Left with nowhere to go and a superstitious fear of the number five, Novalee secretly takes up residence inside the store. She lives between the aisles by night and blends in with the customers by day, creating a makeshift home out of sheer necessity. This hidden life ends when she goes into labor on the floor of the store during a thunderstorm, rescued by a reclusive, bookish librarian named .
A resilient nurse and mother of five who becomes Novalee’s best friend. Where the Heart Is(2000)
The birth of her daughter, whom she names , transforms Novalee from a transient girl into a local celebrity. More importantly, it anchors her to a "chosen family" of eccentric, kind-hearted locals: Left with nowhere to go and a superstitious
The story culminates in Novalee’s realization that "home" isn't a building or a town, but the people who stand by you when you have nothing. After years of feeling like an outsider, she finally lets go of her fears, repairs the Wal-Mart floor where Americus was born, and chooses a future with Forney. It is a journey of a girl who lost everything at a discount store only to find a wealth of love she never thought possible. A resilient nurse and mother of five who
Over the next several years, Novalee builds a life. She discovers a talent for photography, weathers a devastating tornado that claims the life of Sister Husband, and watches as Willie Jack—who left her for a failed music career—falls into a life of ruin and regret.
A eccentric woman who takes Novalee in and offers her a real home.
The man who saved her, whose quiet devotion challenges Novalee’s belief that she isn't worthy of love.