The Breaks: A Novel

A contemporary literary novel about an unlikely friendship between two very different women, The Breaks will appeal to fans of Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine.

Waking up in the emergency room with a broken arm is not one of the ways Marianne imagined her first date with Carl, if it is a date, ending up. Nor was driving up to the entrance of a women’s prison a few weeks later anywhere on her radar. But here she is. At least I’m on this side of the gate. She picks up newly released Stephanie, as a favor to a nun she barely knows, returns to her East of Troost home, and finds herself immersed in a whole new drama.

East of Troost is Marianne’s childhood neighborhood, downtrodden by decades of redlining and a wide swath of destruction to make way for an expressway. Marianne moves back  after a reversal of fortune limits her options. She repairs the house and deals with a couple of “incidents”—hence her acquaintance with Officer Carl. 

Meanwhile, Sister Colette bought the house behind her and is taking in women who, in her words, need to learn to “just live.” As Stephanie helps Marianne cope with her broken arm, she gradually comes out of her shell and teaches Marianne a thing or two about just living.

About the Author

Ellen Barker grew up in Kansas City during a period of demographic upheaval, and she returns there in her novels. She has a bachelor’s degree in urban studies from Washington University in Saint Louis, where she developed a passion for how cities work, and don’t. She began her career as an urban planner, then spent many years working for large consulting firms, first as a writer-editor and later managing large data systems. Her volunteer work involves years of pet-assisted therapy with children in “the system,” both foster care and prison. She is the author of East of Troost, which introduced readers to the neighborhood where The Breaks takes place, and Still Needs Work, which takes place in the same area. She now lives in Los Altos, California, with her husband and their German shepherd, Boris, who is the inspiration for the dog in this novel.