A Month of Sundays

September 26, 2011
Fourteen-year-old Garnet has a summer of discovery when her mother goes off to seek work in Florida, leaving Garnet with an aunt she’s never met. Garnet is angry and resentful, but Aunt June is welcoming and kind. She’s also married well. Unlike the “three-room dump” above a grocery store where Garnet and her mother lived, June and Otis have a sprawling house, a telephone, and a television—a rare possession in rural Virginia in 1956. Their money can’t buy what Aunt June needs most, however: she’s been diagnosed with terminal cancer. As Aunt June visits a variety of country churches seeking a miracle cure, Garnet meets Silver, the handsome son of an itinerant minister. The two have an instant connection, but Silver’s father is ready to move on before long. Too much happens for such a slim novel set over the course of a month, which makes the tragic ending seem not just abrupt but unearned. But White’s command of the material—the setting, vernacular, and character tics will be familiar to readers of her previous books—makes this a rewarding read. Ages 10–14.

October 1, 2011

Gr 5-7-Times are tough for a single mom in Elkhorn City so when April Garnet Rose turns 14, her mother decides to move from Kentucky to Florida where there are more and better jobs. Garnet will stay with her father's sister, June, and her family in Black Rock, VA, while her mom gets established and settled. However, she has never met her father (he left before she was born) or any of his family. Though Garnet is initially uncomfortable with Aunt June, her husband, and their sons, she comes to appreciate family and the small community. She also realizes why her aunt is so actively seeking God by visiting different churches each week. When June's cancer disappears, she attributes it to faith healing by Reverent Shepherd, whose son, Silver, has become Garnet's first love, but a tragic accident results in her first loss. Garnet narrates her journey of discovery and heartbreak, maturation, and growing understanding. It is her voice that makes the relatively speedy resolution plausible. As in her other novels, White captures a small rural community in the mid-1950s that is peopled with likable, memorable characters.-Maria B. Salvadore, formerly at Washington DC Public Library

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