Thursday, August 23, 2018

Book Review - Mourning Dove




"An  accurate  and  heart-wrenching  picture  of  the  sensibilities  of  the  American  South."  Kirkus  Book  ReviewsThe  heart  has  a  home  when  it  has  an  ally.  If  Millie  Crossan  doesn't  know  anything  else,  she  knows  this  one  truth  simply  because  her  brother  Finley  grew  up  beside  her.  Charismatic  Finley,  eighteen  months  her  senior,  becomes  Millie's  guide  when  their  mother  Posey  leaves  their  father  and  moves  her  children  from  Minnesota  to  Memphis  shortly  after  Millie's  tenth  birthday.  Memphis  is  a  world  foreign  to  Millie  and  Finley.  This  is  the  1970s  Memphis,  the  genteel  world  of  their  mother's  upbringing  and  vastly  different  from  anything  they've  ever  known.  Here  they  are  the  outsiders.  Here,  they  only  have  each  other.  And  here,  as  the  years  fold  over  themselves,  they  mature  in  a  manicured  Southern  culture  where  they  learn  firsthand  that  much  of  what  glitters  isn't  gold.  Nuance,  tradition,  and  Southern  eccentrics  flavor  Millie  and  Finley's  world  as  they  find  their  way  to  belonging.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Claire  Fullerton  grew  up  in  Memphis,  TN  and  now  lives  in  Malibu,  CA.  She  is  the  author  of  contemporary  fiction,  “Dancing  to  an  Irish  Reel,”  set  in  Connemara,  Ireland,  where  she  once  lived.  Dancing  to  an  Irish  Reel  is  a  finalist  in  the  2016  Kindle  Book  Review  Awards,  and  a  2016  Readers’  Favorite.  Claire  is  the  author  of  “A  Portal  in  Time,”  a  paranormal  mystery  that  unfolds  in  two  time  periods,  set  on  California’s  hauntingly  beautiful  Monterey  Peninsula,  in  a  village  called  Carmel-by-the-Sea.  Both  of  those  novels  are  published  by  Vinspire  Publishing.  Her  third  novel,  Mourning  Dove,  is  a  Southern  family  saga,  published  in  June  2018  by  Firefly  Southern  Fiction.  She  is  one  of  four  contributors  to  the  book,  A  Southern  Season,  with  her  novella,  Through  an  Autumn  Window,  to  be  published  in  November  2018  by  Firefly  Southern  Fiction.

CONNECT WITH CLAIRE: website | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram


MY REVIEW:

The first thing that drew me into this book was the author's eloquent writing. She wastes no words and everything pulls you in and gives you the feeling you are a part of the story yourself. There is no better story than that.

The story is told from the viewpoint of Millie, a young girl who has been transplanted from Minnesota to the mysterious South by her Southern Belle mother, Posey. Millie is able to navigate this new lifestyle because of her friendship and reliance on Finley, her older brother by 18 months. With him around, she feels safe because of his natural outgoing nature, something she doesn't have. 

They move into Millie's grandmother's home, a home that is filled with antiques and things that children have to be careful of. Her grandmother is out in a new little cottage her mother has had built so the home is quite large for this little family of three. 

We are told of Posey's flirtatious nature, even with good friend's husbands, and her other escapades as she falls right back into her southern lifestyle and personality. All of this affects Millie and her brother as they try to navigate the new rules of the South and their friend's mother's snubs after one of their mother's dalliances.  

When I first met Finley, I really liked him, however, the fawning over him by his sister and mother have an undesired affect on him as he gets older. He becomes quite egotistical and a bit unlikable. Because of his father's lack of being available for him also contributes to this. Of course, we see that Posey, herself, is quite self-centered so he really does come by this naturally.

This is a growing up story from the 1970's, an era I'm well acquainted with, since they were also my growing up years. I could relate to so much of what Millie and her family went through and the pretenses they go through for the sake of what others will think. The fact that this is set in the South, adds to this.

This is a slow moving story, but not boring. It really takes you along quite nicely and you become very involved in these family's lives. I enjoyed this book a lot and give it 4 out of 5 stars.

*This book was provided to me from the Just Read Publicity Group. I received a copy of this book to review but I was not financially compensated in any way. The opinions expressed are my own and are based on my observations while reading this book. (See more under my Legal tag at top).


Blessings - Julie

2 comments:

  1. I am so grateful to you for this lovely review! Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  2. This book sounds really interesting! I would love to win

    ReplyDelete

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