THE FORGIVING KIND

THE FORGIVING KIND

By Donna Everhart

Well, that’s all right, mama
That’s all right for you
That’s all right mama, just anyway you do
Well, that’s all right, that’s all right.
That’s all right now mama, anyway you do – by Arthur Crudup, recorded by Elvis Presley

Snakes hide in grass – people, behind their lies. – Unknown

All water has a perfect memory and is forever trying to get back to where it was. – Toni Morrison

1955 on a small cotton farm in North Carolina. Twelve-year-old Sonny Creech and her older brothers, Ross and Trent, live with their Mama and Daddy, growing cotton, working together, stretching the bills and loving each other with all their hearts. Until Daddy dies from a rattlesnake bite, and then suddenly the world is an unrecognizable place. For Sonny and her brothers, that one tragic incident shuts the door on the warmth of sunlight and opens the curtains to the darkness of mankind, in ways they had never fathomed.

As events unfold after their father’s death, and as Mama becomes distant and makes choices her children can’t understand, Sonny even seems to lose her “water witch” ability, a wonderful power that only she, of all the family, shared with her Daddy. Sonny leans on her longtime friend, Daniel, as confidante and burgeoning crush, to help her sort through the losses and turmoil. But Daniel has a secret that he hasn’t shared with Sonny, and a wedge slowly forms between them. Then one day another tragic event occurs, this time involving Daniel, and Sonny and her brothers are forced to witness firsthand the evil snake that can coil within men’s hearts and strike down the most sensitive of us.

The Forgiving Kind is a beautiful coming of age book, and an excellent representation of the South and the times. It addresses many of the issues that were, and in many ways still are, a part of Southern culture. Bigotry, hate, and abuse are central themes in this story, but threaded throughout are love, kindness, and strength of character.

Every character in the book is believable and seemed so real to me. My heart ached for Sonny and the impotence and frustration of a child who sees wrong but is powerless to stop its onslaught. I hurt for Daniel and his secret, in a time and place that were unforgiving to anyone who was “different.” I was angered and disgusted by the men in the story who had reckless disregard for humanity, in all its colors and forms. And I felt frustration and understanding, and finally satisfaction, with Mama, who, throughout, was doing the best she could in an impossible situation.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington books for an ARC of this haunting novel in exchange for my honest review.

Reviewed May 2019