sincerely swaim

The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett

Southeast London, Present Day: Eudora Honeysett is done with this noisy, moronic world. All she wants is to be left alone to set her affairs in order. Instead, she meets ten-year-old Rose, a whirling, pint-sized rainbow of sparkling cheer and finds herself embarking on a series of adventures with Rose and their affable neighbor, the recently widowed Stanley—afternoon tea, shopping sprees, trips to the beach, birthday celebrations, pizza parties. 

While the trio of unlikely BFFs grow closer and anxiously await the arrival of Rose’s new baby sister, Eudora is reminded of her own childhood—of losing her father during World War II and the devastating impact it had on her entire family. In reflecting on her past, Eudora realizes she must come to terms with what lies ahead. 

This is my 2023 Book of the Year! The characters and their charm, wit, and life perspectives are undeniably lovable. Lyons does a masterful job of writing from two timelines. I’ve never seen an author describe a character’s past in such a simplistic and poignant way. The storytelling of Eudora’s history adds depth to her circumstances and meaning to her growing life perspective. This book was a source of healing (and a good ole fashioned cathartic cry.)

A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham

Louisiana, Present Day: When Chloe Davis was twelve, six teenage girls went missing in her small Louisiana town. By the end of the summer, her own father had confessed to the crimes and was put away for life, leaving Chloe and the rest of her family to grapple with the truth and try to move forward while dealing with the aftermath.

Now twenty years later, Chloe is a psychologist in Baton Rouge and getting ready for her wedding. While she finally has a fragile grasp on the happiness she’s worked so hard to achieve, she sometimes feels as out of control of her own life as the troubled teens who are her patients. So when a local teenage girl goes missing, and then another, that terrifying summer comes crashing back.

I have been reading many books set in Louisiana this season. While this seemed to share some of the marshy mysteriousness that I hoped Dark and Shallow Lies would carry, its pacing was long and drawn out. The main character found herself in the same situations, asking the same questions, popping the same pills, and leading the reader nowhere fast. I predicted the ending and found myself hurrying to the end to determine if I was right.

The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate

Louisiana, 1875: Three young women set off as unwilling companions on a perilous quest: Hannie, a freed slave; Lavinia, the pampered heir to a now destitute plantation; and Juneau Jane, Lavinia’s Creole half sister. Each carries private wounds and powerful secrets as they head for Texas, following roads rife with vigilantes and soldiers still fighting a war lost a decade before.

Louisiana, 1987: First-year teacher, Benny Silva, finds that her new town of Augustine, Louisiana is suspicious of new ideas and new people. Amid the gnarled live oaks and run-down plantation homes lie the century-old history of three young women, a long-ago journey, and a hidden book that could change everything.

The topic of this book was quite compelling and centered on an aspect of this era I had never heard of before. The “Lost Friends” advertisements appeared in Southern newspapers after the Civil War as newly freed slaves desperately searched for loved ones who had been sold away. The storytelling, however, left me wanting more and also less. I feel that the story would’ve been more impactful had it not alternated between timelines. I was far more interested in the journey of the young women in 1875 and didn’t feel that Benny’s story arc enhanced the message.

The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict + Victoria Christopher Murray

New York City, 1910s: Belle da Costa Greene is hired by J. P. Morgan to curate a collection of rare manuscripts, books, and artwork for his newly built Pierpont Morgan Library. But Belle has a secret, one she must protect at all costs. She is the daughter of the first Black graduate of Harvard and a well-known advocate for equality.

The Personal Librarian  shares the lengths she must go to—for the protection of her family and her legacy—to preserve her carefully crafted white identity in the racist world in which she lives.

Having read other Marie Benedict novels, I was excited to start The Personal Librarian. With an astonishing heroine at the story’s center, I was intrigued by the societal expectations for women at the time, as well as the evolving story of racism in the United States. However, I was often quite bored with the novel’s style and didn’t find a connection to Belle. This could have been a real tribute to an important and unknown (to me) historical figure. Instead, if felt like a disjointed attempt at fictionalizing a research paper.

The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer

Maine, Present Day: Lucy Hart knows better than anyone what it’s like to grow up without parents who loved her. In a childhood marked by neglect and loneliness, Lucy found her solace in books, namely the Clock Island series by Jack Masterson. Now a twenty-six-year-old teacher’s aide, Lucy has a chance to be one of the four lucky contestants chosen to compete in a new contest at Masterson’s home on the real Clock Island.

After finishing this book, I googled to see if the Clock Island series by Jack Masterson were a real thing. I wanted to continue being swept up into stories on the island with all of the mystery and risk that was at play in The Wishing Game.

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

Brooklyn, 1902 – 1919: A beautiful coming of age tale that follows the Nolan family – parents Katie and Johnny, their eleven-year-old daughter Francie Nolan – a girl who her grandmother believed was destined for a special life – and her younger brother Neeley.  Offering a glimpse into a corner of the world over a century ago, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is a gentle, understated, and at times heartbreaking story that shares the Nolans’ daily experiences. Betty Smith creates a story that is raw with honestly and tenderly threaded with family connectedness.

What a treat reading these vignettes were to me. I fell in love with the cadence and life-outlook of Francie Nolan. The characters felt like family. The setting felt like home. The details of daily life were unparalleled.

Dark and Shallow Lies by Ginny Myers Sain

Louisiana, Present Day: La Cachette, Louisiana, is the worst place to be if you have something to hide. This tiny town, where seventeen-year-old Grey spends her summers, is the self-proclaimed Psychic Capital of the World—and the place where Elora Pellerin, Grey’s best friend, disappeared six months earlier. When a mysterious stranger emerges from the bayou—a stormy-eyed boy with links to Elora and the town’s bloody history—Grey realizes that La Cachette’s past is far more present and dangerous than she’d ever understood.

The shining star of this book was the setting: mysterious bayou traditions, a landscape that is constantly changing with danger lurking beneath. The storyline, however filled with potential, never showed any dynamic growth or resolution. Instead, it was filled with more questions than answers and far too much mundane repetition for my taste. I’d pass on this one.

The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd

Ancient Judea: Raised in a wealthy family with ties to the ruler of Galilee, Ana is rebellious and ambitious, with a brilliant mind and a daring spirit. She engages in furtive scholarly pursuits and writes narratives about neglected and silenced women. Ana is expected to marry an older widower, a prospect that horrifies her. An encounter with eighteen-year-old Jesus changes everything.

Grounded in meticulous research and written with a reverential approach to Jesus’s life that focuses on his humanity, The Book of Longings is an account of one woman’s bold struggle to realize the passion and potential inside her, while living in a time, place and culture devised to silence her.

As a lifelong Christian, this book detailed a storyline that seemed it may teeter on blasphemy. Jesus, a husband? Surely, the only off-limits life to fictionalize must be His. However, this book quickly became an endearing and thought-provoking story centered around the tenacity of Ana and how her life intersects with Jesus. The historically-accurate details of who Jesus would have been before and during his ministry made the gospel come to life for me in a tangible way.