Tender Graces by Kathryn Magendie

Release date: 2009 / 400 pages

Synopsis (from back cover): The death of her troubled mother and memories of her abused grandmother lure a young woman back to her Appalachian hollow where she was born.  Virginia Kate Carey, the daughter of a beautiful mountain wild-child and a slick, Shakespeare-quoting slaesman, relives her turbulent childhood and the pain of her mother’s betrayals.  Haunted by ghosts and buried family secrets, Virginia Kate struggles to reconcile three generations of her family’s lost innocence.

First line: “Grandma Faith wavers in the mists, the wolf calls, the owl flies, the mountain is.”

Review:  I read this book on my way to Colorado last weekend and initially loved the prose, then sort-of cooled off on the plot, then reembraced the storyline, but did not notice the writing anymore.  Now, this could simply be a product of reading in an airport and airplane — a disjointed experience even without turbulence.  However, I did feel as if the poetry of the first section was ultimately side-tracked by the characterization.

Here’s an example of what grabbed me initially:

 ”The air smelled clean and new and ripe.  Ghosts of old mountain men looked after lost children, their lullaby whispers blowing through the trees that grew wild and deep into the mountainside…”

“Momma swung that leg, a smirk pulling at her full lips.  Her black hair spilled over her shoulders in a wild mess, her cheekbones rode high, her eyes dark as an undiscovered pyramid, and her skin under the mountain dirt was rich creamed coffee.”

Nice imagery!  Unfortunately, “momma” is not nearly as beautiful — or interesting, unfortunately — on the inside. 

The first part of this novel centers on the destructive vortex alcohol can have on a family.  My personal experience of alcoholism is spare, but even I recognized thegrip of fear the sound of ice cubes can have on a child’s heart.  We never get to know “Momma” apart from her haze, and she is exceedingly unsympathetic.  So, this is one reason why the novel becomes so much more enjoyable once the kids are able to escape to Louisiana and the waiting, lonely arms of a stepmother.  Personally, the parts before the escape dragged a bit.  Alcoholism is monotonous in many aspects and this is felt deeply in the first chapters.  But this most likely makes the escape later in the novel that much more refreshing.

What did stay with me throughout the novel was Magendie’s vivid and gifted sense of setting.  As evidenced in the first quote I included above, the mountains of West Virginia shape and hold the protagonist just as the swamps of Louisiana free her later.  I’ve been lucky enough to visit both places, and thoroughly enjoyed returning through the pages of this novel.

However, if I had edited this novel…  I would have developed the parts about the grandmother deeper.  We are lead to believe that we will get to know her at some point and really do not.  I would also not frame the past with flashbacks.  I understand why the author chose to do this, but the few times we jumped to the present were jarring.  If this had been a memoir (which it feels like strongly), then the framing might have worked better.  But I would have preferred a straight, integrated narrative.

So, out of 5 bookmarks, I would award this 3 1/2!  I think most readers would enjoy it, too.  If this sounds like something you would enjoy, simply drop me a comment and I will choose a winner soon!

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