Homesick Creek: A Novel

by Diane Hammond

Diane Hammond's beautifully rendered description of life in the fictional small town of Hubbard, Oregon, won her plaudits for "Going to Bend," her debut novel. In "Homesick Creek," Hammond returns to Hubbard and captivates us once again with a cast of characters so vivid we feel like we've known them all our lives.

Anita and Bunny have been friends since high school, when Anita was a beauty queen runner-up and Bunny a sweet single mother with average looks. They were both taken by surprise when the handsome, charismatic Hack Neary chose Bunny to be his wife. A natural-born salesman, Hack now works his charms at the local car dealership, and he and Bunny enjoy a very comfortable life. But after sixteen years of excusing Hack's white lies, Bunny is more shaken than she'd like to be by his dangerous new flirtation and her rising suspicions that Hack never meant to put down roots in Hubbard.

Anita has also married, but unlike Hack and Bunny, she and her husband are barely scraping by. Bob isn't ambitious enough to properly support his wife and daughter. He is, however, constant in his love: for Anita, still beautiful in his eyes despite the toll of age, work, and poverty; for his daughter and granddaughter, who need more than the couple can provide; and for Warren, his best friend since they were poor and unwanted children in the same trailer park.

Facing a future that seems increasingly difficult, the friends turn to one another and find reserves of love and strength that help heal the wounds they inadvertently inflict on each other. At the deepest point of her grief, Bunny realizes, "If you loved somebody once, no matter how long ago, that had to be worth something."

Genres: Fiction

368 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

For forty-plus years I have tried to describe to other writers and non-writers alike the magic of writing. The way it can make things happen I never intended to make happen; the way it creates images in readers' heads that I can plant there with nothing but words; the way it helps sort me out when I didn't understand myself by thinking, alone.

I feel privileged to be a writer, and much more so to have my work read. I am grateful to every person who chooses to spend time with my words, and to conjure my visions as their own. It is an honor I will never take for granted, or view as less than an incredible act of magic.

Reviews

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book called Homesick Creek is expected to be sad and almost depressing. And this lived up to my expectations. Well written but definitely not a feel good book.

[Cathyg · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was slow to start, but I kept at it and enjoyed it in the end. The author did a great job of building out the lives and human condition in a small town.

[Camilla · Rating 5 out of 5]

I opened this book thinking I would read only the first few pages and quit. It didn't really sound like something I would like, so my expectations were low. I was very surprised to find I was quickly drawn in by the story, characters, and writing style. It is superb! I have only read a few authors with Ms. Hammond's ability to develop characters to such a high degree. The writing style was so good I read some parts aloud to my husband. This is the epitome of praise in our home.
Thank you Ms. Hammond for such a GOOD READ!

[Bamboozlepig · Rating 2 out of 5]

It wasn't a bad novel, but my interest started to wane halfway through...not sure why. The ending felt a bit rushed but the characters were interesting, especially Hack.

[Stephanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

As you can see by my rating, I didn’t love this book. The biggest problem I had was that it switched characters/storylines without any pretext (no spacing between paragraphs, new chapters, etc). Made the story jilted and hard to follow.
Also it wasn’t much of a mental escape for me (hello 2020!)- the setting was sad, the characters were depressed and struggling, the story was so sad... I can actually handle sad and dire (I tend to gravitate toward books on the Holocaust for goodness sake!) but the lack of hope for change for the characters in this book was just too much for me.

[Cathy Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book...different twist to story

[Linda Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Homesick Creek came to me after being recommended by Leigh Anne Jasheway. Leigh Anne critiqued a manuscript of mine at last summer's Willamette Writer's Conference. She didn't like my manuscript much especially since I practically fell asleep in her lap. At the end of three long days of learning, pitching and socializing I was pretty well beat. Leigh Anne told me that Homesick Creek was a wonderful study in character development. I took her advice on this one and I'm glad I did.

Homesick Creek is the story of unlikely characters thrown together in the wet, foggy soup of the Pacific Northwest. I knew from the beginning Hauk was hiding something, but what? Early on I learned Bob's shocking secret and watched him carefully hide it from the rest of the world. Bunny thinks Hauk is hiding something else from her not knowing the real truth. Anita loves Bob so much she's blinded by what is going on around her.

Slowly the author peels back the components of each player. I felt Bunny's jealousy of Rae Macy and Rae's frustration of living in a place that she felt was far beneath her. Anita tried desperately to keep her family as a unit amid poverty and Bob's lack of ambition. These characters were real with real emotions. I felt them in each breath they took. Leigh Anne is right.

I rate Homesick Creek as 5 out of 5 books. It's a captivating story told in a captivating way. I think I'll keep this one of the shelf a while and use it to improve my own character development. I know my writing will thank me for it.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found the story of these two couples whose lives crossed at many points both touching and tragic. Each struggled to overcome difficult childhoods. They also struggled to maintain their marriages and self respect. Hack in many ways was the most heroic, surviving abandonment and loss. He held terrible secrets which distanced him from his wife Bunny. Bob was the weakest. He also had secrets and he let addiction and ignorance swamp him as he made terrible decisions about his life and the life of his wife, Anita. Yet in spite of it all, this is truly a love story.

The story takes place in the county where I live and it is fun to see this community reflected through the eyes of these characters.

[Shari · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is also set in Hubbard (like Going to Bend) and also tells the story of two women – Anita and Bunny – who have been friends since high school. While the characters are intersting I felt that it was a repetition of “Going to Bend” – and more contrived... as if the author was writing from a fuormula.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the story of 2 couples living in a small Oregon town in the late 1980s. They've known each other for decades & while the fortunes of one seems to be up, the other seems to be spiraling down. Actually, there is trouble in both marriages. As another reviewer said, this book is a great character study. I enjoyed it.

[Sheri · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know if the author has a vendetta against God but once again in this book as in her other book, she blames Him for all the bad luck in people's lives and it really soured me against the book. Liked the storyline about female friendship and the struggle with the kids and the husbands.

[Shyla · Rating 2 out of 5]

Slow, sad take on a small town in Oregon and the lives of the locals. Nothing good happens through the whole book. It got two stars because I like that it did not sugar coat anything and the characters were very real with all their flaws.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

A story of destitute people and their lives. It gave my family a good discussion of what our expectations are of married life.

[Priscilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Suprising, frustrating, thought-provoking. It kept my interest but timeliness is a factor. It dates back to when HIV and AIDS were new and scary and ignorance was rampant.

[Kelly Atay · Rating 2 out of 5]

Depressing....but the towns were well known to me.

[Harriet · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Diane Hammond is an incredible author. Each of her books creates marvelous characters who are flawed and real and true. Very different from one another. She's a terrific writer!

[Bernice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rereading this. I loved it and I want to saunte through enjoying the languaage.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this haunting, well written story.