Made in the U.S.A.

This is a sad story of two children whose mother died, and their father left them with his girlfriend and took off for Las Vegas. When the girlfriend dies, rather than risk living in an institution, 15 year old Lutie takes her younger brother with her as she drives a car to Las Vegas to find their father.

Along the way, some nasty things occur to the down and out children. Traveling from Spearfish, South Dakota presents problems of running out of money along the way, foolish mistakes that land them in dangerous situations.

I've read other books by this author. She tackles difficult situations with a sense of realism and a smattering of real life characters that are struggling and trying to do the best they can.

Recommended

I liked this book. It is about two kids, a fifteen year old girl names Lutie (a name that I'm not gonna lie, annoyed me a bit) and her eleven year old brother Fate (it was supposed to be Fale, the mother's maiden name, but the nurse accidentally put a t on the birth certificate). When you first meet the kids they are living with a 300lbs woman named Floy in North Dakota. Their mother died when Lutie was 6 and Fate, 3 and their father ran off and left them with his current girlfriend (Floy). Foly has a heart attack in the Walmart checking line and rather than get sent into foster care, the kids decide to take her car and go to Vegas to find their father. I don't want to give too much away, but they have a lot of problems, homelessness, show more creepy old men, etc. etc.

At first, I liked Lutie. She seemed brave, ready to take charge, determined and strong. But after a while I began to dislike her. I mean you find a laptop, go pawn it, get 200$ and rather than saving it, or finding food for your little brother, you go out and get a tattoo (of kissing lips on your neck, really fucking tacky) pierce your ears again, get a manicure, and highlights in your hair??? I wanted to pound her then. It goes on from there, and you find her actions becoming more and more selfish. She does have a lot of horrible shit happen to her, but in a way I was like seriously!! How could you NOT think that was going to happen??? However, when the conclusion of the book came about, and you find out this secret she has been keeping, I grew to understand her more, and she does in fact evolve into a better person.

I loved the little brother. Fate is a smart, optimistic, goofy kid. He is the little brother I wish I had. When Lutie was being mean to him, I just wanted to give the kid a hug.

This is a well written book, it holds your attention, the characters are well written and believable and its a good story about finding your place in the world and how families can sorta come together. show less

The book was pretty good. I liked Shoot the Moon better but it does keep you engrossed and I finished it in about a day and a half.

Here's the plot:

Fifteen year-old Luttie and her brother eleven year-old brother Fate have a problem. Their mother died years ago. Their dad went to Vegas a year ago and left them with his ex-girlfriend, Floy, and they haven't heard from him since. Floy just keeled over from a heart attack at Walmart and child services just doesn't seem appealing.

What are two kids to do? Logical answer is to steal/borrow Floy's car, dig up as much cash as they can, and head to Vegas to find their father.

Uh oh.

Here's the thing. Luttie is not a very likeable character. From the very beginning she's a compulsive stealer. And show more she's bitter, rude, and selfish. Even to her little brother. But oh Fate is so adorable. He's one of those brilliant sweet kids who spout random facts and has no friends. Now these type of kids can either be annoying or cute...and he's the second type. So I kept rooting that they'd be ok.

But Vegas has a dark side. I know that because I lived there and saw it. And those parts of the book are just heart-wrenching. Be warned...violence, child pornography, and all those Vegas underbelly stuff. At one point I was almost angry at Billie Letts for not saving them sooner...like "just don't write it and they'll be ok" or "where's their saving angel already!?!".

And then it gets better. And there's fireflies.

My only beef is that it sort of wraps up a little to quickly and nicely at the end...especially Luttie's story.

But it's still a pretty good story...especially since the book had me yelling at the author here and there! show less

This was the first of book written by Billie Letts that I've read. It won't be the last.

I couldn't stop reading once I stated becase I was "trapped" in Lutie & Fate's world. I cried, I laughed and I think I might have even threw the book (which I NEVER do, cause you know, it's a book and they should be respected). I was exhausted after living in Lutie's world for the 9 hours it took me to read this book.
This book was so detailed, you were running from the cops, you were living on the streets in Las Vegas, you were trying to scrape and /or con your way into being able to eat that day, right along with Lutie & Fate.
At first I found Lutie to be a very unlikable 15 year old girl, then I remembered, oh yeah, 15 year old girls are usually show more unlikable. But this book also showed that when they have to be, kids can & will be resilient. They will make their way through situations that will make any parent shudder.

Read it, you won't be disappointed show less

As I started reading Made in the U.S.A, I couldn't help but let a smile cross my face as another tramatic event takes place in the local Wal-mart store. I love how she always seems to weave the Wal-mart stores into her stories. Even though the store has a very small appearance, it really sets off a chain of events that will change Lutie and Fate's lives forever.

Lutie and Fate are a brother and sister that have not had the opportunity to live a life full of love and family. After their mother died years ago, their father seemed to hook up with any single gal that would take him and his two children in, knowing that she would be there to take care of them so he could drink himself into a stupor. One day when their father doesn't return, show more it isn't much longer until they realize that he is not coming home at all.

When life-changing events take place, Lutie decides that the only thing left for her and Fate to do is to find their father so he can take care of them. Their quest takes them to the streets of Las Vegas, which as you can imagine is not the best place for a couple of young kids with no home or money to spend any time. They find themselves living out of a car and Lutie is doing all that she can to save money to get themselves a reasonable apartment so Fate can at least be enrolled in a decent school. What she is earning is not enough, and she finds herself having to resort to unimaginable jobs to make the money that is needed.

As Lutie and Fate seem to be just getting by day after day, it appears that they have a secret guardian angel that enjoys leaving them little gifts that are greatly appreciated. When events take a turn for the worst, their guardian angel comes to their rescue, and while revealing his identity he also saves them from imminent danger. In the process of saving the children, in a way they are also saving him. I love how he needed these children to heal his wounds as much as they needed him to heal theirs.

Although I throughly enjoyed this novel, there were pieces that were definitely hard to read. The hardest part of this book for me was watching these children live in a way that didn't allow them to be children. With themes of abandonment, growing up, forgiveness, and love, this book will stay in my memory for quite some time. I feel that I should warn you that there is some offensive language in these pages, but the story itself is well worth the read. show less

There are times I read a book and it makes me profoundly grateful for the relatively blessed life that I experienced during my journey to adulthood. This is certainly one of those books!

Made in the USA is the harrowing, but stirring story of Lutie and Fate: a 15 year old girl and her 11 year brother, who find themselves unexpectedly orphaned and homeless. Fear of the foster care system sends the siblings on a cross country trip to Las Vegas, where Lutie is certain that she can find a way to take care of them on her own. Lutie and Fate experience humanity at it's best and worst as they struggle to survive with limited resources and at the mercy of those who seem to take what they want without conscience.

At first, this was a difficult show more read for me. Initially, I didn't really like Lutie as she reminded me of a lot of the foul-mouthed and skanky teenage girls I seem to see everywhere these days. However, through the course of the novel I came to appreciate the depth of her character. From the first, I fell in love with Fate and his precocious nature. After I found myself really caring about the characters, the novel was suddenly a more difficult read. Letts never seems to shrink in describing the challenges faced by teenage runaways and homeless individuals. There were times I just didn't think I could handle any additional tragedy. However, I couldn't put the book down. I had to find out what happened! I'm glad I stuck with it.

I don't want to give any plot details away, so let me just say that the book is not one which will leave you feeling hopeless and discouraged. I really enjoyed this book, and would like to express my gratitude to Valerie at Hachette books for providing me with a review copy. It was truly a pleasure to read this book. show less

Sixteen-year-old Lutie and her 11-year-old brother Fate seem to have lost everything when their father's ex-girlfriend suddenly dies in a South Dakota Wal-Mart. Their mother has been dead for 10 years and no one has heard from their father since he left for Las Vegas. To avoid Child Protective Services and foster care, they run away to Vegas to search for their father only to find that he died in prison. At first Lutie's con schemes and shoplifting seem like fun in an exotic town, but the hopelessness and despair of homelessness soons claims them as victims. Can a tough street-smart girl and a smart, but too old for his age, boy find friends, family and a place to call home? Can they learn to enjoy life without ever having been allowed show more to be children? In the process, can they also teach others to forgive? show less