Book Review: Eden

Eden by Jamie Lisa Forbes takes us back to North Carolina in the 1950s, to a time when it was important to do the expected, even if it meant fulfilling other peoples’ dreams. It’s a novel that reminds us when “coloreds” rode in back of the bus, when a “decent” white person wasn’t seen shaking a black person’s hand.

Rowen Hart just graduated from high school when his father’s suicide tears his dreams apart. Rowen has been accepted to college, but now, without funds or hope, he finds himself responsible for his ailing mother. Their black maid, Adeline, is really the backbone of the family, the one who holds everything together. It would never be said, of course, but she’s his mother’s best friend, the only person who really understands her. Adeline sees Rowen’s confusion and urges him to find work, to get past feeling sorry for himself.

Along comes Eden, a ten-year old, red-headed firecracker of a girl. She needs a home and Adeline can’t turn her down, much to Rowen’s dismay. Eden breaks all the rules of proper decor, all the while doing whatever she can to win Rowen’s approval.

Rowen is offered a job at a construction firm, discovers he is good at his job and takes his responsibilities seriously. He meets and eventually marries Jewell, the epitome of a proper southern girl. But just when life seems to be coming together, Rowen begins to doubt the way of life he has always known, to wonder about expectations and fairness.

I found Eden a valuable novel that reminded me how far our nation has come toward recognizing equality. The story also gives us a reminder of how difficult growing up is, of how life’s choices made in youth can affect not only self, but whomever those choices involve. Angst doesn’t just happen to youth—it can follow a person throughout life.

Book Review: Where the Crawdads Sing

 

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens is a memorable book on many levels: complicated family dynamics, a little girl’s struggle to survive, wildlife, and the nature of people. The story takes place almost entirely in North Carolina marshland and toggles between the 1950s and 1960s.

Catherine Danielle Clark, called Kya, watches as one at a time her family members leave home because of her abusive father. First her older siblings, then her mother, and finally her beloved older brother closest to her in age. It’s not unusual for her father to leave her alone for days. When he’s home and sober, life isn’t too bad. At least she feels some protection and they sometimes fish together. But then one day he doesn’t come home at all. She’s seven years old and alone in the world with no one to protect, guide, or provide for her.

Toggling into the 1960s, a young man’s body is found. It looks as though he’s fallen, or perhaps pushed from an old fire tower. Clues are scarce, but people have their suspicions.

Kya remembers seeing her mother prepare some food, but she soon runs out of money to even buy grits. She gathers mussels and trades them for cash to a kind black man who sells gasoline to boaters from a pier in the closest town, Barkley Cove.

As the story develops, we see how Kya views a world that ignores her. Very few people even take notice of “the Marsh Girl.” Her heart and soul develop in the marsh. For her, the marsh is family.

I found this a remarkable story, emotional and moving. I couldn’t put the book down. And I learned a lot, too, about life “way out yonder, where the crawdads sing.”