Tayari Jones is a new author to me. Not simply an author I'd never read but one I'd never heard of. A look through her back catalogue shows a selection of books with unusual storylines.
I chose Silver Sparrow as my starter purely because it seemed so unusual.
The feel of the book as you read through it is Southern American with a slow dignified pace. It revolves around two half sisters. It describes their separate lives, their different circumstances, the different treatment of a legitimate vs illegitimate child. Whilst the two sisters are the centre of the tale their mothers also have very strong personalities.
The weak spots in the tale are the men. One is the father who does try his best to maintain two families and the other a family friend who knows everyone and loves most of them.
At times sad, at times funny, truly well written with some memorable lines this one deserves to succeed. Personally I preferred it to The Help and would liken it to Barabara Kingsolver.
Now all I have to do is buy the other books....
Publisher - Algonquin Books
I enjoyed this one, too--more so than LEAVING ATLANTA. I haven't read THE UNTELLING. I look forward to seeing what you think about both.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this one, too, and more than LEAVING ATLANTA. I haven't read THE UNTELLING but look forward to seeing what you have to say about it.
ReplyDeleteJust finished "leaving Atlanta" on the pile to be reviewed. The Untelling is currently languishing on the shelf. Thanks for stopping by, so far I agree with you
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