By: Hillary Jordan
This is an ALEX Award winning book (an award given out by ALA for an adult book with teen appeal). This is a historical fiction novel set in 1940s Mississippi Delta. Memphis, TN born and bred Laura falls in love with and marries Henry McAllen - an erudite college man who secretly buys a farm one day - forcing Laura to move with him and their two daughters. Other characters in the book - returning African American vet Ronsel Jackson and his parents Hap and Florence and Henry's brothers Jamie and Henry and Jamie's father Pappy - round out the cast. I say round out the cast because this book reads like a play. Each of the six characters (Pappy is the only character who does not speak with his own voice) describes the action.
It really gives a flavor of 1940s America - Ronsel's descriptions of Europe give you the feeling that you are there too. Florence and Hap have the life of sharecroppers. Henry describes the precarious life of a cotton farmer while trying to keep his family happily together. Henry's ne'er do well, alcoholic brother Jamie describes his struggles and those of the others around him. I identified most with Laura. She was thirty when she met Henry - well on her way to spinsterhood. She meets, marries and quickly has two children by Henry. Henry buys a farm without her knowledge and she is thrust into this foreign bucolic existence. She struggles to make the most of it and stays with Henry and the family.
I believe this is a very good book for anyone who wants to read about a different period of American history. It is not for the faint of heart, however. Racial violence, racial discrimination, and frank language are themes throughout the book. (Fiction) 07/29/09
