I had the hardest time laying this book down! The characters were so real that I feel I would recognize them were I to meet them out. Very enjoyable and well written!
Where do I start? I'm not so sure. The plot was ok, but was not spectacular. The first 100 pages or so I wanted to bang my head against the wall wondering if the story was ever going to take off and why the hell the story was so disjointed. The next 100 or so pages I wondered when the hell Adie was going to grow the hell up and stop acting like some puppy whose owner kicks it daily. Talk about being slow. Bucks brother seemed to have more common sense than this girl. Finally the last 100 pages or so builds up, throws a curveball in, and then levels out. I think the only thing that saved the book was Tempe's diary and even that I had some issues with. I've never ever met an author who tried so very hard to write a black woman and fail miserably. I have read several books that have been written by those who had been slaves and the language flowed. The voice the author used for Tempe was just...strange, odd, and a bit unbelievable. The idea was there, but could have been written better.
Really loved this book! The writing is very good, and the reader gets completely wrapped up into the parallel stories of the slave girl Tempe and the modern girl Adie. Set in the 1960's during the Vietnam war and the Camelot of the Kennedy era, the story is about families who have a good deal of tragedy and loss in their lives. Yet there are many funny events that make you smile. Some phrases are written with a poetic turn that cause them to be worthy of quoting for their simple wisdom. One of my favorites: "You can't direct the wind, Adie, but you can always adjust your sales." It took 6 years for this book to make it to me, and it was surely worth the wait! D.
