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All the Acorns on the Forest Floor

Kim Hooper (Goodreads Author)

4.15 · Rating details · 297 ratings · 93 reviews

A couple brimming with the hope of a new pregnancy. A woman coming to terms with the truth behind her adoption. A husband trying to save his marriage from the despair of infertility. These are just a few of the stories in All the Acorns on the Forest Floor, a book about the lengths we’ll go to for the love of our children, our spouses, our mothers, our daughters.

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Published September 15th 2020 by Dreamscape Media

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Jun 23, 2020 Melissa rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: womens-fiction, 2020, emotional

On the subject of regret and long-lost dreams, people say, “It’s never too late.” But sometimes, it is. Sometimes time passes, and it is too late.

Kismet. Serendipitous. Coincidence. Just plain luck. Call it what you will. Stumbling upon a book at a time when it speaks to me on a deeply emotional level feels as close to magic as it gets. Kim Hooper’s newest novel, All the Acorns on the Forest Floor, proves to be much more than just a compelling piece of fiction. At times rooted in hopefulness, yet underscored by a hefty dose of hurt, this storyline explores a multitude of attempts and hindrances to motherhood.

The story told across the pages isn’t linear per se, but rather one that reveals itself through a series of vignettes. Impactful vignettes that build, connect, and ultimately culminate the fears, deep desires, and in some cases, the inability of the women featured to become mothers. Women that don’t necessarily know one another, but are cleverly connected though experience, proximity, or even other relationships.

What made this novel a standout in my eyes was the unwavering intensity of each character’s journey and being able to recognize pieces of myself—at various times throughout my life—in almost all of them. From a time when I questioned my desire to have children and the accompanying procrastination, to the naive hopefulness that was met with struggle, and ultimately where I stand now—23 weeks along with my daughter. Doing what I can to stare down the persistent anxiety intent on inhabiting every corner of my pregnant brain.

I’ve come to accept that I’ll never be at ease. I’ve come to accept that this is motherhood.

It may have been the pretty cover that initially caught my eye, but it was the riveting quality of the author’s words and the unabashed rawness of it all that clutched my heart for the entirety of my read through. This novel managed to inspire a confrontation of some of my lingering regrets and anxieties. A level of thought and reflection only a unique read could conjure.

*Thanks to Turner Publishing for providing a copy in exchange for the honest thoughts I shared here. ...more

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Sep 26, 2020 Elyse Walters rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

These contemporary interconnected short stories are wonderful.
The title comes from a line that a nurse says to a woman who has chosen to have artificial insemination. ”Nature is very wasteful. Just look at all the acorns on the forest floor”.

In the story called “Notes for a Eulogy”, Alex is pregnant. Jake is her boyfriend. Alex and Jake are good together—both in their mid 30’s. They plan on getting married. But Alex says, the wedding ( the biggest party of their lives), can wait. Some things c ...more

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Jun 20, 2020 Jill rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

From time to time, friends will ask me why I like to view books in advance that aren’t on most people’s radar. To them, I would answer, “This. This book.”

Some books just burst out of the mold and are reflections of the writer’s wild imagination (I would put a recently read book, Parakeet, in this bucket). Others are “softer” books that connect the reader with essential truths about themselves and those they know. All The Acorns on the Forest Floor definitely falls into this category.

I found myse From time to time, friends will ask me why I like to view books in advance that aren’t on most people’s radar. To them, I would answer, “This. This book.”

Some books just burst out of the mold and are reflections of the writer’s wild imagination (I would put a recently read book, Parakeet, in this bucket). Others are “softer” books that connect the reader with essential truths about themselves and those they know. All The Acorns on the Forest Floor definitely falls into this category.

I found myself crying several times while reading it, not because it is sad but because it is so poignant and the character development is so powerful. I KNOW these women I met through the pages. I AM these women.

I am the woman who, too late, recognized that pondering something like (having) a child is a luxury of the young. My cousin is the woman who chose to use a donor’s egg and successfully carry a child to term when she reached age 50. My friend is the woman who got pregnant as a teen, had to make the excruciating choice to give up her daughter only to have a Hollywood ending much later in life. A neighbor is the woman who went into premature labor and went through the heartbreak of holding her pound-and-a-half child, knowing that she was certainly going to lose her. And plenty of women I know have dealt with the issues of infertility and in some cases, eventual adoption.

There are truths in this book, which is in the format of interlocking stories (one character from one story will pop up in another character’s story). Most of the characters we meet are mothers or wannabe mothers or mothers who gave up or lost babies or mothers who became mothers in untraditional ways. Some are stories that focus on connections to those we love—a husband, a mother. Not one of the stories is anything less than gripping and well-written.

The title, by the way, comes from a line that a nurse says to a woman who has decided to go the route of artificial insemination: “Nature is very wasteful. Just look at all the acorns on the forest floor.” My thanks to Turner Publishing, a small publishing house that likely will have a big hit on its hands. I appreciate the opportunity to be an early reviewer in exchange for an honest review. ...more

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Sep 16, 2020 Jessica | JustReadingJess rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley

All the Acorns on the Forest Floor by Kim Hooper is a very unique and special short story collection relating to infertility. Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Audio for this ARC.

Full Review: https://justreadingjess.wordpress.com... ...more

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Jun 11, 2020 Mary Lins rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: complete

I love interconnected short stories and that’s what “All the Acorns on the Forest Floor”, by Kim Hooper, is! I love them because you get the through-plot like a novel, but you also get individual character studies with their own side-plots.

Themes of motherhood thread through these stories. The story that shares the title of the book concerns the aftermath of a miscarriage. These stories, through Hooper’s beautiful prose, and gentle wit, reveal through the various characters, what it means to be ...more

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Dec 12, 2020 Matthew rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I didn’t always want to be a dad. It’s seems funny saying this now, ludicrous in fact; I hardly remember what my life was like before my daughter was born. Frankly, I don’t have much interest in that time, pre-Cecilia, when perspectives were out of whack, selfishness was at an all-time high, my sense of fulfillment entirely misinterpreted.

It changed literally overnight. And on until the next afternoon, if we’re being accurate. I watched my wife in a completely helpless state, a stark contrast t I didn’t always want to be a dad. It’s seems funny saying this now, ludicrous in fact; I hardly remember what my life was like before my daughter was born. Frankly, I don’t have much interest in that time, pre-Cecilia, when perspectives were out of whack, selfishness was at an all-time high, my sense of fulfillment entirely misinterpreted.

It changed literally overnight. And on until the next afternoon, if we’re being accurate. I watched my wife in a completely helpless state, a stark contrast to her status as a caregiver, a doctor being doctored. What’s more, her lack of knowledge and control over what was happening to her evoked a vulnerability I’d seldom seen. It was surreal, yet wholly real, maybe the realest moment of our lives up until then.

And the realness would continue. Still does. After Cecilia’s birth the tone of everything was altered as dramatically as it was fluidly. If you’re a parent (or even not one), you know exactly what I mean, might even be saying “well yeah no shit, Sherlock.” My perceptions changed instantaneously; I couldn’t help but see my childless friends in a totally different light, a light I’d basked within for damn near four decades.

It was if Emily and I had been accepted into a club of sorts. In fact, one friend – a father of two who’d had a similar pre-child lifestyle to mine – said “welcome to the club” upon receiving our birth announcement. I took it as a joke, which was likely its intention… except he was right. We were now part of a far-reaching, yet exclusive, association whose unofficial guidelines could only be fully understood by its members.

By guidelines I’m not talking about the perils of diaper changing, or the frequency of sleeplessness. Nor am I talking about the “enjoy every moment” mantra passed along to new parents ad nauseum from those who don’t quite get that “every moment” ain’t that enjoyable. Don’t get me wrong: the enjoyable moments are numerous, if not damn near infinite. But there’s a flip side to this, one rife with struggle and/or strife, with self-doubt and/or deprecation, with apprehension and/or anxiety – a side only those “in the club” can truly comprehend.

Now, I am not saying one has to be in this club to enjoy, let alone relate to, Kim Hooper’s brilliant collection, All the Acorns on the Forest Floor. What I am saying, however, is that it’s likely you’ll be profoundly impacted if you are a parent, for Hooper’s stories expound on seemingly each and every different type of mother, or father, or the many individuals necessary to make other people mothers and fathers. Her characters aren’t just young couples struggling to get pregnant, or old couples who’ve given up in trying, but also nurses and other caregivers whom observe these struggles alongside the joy, the elation, those aforementioned moments worth enjoying. And every single one of them will break your god damned heart. It certainly did so mine.

“Notes for a Eulogy” sets the tone from the very start of All the Acorns on the Forest Floor, introducing readers to a couple experiencing the pendulum swinging emotions synonymous with childbearing. We meet Alex and her partner Jake as they’re traveling to his ailing father’s new cabin to meet his wife, Deb. But the purpose of their trip isn’t solely for an introduction for Jake’s new stepmother, it’s to rekindle a fractured relationship betwixt a son and father who hasn’t much time left. Announcing their pregnancy isn’t really in the cards for Alex and Jake, and certainly remains so upon learning Jake has a 50/50 chance of hereditarily acquiring his father’s ALS. Deb, brash and tactless, offhandedly suggesting to Alex they consider not having kids doesn’t help sweeten the already-poisoned pot, either. Hooper juxtaposes impending death with the onset of new life with raw elegance; you not only feel for this young couple, but question what you would do if faced with a similar situation.

This holds true in every story to follow, each of which are interconnected in some way, shape, or form. “Notes for a Eulogy” segues into “What We Cannot Know,” which tells Deb’s story (not to mention somewhat explains the reason for her aforementioned brashness). Soon after the death of her father, Deb discovers her life was essentially founded upon lies: going through her deceased parent’s belongings she discovers a newspaper article about a baby that had been left on the doorstep of a local deli – the very same local deli owned and operated by her parents. This discovery leads Deb to looking into the identity of her birth mother, asking her married former co-worker (and ex-fling), Marco (incidentally Jake’s dad, pre-ALS), for help.

From there, in “Days That Used to Be,” Deb passes the baton to she and Marco’s dog park friends, Bill and Wendy, a couple whose canine, Zuma, has all but replaced the void left by the child they were never able to have. This segues to “Thinking Twice,” which details Wendy’s backstory, followed by the titular story, reintroducing Jake and Alex and describing their miscarriage and subsequent apprehension at becoming pregnant once again.

This chain reaction, six degrees of separation, Olive Kitteridge-y method continues throughout, but never feels like a gimmick. Anchored by Hooper’s deeply human yet page-turning prose, All the Acorns on the Forest Floor thrives upon each connection made, strengthening the bond between these “club members” as they navigate their way through love and loss and everything in between. Hooper presents a cavalcade of themes; whether it be hope and heartbreak, acceptance and rejection, possibilities and limitations, nary an emotion is ignored.

In fact, the more emotionally fraught Hooper’s collection became, the more I was riveted; I didn’t simply empathize with these people, I understood their fears, their trepidations, their victories, their defeats. It reminded me of all of the moments that make up parenthood and the reasons for why I find it to be so fulfilling, even despite my apprehension in diving into it. I’m guessing those “in the club” would wholeheartedly agree. Better still, I’m guessing those outside of it would connect with All the Acorns on the Forest Floor almost as well. ...more

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Aug 08, 2020 Shannon A rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

A novel of tightly woven vignettes that bring to light the raw beauty of life, love and loss. The story reminds us that we are all connected.

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Apr 25, 2020 Kait Vanderlaan rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

All The Acorns On The Forest Floor shares the stories of deeply human experiences of being a mother, daughter, or partner. Each character is connected to one another, as each story unfolds you begin to see how they are woven together. A young couple excited about a new pregnancy, battles with infertility, a woman learning that she was adopted, miscarriages, unplanned pregnancies, and choosing not to have children. This novel explores motherhood and the different ways one can become a mom and the ...more

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Jul 14, 2020 Bonnie Brody rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This wonderful book of interconnected short stories touched me on many levels. I can't imagine any woman reading this book and not identifying with many of the stories. Most of them deal with pregnancy, miscarriages, abortions, adoption, fear of carrying babies to term, and loss. The women are mothers, nurses, homemakers, executives. Each of them will find a place in your heart and remain there for a long time.

There are Alex and Jake. Alex has had a miscarriage and is frightened to death of losi This wonderful book of interconnected short stories touched me on many levels. I can't imagine any woman reading this book and not identifying with many of the stories. Most of them deal with pregnancy, miscarriages, abortions, adoption, fear of carrying babies to term, and loss. The women are mothers, nurses, homemakers, executives. Each of them will find a place in your heart and remain there for a long time.

There are Alex and Jake. Alex has had a miscarriage and is frightened to death of losing her baby during her second pregnancy. She and Jake visit Jake's long absent father and his third wife Deb further freaks her out by telling her that Jake may be carrying an inheritable gene for ALS. Deb herself has never wanted children but she finds out after her parents die that she was adopted, a huge surprise for her. Despite searching for her biological mother, she cannot find her.

Not all stories are just about humans. One lovely story is about Jake and Alex finding a hummingbird nest that appears to be abandoned by the mother. They go to phenomenal lengths to try and save the baby birds that are left motherless. Ultimately, they take the baby birds to a hummingbird sanctuary where they are told that "even in the best of circumstances, only half of hummingbirds make it to maturity". Alex remembers one of the nurses telling her, after her miscarriage, that "she'll just have to try again. One will stick." She then tells Alex that "nature is very wasteful. Just look at all the acorns on the forest floor". Alex's second pregnancy is going well and she rebuffs this advice. "I can't help but think of the mother bird, of the tiny cup of a nest she constructed with such care, of the babies she abandoned - likely against her will. I can't help but think of her sorrow. If she is alive, she will go on to make another nest, to try again. Nature is as stubborn and persistent as it is wasteful."

Some women are so desperate to have a child that they consider kidnapping one. Others grieve so long after losing their child that they pump milk for months. With reluctance, some have abortions because they are young, the father is married, or they know they can't raise their child alone.
Other couples have pets they love in place of children they can't have.

Every story in this book is a gem. I loved the poignancy and truth that was revealed in each of these stories. I am several of these women and you are likely to be as well. Whether you have never had a child, gave one up for adoption, adopted a child, had a miscarriage, gave birth to a child, or struggled with motherhood, this book tells your story.

...more

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Jul 10, 2020 switterbug (Betsey) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

In frank, plain, and precise language, Kim Hooper weaves interrelated characters together in short, separate and packed stories of hope, heartbreak, and loss. Much has to do with the kind of attachments we choose as adults; the decision on whether to have children; and acceptance of the limits placed on our lives. Sons, daughters, fathers, and mothers--especially motherhood and its significance to the various characters—are intimately portrayed with depth and realism. The story is ripe with a vi ...more

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May 10, 2020 Alicia Fox rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I don't know what I did to get the honor of reading All the Acorns on the Forest Floor by @kimhooperwrites but I am so very thankful that I did (#partner). Apparently I'm on a "let's read books that take your little heart and tosses It in a dryer and tumbles it all around just to spit it back out all reconstructed and what not" *insert breath after reading that all* kind of kick😅 This book doesn't come out until September but it feels like fate that my dear husband let me have reading time today ...more

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Sep 26, 2020 Jodie (That Happy Reader) rated it really liked it

All The Acorns on the Forest Floor is one of the most interesting books I’ve read this year. It is a collection of interconnected short stories which are not only captivating on their own, but also provide additional context to the other stories in the book.
The book is an honest take on the often difficult challenges of conceiving and the risks associated with the perinatal period, addressing difficult subjects such as a terminal inherited disease, infertility, perinatal loss, rape and unwanted ...more

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May 04, 2020 booksbikesbooze rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: pub-giveaways-partners, 2020pub

5 stars! WOW! This was a powerful one...

I was so lucky to open my mail on a sunny Saturday afternoon to find this! Normally I prioritize my reading by pub date, and since this one isn't out until September, I would've waited a bit. However, this stunningly GORGEOUS cover enticed me to take it along on my bike ride for some book photos. Before I knew it, I was 50 pages in and could NOT stop.

This book was RAW – REAL – RELATABLE – and at times, very difficult to read. Many of the chapters hit home ...more

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Sep 08, 2020 Eva rated it really liked it · review of another edition

All Acorns on the Forest Floor captures the many feelings of loss and heartbreak for women who for reasons of fate or choice can’t have a baby. Through several interwoven stories the author introduces us to women who have suffered miscarriages, infant death, women who have adopted and women who have given up their babies. The stories are sad but the author has kept a heartwarming trend to most of the outcomes.

The writing flows easily and while we are with the characters for a short period, they ...more

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Jul 23, 2020 Nona rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Poignantly drawn and interconnected stories of the lives of mothers and daughters, the decisions made and the choices made for them, whether wanted or not. I loved the way the characters were introduced, drifted away and appeared in another story, but not as a main character. Excellent novel.

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Jul 02, 2020 Cassie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Beautiful
Raw
Real
Emotional

A book I hope gets all the hype when released.

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Jul 05, 2020 Kelli rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Kim Hooper is a great storyteller. I loved the way her characters and the chapters melded together!

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Sep 12, 2020 SandraB rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: goodreads-giveaway, arc

Thank you to Turner Publishing and Goodreads Giveaways for an ARC of this book.

This was a beautifully written book. I loved the writing style--poignant and taut with no words wasted. I also think this is the perfect way to turn a collection of short stories into a novel by having characters overlap, woven together, and completing each others' stories.

I really debated whether to give this 4 stars or 5. The reason for rounding down is that unfortunately I felt the connections were just a little t Thank you to Turner Publishing and Goodreads Giveaways for an ARC of this book.

This was a beautifully written book. I loved the writing style--poignant and taut with no words wasted. I also think this is the perfect way to turn a collection of short stories into a novel by having characters overlap, woven together, and completing each others' stories.

I really debated whether to give this 4 stars or 5. The reason for rounding down is that unfortunately I felt the connections were just a little too much; the characters were too connected to the point of being unnaturally contrived. (view spoiler)

With interesting titles like this one, I always like to look for passages that explain its meaning:

Just look at all the acorns on the forest floor. That's the line Dina gives all the patients who lose babies.

"Nature is very wasteful," Fucking Dina had said. "Just look at all the acorns on the forest floor."

Okay, that sort of sounds bad, but this is followed by the beautiful Nature is as stubborn and persistent as it is wasteful.

Although the book is billed as one that will "captivate readers of all walks of life," I felt like this book was, as the title implies, very much centered around pregnancy (both wanted and unwanted), abortion, miscarriage, infertility, surrogacy, adoption, even breast milk donation. As emotionally charged and beautiful as it was, I feel like the audience might be narrower than suggested. I'm sure the intent of the author was to bring together the various experiences surrounding the topic of pregnancy and becoming a parent, and this book accomplishes that. However, I look forward to seeing the author tackle a wider range of human experiences, emotions, and relationships in her future works. ...more

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Sep 07, 2020 Sally rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2020-read

This is book about children – having children, not having children, being a child. Whether or not you are ever a parent, you are always someone’s child. Author Kim Hooper has done a masterful job of taking a thread about this topic – children – and drawing it through all thirteen chapters and winding up right back where we started. The book opens with a couple, Jake and Alexis, who are on their way to visit Jake’s father and his third wife, and for Alex to meet them for the first time. Alex is p This is book about children – having children, not having children, being a child. Whether or not you are ever a parent, you are always someone’s child. Author Kim Hooper has done a masterful job of taking a thread about this topic – children – and drawing it through all thirteen chapters and winding up right back where we started. The book opens with a couple, Jake and Alexis, who are on their way to visit Jake’s father and his third wife, and for Alex to meet them for the first time. Alex is pregnant, but Jake’s father Marco is gravely ill so they decide not to share their news just yet. And so begins a pattern where a character, primary or secondary, in the current story becomes the focus of the next story. Kind of a six degrees of separation thing.

All the Acorns on the Forest is low key and subtle and sneaks up on you. Women are pregnant, women can’t get pregnant, women have abortions and miscarriages, women desperately want children, so desperately that kidnapping one steals into their thoughts, women don’t want to have children. Women act as mothers to children that are not theirs. Men want children but are afraid to say so, men don’t want children and say so without considering what their partner may want, men have no idea how to react when their partner can’t have or loses a child. People recall their own childhoods, sometimes fondly, sometimes not so much. They learn secrets about their parents, themselves and others that they often wish were never revealed. They end friendships with some people and make new connections with others. It really is fascinating the way the author is able to tie all these people and events in their lives together. As you move to a next chapter you will often have an “aha” moment when you recognize a name and know you’re now going to learn their story. Chapters are short but the writing is excellent. Characters are well-drawn and deep and we learn a lot about them through few words.

We peek into these lives in times of turmoil or sadness, and often rather than joy see resignation, acceptance, and a resolve to carry on with the life they have even though they now realize they likely won’t get the life they really want. There is a line in the book that sums it up, “Nature is wasteful. Look at all the acorns on the forest floor.”

All the Acorns on the Forest Floor is a captivating book, drawing you in and making you care about these characters. It’s poignant and heart-rending but infused with enough uplifting moments to make you feel hope and happiness for these interwoven lives. Thanks to author Kim Hooper and Turner Publishing for providing an advance copy. This is a book that was thought-provoking and that will stay with me for a long time. All opinions are my own.
...more

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Sep 19, 2020 Thelma rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Wow, something happened, this book just blew me away.

All the Acorns on the Forest floor is one of those books that is totally unexpected, I read the blurb and I like it but I wasn't expecting these amazing stories that kept me so hooked at all times.

The stories of these women were like the stories of our sisters, neighbor, friends, mothers. All the acorns on the forest floor it's the story of every woman walking on the face of this earth well not literally but almost lol

I cried with so many of ...more

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Sep 26, 2020 Natalie D. rated it liked it · review of another edition

Thank you so much to Dreamscape Media and Netgalley for providing me with an ALC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

As a rule of thumb, I don't love short stories - but this one caught my eye, and I knew I had to give it a shot. This novel, Kim Hooper's third book and second collection of short stories, was beautifully written and delicately intertwined. All of these tales were told of people who faced a struggle in their experiences with pregnancy and parenthood - from a pregnant tee Thank you so much to Dreamscape Media and Netgalley for providing me with an ALC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

As a rule of thumb, I don't love short stories - but this one caught my eye, and I knew I had to give it a shot. This novel, Kim Hooper's third book and second collection of short stories, was beautifully written and delicately intertwined. All of these tales were told of people who faced a struggle in their experiences with pregnancy and parenthood - from a pregnant teenager forced to give up her child, to a husband trying to hang on to his marriage through their inability to concieve, to a motherly maternity ward nurse who struggles with infertility, and many others.

I'm not going to lie, my opinions of this book had more ups and downs than the rollercoaster at your local fair. I began listening to this book with high hopes. Hooper's writing style definitely delivered, and the narrator's voice matched the content perfectly, but I found myself getting bored near the middle of the book. Closer to the end of the book, I started to enjoy it again. The characters tied together elegantly and the stories that were initially full of disappointment and sadness ended with hints of hope. At around 80% of the way through the book, I thought this was definitely going to be a four star read for me, but the ending left me confused, as if the story wasn't completely finished, dropping my rating down a star. I do think I would have enjoyed this book more as a print/e-book so that I could have flipped back to compare points-of-view and provide some clarity in regards to the connected stories.

With all of this being said, I do think some of the beauty of this novel was lost on me. I am a young woman who has not yet seriously considered motherhood or had any personal experiences with pregnancy. I can only imagine this book is much more powerful to those who can relate a little more, and I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in exploring the concept of infertility and the multifaceted effects it can have on a person.

cw: chronic illness, estranged family relationships, abortion, infertility, rape, miscarriage, shooting, pregnancy ...more

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Sep 09, 2020 Katherine rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: first-reads, reviewed

As in the Paris Hours the characters in this book cross paths without knowing the stories revealed in this book. I loved that in both books--sometimes they actually interact with each other, yet sometimes it is more like degrees of separation. In any case, the unconscious interaction of people just passing by each other is fascinating.
The theme of the book is Motherhood but it is so much more. Some of the women don't want children, others want them desperately and either cannot get pregnant or c ...more

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Sep 16, 2020 Pam Poddany rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Dealing with babies and relationships, this is such a great book. Told in a short story format in which characters pop up in other stories, this is a dynamic book. Most of the stories are woven together to make for a wonderful read.

The characters are down-to-earth and so believable. They come from all walks of life and have all sorts of situations. We deal with fertility problems, adoptions, abortions, bringing home a new baby, every type of conceivable scenario.

I loved how frank and open the w ...more

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Sep 16, 2020 Kimberly rated it really liked it · review of another edition

All the Acorns on the Forest Floor was an interesting book that felt like a large collection of short stories that were somewhat entwined.

There were chapters that faced the heartbreaking parts of loosing a child, and that showed the struggles of motherhood in so many different lights. Many of those insightful chapters had pieces that were relatable to me as a women and mother, It all just felt so honest and raw.

Hillary Huber did an excellent job with the narration of the book as well. She gave ...more

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Sep 16, 2020 Cindy rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the advance listen narrated by Hillary Huber. Loved Hillary Huber as the narrator. She did a wonderful job giving each character their own voice. What an emotional book. So many different emotions while listening/reading this story. Great character development and liked every character that was introduced in this story. Loved how all the characters were in some way connected to one another. Will read more by this author. Looking forward to her next ...more

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Sep 04, 2020 Fabulous Book Fiend rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I really loved with this book and connected with it on a whole level that I didn't expect. This is a collection of short stories and so it fitted really well with my current lack of attention span for physical or eBooks because I could pick this beauty up, read a story or two and come back to in a couple of hours later. If you haven't tried short stories before this would be an excellent place to start because all the stories in this one are linked by a common theme and have characters in commo ...more

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Sep 04, 2020 Jackie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I want to start by saying this is the kind of book i don’t really enjoy, because i don’t like short stories as a rule. But at least with this book, they’re sort of interlocking, so you do get to learn more about some of the characters as the book goes on.

This book was also challenging because it focuses a lot on motherhood, a topic i have a difficult relationship with, both in my own (lack of) desire to become a mother and my relationship with my mother. This book covers the gamut from children ...more

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Sep 06, 2020 Sylvia rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Interconnected stories all about some form of motherhood. Fertility, miscarriage, adoption, too young to have a baby, too old to have one. Almost every permutation is covered. The characters intersect in interesting ways. The writing is clear and has depth. I would think this would be particularly of interest to anyone of childbearing age who can relate to one or more of these stories.

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Aug 14, 2020 Sarah rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I was lucky enough to have been sent an advance readers copy via Goodreads.

Where to even start with this book? I feel like every woman should read this book, the characters are so well made and although I’m not a mother I feel their heartbreaks.

The book follows a series of interconnected women who all are dealing with some sort of complication with their pregnancy. They experience the ups and downs (mostly downs) of miscarriages, adoptions, failed IVFs, everything.

While I do enjoy character dri ...more

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Aug 15, 2020 Kristi Clifton rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I received this as an ARC from a giveaway.

First, this is not my typical book. I love my murder mysteries, the historical fiction...reading is an escape for me. I almost just passed this along without actually reading it.

I couldn’t believe how much I loved this book. The characters were relatable and I looked forward to continuing to read their story. It wasn’t a sob story about how somebody had a miscarriage or how this woman didn’t want kids and what a tragedy that was...it was their stories ...more

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About Kim Hooper

Kim Hooper

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Kim Hooper is the author of PEOPLE WHO KNEW ME (2016), CHERRY BLOSSOMS (2018), TINY (2019), and ALL THE ACORNS ON THE FOREST FLOOR (2020). Her fifth novel, NO HIDING IN BOISE, will be released on June 15, 2021.

Kim lives in Southern California with her husband, daughter, and a collection of pets.