"You will love this coming-of-age book told through the eyes of Evelyn, growing up in a small town in Kansas with her single Mom, Tina. Evelyn is bright and real and the way she interacts with the variety of people who touch her life make this novel one you will have a hard time putting down."

"The writing was so winsome and Evelyn and her mother's precarious situation so compelling that I kept reading. And I'm so glad I did, because I got a lot more than I bargained for: The Center of Everything is a novel that I actively looked forward to returning to every night so I could see what the characters were up to, and toward the end I rationed out the pages so I could stay in Moriarty's Kerrville, Kansas a while longer. The character of Tina is a particular triumph; Moriarty gives her wit and warmth and shatters preconceptions about welfare mothers while remaining true to situation. Wise and compassionate and laugh-aloud funny, The Center of Everything is a book to be treasured and reread. Wonderful novel."