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McGuffy Ann
, March 11, 2011
(view all comments by McGuffy Ann)
Prayers and Lies
by Sherri Wood Emmons
This is a very appropriate, thought-provoking title for this book. Sherri Wood Emmons is a new voice in fiction, and one well-worth listening to.
Most families are held together with ties that bind, and often are prayers and lies. Such is the family of this narrator, Bethany and her cousin Reana Mae.
Every summer, Bethany’s family goes home to the Coal River Valley of West Virginia. She and her cousin Reana Mae, both “misfits” develop a “sisterhood”. As they grow through adolescence, the shocking realities of family secrets, lies, and “bad blood” brings them closer, yet threatens to tear the entire family apart.
Bethany’s own sheltered life “up north” eventually becomes jeopardized by Reana Mae’s everyday life and the devastating horror of it, down in Coal River.
The sister-cousins cling to each other through it all, as they learn about life, the different kinds of love, family, and their rightful place in the world.
This is an excellent book from an excellent new author.
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