What did you think of Hazel and the actions she took regarding two-year-old Evie? Do you feel she followed the correct course of action? What would you have done in her place?
I think Hazel did the best she could for Evie considering this was in the 1930s. She trusted Walt and made the best decisions she could in the interest of Evie. I don’t think you are ever sure what you would do in a situation, until you are confronted by it. I know I would have tried to protect Evie in the best possible way I could.
I understood Hazel’s decisions; she was really scared, she had no information, and she wanted to protect Evie. However, by not wanting to get close to Evie (which she decided would help Evie) hurt both Evie and Hazel. I feel that loving and caring for someone can never be the wrong decision. Sometimes some people are not in our life for a longtime, but the kindness someone gives you will stay forever. Again, I do understand Hazel, she was so young when all this came her way.
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I totally agree Dee_Driscole that Hazel should have shown love and nurturing to both Evie and Nell. That is something I didn’t understand how Hazel could do and didn’t really understand her reasoning at end of book either when she explained it to Nell. Sorry, didn’t really clarify my thoughts on that portion of my previous answer.
What Hazel did was amazing. She could barely support her own daughter, yet risked her and Nell’s life to protect Evie.
Agree that in not wanting to get close to Evie, she also distanced herself from Nell. This decision was to the detriment of all three.
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Lyrics I agree and Hazel gave up the wonderful life she wanted for herself. In that respect a very caring loving woman but I wish she would have been not so cold towards the girls!
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I ended up thinking Hazel really meant well, but somehow the distance she maintained was so terribly sad. I think she was so afraid about handling the situation correctly and safely. Like others said, this was a different era, and it is hard to say what I would have done. Hopefully I would have been closer and warmer with both girls. It just struck me as very sad that all three lives had such loss in them in in spite of actions that Hazel really made out of love and care.
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I agree. Hazel gave up the life she wanted for the sake of Nell and Evie. She wasn’t a warm, fuzzy mama, but she was a protector.
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I feel badly for Hazel. Her decision to not show her love for the girls was a detriment to all three. If she could have shared her musical talents with the girls it would have added a blessing for all.However she did what she felt was necessary
By the end of the book I felt that Hazel was the heroine. She took on a tremendous risk taking in Evie, but it did turn out to be the best. I hope that I would have been a strong enough person to be able to guard a child like Hazel did.
I think Hazel did what she felt she needed to do when she was placed in a difficult situation. She did her best to protect both Evie and her own daughter. Things may not have turned out as well if she had tried to search out Becca immediately. I think as a mother you do anything to protect your child and I would hope that I would have done what was needed to keep the girls safe.
I think Hazel’s actions were warranted. She did everything she could and more to keep Evie safe. Hazel unselfishly sacrificed her dreams to help this little girl. I would hope if I ever found myself in such a situation I would have done the same.
I’m sorry, but if someone I barely knew dropped a two-year-old off at my house and then died, I’d be taking that child to the police. In this case, that may not have been the best course of action for the young Evie, but I can honestly say in Hazel’s place I would not have acted similarly.
Fate seemed to be against Hazel. She had no sooner found her calling, her love of singing, when she had to give it up. While she reconciled to being a dutiful mother, she had lost her joy. Of all the sadness we saw in characters, hers seemed to have as great an effect as Becca’s loss of her daughter.
Taking in Evie was wonderful. I like to think she would have been open to more tenderness, but she may have felt she couldn’t make the change.
I believe I would have kept Evie. Times were desperate, so if there were enough resources to feed Evie, that would have been the most important issue. How could she have done differently?
I think Hazel was very heroic in taking in Evie and raising her as her own child rather than put her in a dangerous situation. Because of her bravery, Hazel had to give up on her dream of becoming a singer and lived a life of anxiety.. She never knew whether she would be charged with kidnapping. Hazel only knew that she was told Evie would be in danger if she contacted the authorities. I do think Hazel followed the right course of action for Evie who would have had a terrible life with Mildred.
I don’t know if I would be brave enough to do what Hazel did.
I think for the time this took place it was the best hazel could have done. She had no support system and was betrayed by her mother in law.
Hazel’s courage was amazing! I was also impressed by her cleverness in escaping. Hazel changed the entire trajectory of her life by helping Evie. How could Hazel refuse? Sadly, she lived in fear for most of her life, which put distance between her and the girls. It is impossible to say what I would have done. I live in such a different time and place. I would like to think that I would have acted like Hazel, but I honestly have my doubts.
I think Hazel was a hero in some ways. She risked her own life and that of her own daughter’s to protect a child she knew nothing about. She did it out of loyalty to Walt. I was sad to see that she kept herself removed from both girls because of the risk she had taken, but mercy talk about selflessness. I think anyone would want to protect Evie if they found themself in that situation, but what a sacrifice to walk away from everything you have established, even if not much, up to that point.