Okay – so my latest…here’s a synopsis:
It’s 1954…racial tension is at a boiling point…segregation has become the hot topic in all of the South (Brown v. Board of Education has just been ruled on) and Jubie Watts (June Watts) is a 13 year-old coming of age. On a scorching day in August, she leaves her home in Charlotte, NC with her mother, 3 siblings and Mary – their black housekeeper – for a Florida vacation. On the trip, Jubie begins noticing all the anti-integration signs which become more and more prevalent the further south they get. It all leads up to a shocking and horrific incident which leaves Jubie reeling and forces her into a grown-up role she wasn’t quite ready for.
This book held so much promise based on the description. And I liked it, I did…3.5 stars is pretty good. I mean, I finished the book and it certainly held my interest but there were just certain things that didn’t make it great. I felt as though the book didn’t delve deeply enough into the characters. I didn’t have as deep a connection to Mary as I should have had. Additionally – there was a plot line that was sort of thrown in at the end that came, it seemed out of nowhere. This book was about Jubie and the effects that segregation and racism had on her. It was about her love for Mary and how the racism she was surrounded by shaped her. It was also about the shock that one suffers when realizing that parents are imperfect, human and, in fact, very flawed. All of this was obvious but there just wasn’t enough of an emotional connection. The book lacked flavor…it was just a bit dull.
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