A Grown-Up Kind of Pretty

Every 15 years bad things happen to the Slocumb women. It started when Ginny got pregnant at 15, and continued when her daughter Liza also become a mom at 15 and ran away from home. Now that Liza's daughter Mosely is 15, things are already falling apart. Liza has suffered a stroke that has left her unable to speak. Ginny watches Mosely like a hawk, watching for signs that she is about to go wild. But when Ginny hires someone to cut down the willow tree in the back yard of their small Mississippi home, secrets are revealed and the trouble gets even bigger, threatening everything the Slocumb women think and know about their bond.

Some authors are good storytellers, and others are good writers. It is rare to find an author like Joshilyn Jackson who can fill both roles. Jackson has always been a lyrical writer who creates memorably flawed but strong and sympathetic female characters. This time she adds a mystery that kept me frantically turning the pages to get to the final devastating revelation. The result is her best book yet, and one that in a perfect world would garner her recognition and accolades from the literary establishment. It's sad and funny, gritty but also optimistic. Although there is a bit of a romance for one character, it's definitely all about the women and the families we make by blood and by love.