingly kind to her. Linda takes Robin along with her on the road.
___________________________________
My Reactions: I thought the premise was interesting and generally enjoyed the story. While reading, I sometimes inwardly winced for the characters (especially Linda), because life seemed to kick them in the teeth at every turn. I would have given the novel 3.5 stars, but the ending came too abruptly. I kept looking for more pages on the Kindle. I wanted to know more fully how they each ended up.
"Linda and Robin barely know each other. The only thing that connects them is Linda’s six-week-old marriage to Robin’s father, who has suddenly died. Widowed at twenty-six, Linda is heading to California to start over, uncertain what the future holds. In the trunk of her car, she carries her husband’s amateur paintings, along with his ashes. Robin, her silent, angry teenage stepdaughter, about to be left with relatives she’s never met, carries a private stash of pot and some closely guarded secrets."
Robin is not prepared to give Linda a chance and thinks of her as an "assh---." Even though Linda herself has had a tough life and is only in her 20's, she feels maternal towards Robin and is unfailingly kind to her. Linda takes Robin along with her on the road.
___________________________________
My Reactions: I thought the premise was interesting and generally enjoyed the story. While reading, I sometimes inwardly winced for the characters (especially Linda), because life seemed to kick them in the teeth at every turn. I would have given the novel 3.5 stars, but the ending came too abruptly. I kept looking for more pages on the Kindle. I wanted to know more fully how they each ended up.
April 28, 2012
I like all of Wolitzer's books. This is an older title that I had missed. The issues are handled through the filter of main character Linda, widowed after being married just a few weeks. She inherits a stepdaughter and plans to return her to the family who abandoned her as a small child. The character development is so well painted by Wolitzer's language. The plot vehicle of the cross-country drive is just right for the progression of the story, fits and starts and overnights in crummy motels. Highly recommended.
September 7, 2018
I read this lovely book over 30 years ago and loved it then. I enjoyed it just as much second time around. I am slightly surprised by some truly scathing reviews but I guess each to their own. Anyway, thank you Ms Wolitzer for some truly delightful stories.
November 28, 2009
Linda Reisman, widowed at 26, decides to drive her 13 year old stepdaughter across country to relatives on the West Coast. They commu-nicate poorly, if at all, until Linda discovers she is pregnant.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 31, 2011
A 36-yr old woman married a man with a 13-yr old daughter. He dies a few weeks later and she is left to raise the girl.
February 2, 2013
3+ for sure. I was delighted to read this road trip book and discover a new author I hadn't had the pleasure of reading before. Hope to read many more of her books, now.
April 20, 2015
I didn't like this one quite as well as others by this author, but it was still a well written character study of a 26 year-old widow and her cross country drive with her 13 year-old step-daughter.
March 11, 2018
Great read!
What a nice surprise this book was! Believable characters, believable dialog, believable plot. I will look for this author again.
What a nice surprise this book was! Believable characters, believable dialog, believable plot. I will look for this author again.
May 10, 2014
I had this on my "to-read" because it was recommended a while back. In the meantime, I read The Doctor's Daughter and was not very impressed so my expectations had dropped. This was still worse that I expected.
It's one of those books that as I read, I see the author rubbing her hands together and giggling thinking things like, "ohh...and then I'll have them do this." without actually questioning if any of it is plausible or interesting.
Set in the early 80s, Laura has inherited Robin (her 13 year old step daughter) and decides to sell everything and trek across country to move to CA. Laura (the mousey-type) does not apply for jobs or try to establish anything in CA first. She simply ups and goes, figuring she'd drop Robin in IA with her grandparents first. Even though her father has not spoken to his family in years and neither of them have met anyone in IA they are just gonna head out.
Along the way, they meet a hitchhiker with whom Laura has an affair (and then even more improbably bump into later...although Wolitzer acknowledges this improbability) and they attend a wedding (and lucky for everyone Robin WHOM THEY HAVE JUST MET gets to be in the wedding!). So yea, these are my least favorite moments and I've ruined the book for anyone else because the rest of it is just driving around and complaining about how boring it is to drive from Newark to CA. That's okay, you don't need to read the book anyway.
On top of all of it, the writing is overwrought and masturbatory: "Very soon she remembered Wright, who had been taken by surprise like that, actually ambushed by death, and was even more forsaken that she the moment his spirit rose like a turncoat from his body." BLECH
Overall it is not worth the time (and it is short read that took around 24 hours) or bother. It is trite, simplified, and ultimately kind of boring.
It's one of those books that as I read, I see the author rubbing her hands together and giggling thinking things like, "ohh...and then I'll have them do this." without actually questioning if any of it is plausible or interesting.
Set in the early 80s, Laura has inherited Robin (her 13 year old step daughter) and decides to sell everything and trek across country to move to CA. Laura (the mousey-type) does not apply for jobs or try to establish anything in CA first. She simply ups and goes, figuring she'd drop Robin in IA with her grandparents first. Even though her father has not spoken to his family in years and neither of them have met anyone in IA they are just gonna head out.
Along the way, they meet a hitchhiker with whom Laura has an affair (and then even more improbably bump into later...although Wolitzer acknowledges this improbability) and they attend a wedding (and lucky for everyone Robin WHOM THEY HAVE JUST MET gets to be in the wedding!). So yea, these are my least favorite moments and I've ruined the book for anyone else because the rest of it is just driving around and complaining about how boring it is to drive from Newark to CA. That's okay, you don't need to read the book anyway.
On top of all of it, the writing is overwrought and masturbatory: "Very soon she remembered Wright, who had been taken by surprise like that, actually ambushed by death, and was even more forsaken that she the moment his spirit rose like a turncoat from his body." BLECH
Overall it is not worth the time (and it is short read that took around 24 hours) or bother. It is trite, simplified, and ultimately kind of boring.
August 17, 2016
I read the sequel to Hearts, a novel titled Tunnel of Love, and liked it so much that I decided to read the first installment of the Linda and Robin saga. Linda's a 20-something who married 13-year-old Robin's father, who dropped dead six weeks later. Hearts is the tale of their cross-country journey, in the course of which Linda hopes to reunite Robin with her remaining family members -- her paternal grandfather and/or the mother who walked out when Robin was three. Robin is prickly and smartmouth and with her cynicism often seems the elder. But Linda has also been through her own tough times, yet for all of that she remains a genuinely nice person and not in a smarmy way. What I liked about this book is exactly what I liked about Tunnel of Love: Linda Reismann. Rarely do I find a character in fiction who strikes me as 100 percent real, so true to life that I can almost see the rise and fall of her breathing in the pages of the novel. After reading a half dozen of her novels, I can attest that Wolitzer is excellent at characterization, and in Linda Reismann she's created a woman so real to me that she might be an old friend.
November 12, 2016
There was only one (out of 36 total) chapter in this book in which I cared about any of the characters. I felt the characters were underdeveloped. The main character was hollow.
Another disappointment was the transitions. They were so clumsy sometimes I wasn't sure if the scene was a memory or if a new character had been introduced and the scene was happening in the present.
And then the ending. Are you kidding me? It just ... ended. Very unsatisfying.
I read this book to complete a reading challenge for the "road trip" category. And, at least it served a purpose.
Another disappointment was the transitions. They were so clumsy sometimes I wasn't sure if the scene was a memory or if a new character had been introduced and the scene was happening in the present.
And then the ending. Are you kidding me? It just ... ended. Very unsatisfying.
I read this book to complete a reading challenge for the "road trip" category. And, at least it served a purpose.
July 4, 2020
she was only married 6 weeks when her husband died. she was stuck with his surly daughter so she tried to find his relatives to take the girl then continue on her way to cal for a new start. on the way she finds she is preg, tries to have a abortion but the bldg is bombed. she thought they had already finished but she was really still preg. the relatives didnt want the girl so they continued to find her mom. along the way they pick up a hitch hiker. the girl didnt want to stay with her mom after meeting her so they both continued to calif
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 29, 2009
I have to say I was disappointed in this book. I was 3/4 of the way through before I could say I was even into the story. The reviews on the back said that this was a great book, well-written with a hint of humor. I could not find the humor and actually found it be be rather uninspiring and bland. I have another book by this author but I think it will be awhile before I read it and I certainly hope it was better than this one.
May 3, 2018
Has anyone made a movie of this? It's so charming and funny and humane. It's kind of a coming of age, kind of a mother-daughter story as well as a road trip with an abortion and sex and sadness and love and hippies and motels, told with compassion and love. One thing about those Wolitzer's ( mere et filles), nothing human scares them.
October 31, 2016
I did enjoy this. It caught my attention because the plot echoed one of my favorite books, Clover, by Dorie Sanders, where the stepmom is left with a stepdaughter just after the marriage, though in Sanders' book the daughter is black and the mother white. Anyway, a good read.
March 15, 2007
Very predictable and not that great.
April 30, 2012
Liked the characters in this book although did not love the ending. Felt too abrupt.
March 14, 2013
It was just an ok story.
July 15, 2016
This book ended far too abruptly. There were far too many loose ends that were not tied up. It felt like the author hit her word count and quit.
March 3, 2019
What a wonderful writer Hilma Wolitzer is. I love this book. I think it may be her best. This one and An Available Man, which I've read several times.
February 9, 2021
Whoever reads this book is in for a big treat!
October 21, 2023
Authors can produce interesting characters through tragic life choices. Some are interesting because of their flaws and delusions. Hilma Wolitzer writes characters that wrestle their way through life just like the rest of us do. Going along step by step, doing our best and finding humor in life’s ironies. Mrs. Wolitzer definitely writes interesting characters. In fact, these are page turning interesting characters. Sex, family and friend relationships, sex, child rearing, sex, road trip, and sex are skillfully and hilariously produced through Wolitzer’s hand.
I loved this book and I will never pre-judge a book by the author’s name or profile pic again.
I loved this book and I will never pre-judge a book by the author’s name or profile pic again.
September 27, 2025
I did not have too much fun reding this book, it was a bout a young widow woman who suddenly has her teen stepdaughter to take care of. She herself is only 26 though and has a hard time with her own situation as it is. It felt quite painful to read this and there didnt seem to be a point to anything.
December 12, 2025
Husband/father dies. The six week-wed reluctant stepmother (26 years old) and the even more reluctant stepdaughter (13 years old) start a journey -- a road trip -- to the stepdaughter's mother. They barely know each other and don't like each other. How do you build family ties? How does loneliness turn into love?
August 14, 2024
Maybe three and a half stars but rounded up because I finished this a few days ago and I'm still thinking about it. Written in 1980 but so much could be today.
August 31, 2025
A road book about found family. 💕
September 21, 2025
Too predictable.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews