Saturday, June 21, 2008

Review: The Richest Season

If you're a fan of Dorothea Benton Frank and Anne Rivers Siddons, it's a fairly safe bet that you'll like this new book from debut novelist Maryann McFadden.

With a somewhat familiar premise of a wife/mother leaving home to find her true self, this book held some surprises, as well.

When Joanna, a longtime and long-suffering corporate wife, ups and leaves her New Jersey home in search of a better life, she ends up in South Carolina, living as a caretaker to Grace, an elderly and dying woman who has come to the beach to live out her last days.

That in and of itself is enough of a storyline. But, McFadden also follows the story of Paul, the left-behind husband. In all honesty, at first this irritated me, reading his point of view when he's initially portrayed as a fairly unsavory guy. However, these were the parts of the book that grew to be my favorite, the words devoted to his own journey from high-powered sales executive to an unfamiliar life, one in which he must learn to find his new place.

The descriptions of the life on Pawleys Island are well-written and evocative, and if you're a lover of Southern fiction, you should pick this one up and add it to your summer reading pile.

3 comments:

  1. I'm adding Maryann McFadden to my TBR pile! My hubby is from NJ and he has made a respectable southerner. ;D If you would like to add it to your southern list, I see no reason why not. Thanks for this review.

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  2. Hi Jill! Thanks for the comment on my review about this book. I added your link to my post. I'm glad you ended up liking Paul too. He was such a jerk in the beginning that I didn't think I'd end up caring much about his vignettes, but they were better than Joanna's by the end.

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  3. Welcome to the Salon! I've just finished The Richest Season as well. At first I couldn't stand Paul, but as it turned out, I ended up caring for him more than Joanna. Here's a link to my review: http://southerngal-lisa.blogspot.com/2008/06/book-review-richest-season.html

    I'll add a link to your review on my blog. Have a great week!

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