Forty Years in a Day is a poignant story of a family's immigration to the United States just after the turn of the century. It surrounds the life of Victoria, who decides to take the enormous step to immigrate after enduring years of sorrow due to the neglect and pain of her failing marriage. Her words here indicate what many women have endured (I can certainly relate) and, as hard as it was, she was lucky to have escaped to America:
 
She needed him to be a man, yet he was acting like a child, and she had no energy left to coddle another. The friendship and love they had once shared had been irreparably tarnished by his escalating affliction. It was as if his hardened heart had sculpted his feelings into a mound of stone and offered no remorse.
Although a fictional account, based on the family histories of the authors, it was very easy to think of Victoria and her family as real people. These were people I cared about and the story kept me wanting to read to find out what becomes of these hard-working and persistent characters. I think perhaps the book could have been a bit longer, so as to flesh out the characters a bit more, but overall, the book tells a story that many will want to read.
 
With a surprise twist added to the mix, Forty Years in a Day is an unforgettable book and a testimony to the perseverance of the human spirit.
 
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