This month, I'm focusing on a book that I came across by accident. The book, Darkest Child by Delores Phillips, was a book I came across on Amazon when they featured a kindle book sale--a large number of kindle books for $3.99 or less. I only considered books with 4 stars or above, and then I still read the reviews before I chose a book.
Of the books I purchased that day, quite a few (in all honesty) sucked. But, I found an amazing find with Darkest Child.
This book is about a poor black family in Georgia in the 1950s. There are 10 children, one two-room house (without running water), one crazy mother, several different fathers (none of whom are in the children's lives anymore) and not enough love, money or luck to go around. The undercurrent of the book is the blossoming Civil Rights movement, and how that plays into the lives of the individuals in this family. But, that is by no means the focus of the book. This book focuses on how this family survives--any way they can.
The story is told from the perspective of one of the middle children--Tangy Mae. You watch her grow from innocent, yet damaged, child into a teen who is wise far beyond her years. The mother is a character you love to hate--she is cruel, unfeeling and unkind to her children (she characterizes them by their skin color from "white" to "dark"--favoring the "white" ones), but as the book progresses, you come to realize that the mother has serious mental issues and, even though you hate her, there are several times in the book where you want to help her or you sympathize with her.
You grow to love each of the children in their own way--especially as you learn about the damage that has been done to each of these children at the hands of their mother. You want to scream at the children to stop being so loyal to their mother and to get the heck out of that house, but you understand why they stay--it's the only home they've ever known.
I would love to divulge more, as I loved every single second of this book (truly and completely--there was not one section where I felt the book was lacking, slow or just plain ridiculous), but I don't want to give away too much of the plot line, the twists and turns (and believe me, there are plenty shocking moments in this book), the apexes or the lows of this book. I will tell you this, however, I read Darkest Child from cover to cover in one day--less than 24 hours. It is not an easy read, it is not brain candy and it is not written in simplistic language. It is just that good.
This book ranks incredibly high on my list of books I love and list of books I love to recommend. Check out Darkest Child...I promise you won't be sorry.
(If you click on anywhere it says Darkest Child, it will take you directly to the book on amazon.com.)
This book is about a poor black family in Georgia in the 1950s. There are 10 children, one two-room house (without running water), one crazy mother, several different fathers (none of whom are in the children's lives anymore) and not enough love, money or luck to go around. The undercurrent of the book is the blossoming Civil Rights movement, and how that plays into the lives of the individuals in this family. But, that is by no means the focus of the book. This book focuses on how this family survives--any way they can.
The story is told from the perspective of one of the middle children--Tangy Mae. You watch her grow from innocent, yet damaged, child into a teen who is wise far beyond her years. The mother is a character you love to hate--she is cruel, unfeeling and unkind to her children (she characterizes them by their skin color from "white" to "dark"--favoring the "white" ones), but as the book progresses, you come to realize that the mother has serious mental issues and, even though you hate her, there are several times in the book where you want to help her or you sympathize with her.
You grow to love each of the children in their own way--especially as you learn about the damage that has been done to each of these children at the hands of their mother. You want to scream at the children to stop being so loyal to their mother and to get the heck out of that house, but you understand why they stay--it's the only home they've ever known.
I would love to divulge more, as I loved every single second of this book (truly and completely--there was not one section where I felt the book was lacking, slow or just plain ridiculous), but I don't want to give away too much of the plot line, the twists and turns (and believe me, there are plenty shocking moments in this book), the apexes or the lows of this book. I will tell you this, however, I read Darkest Child from cover to cover in one day--less than 24 hours. It is not an easy read, it is not brain candy and it is not written in simplistic language. It is just that good.
This book ranks incredibly high on my list of books I love and list of books I love to recommend. Check out Darkest Child...I promise you won't be sorry.
(If you click on anywhere it says Darkest Child, it will take you directly to the book on amazon.com.)
Have any great book recommendations to share? Did you read Darkest Child and want to share your thoughts with us? Email us at theaccessorizedlife@gmail.com!
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