The Summer We Got Saved

The Summer We Got Saved by Pat Cunningham Devoto. This is one I wouldn't have ordinarily picked up, although Carolyn might have. However, I had read a previous book by this author called My Last Days as Roy Rogers. Devoto is among the best of the "southern fiction" writers out there. She is a good storyteller who concentrates on small towns in the south, mostly during the 50s and 60s.

This new one is essentially a dual coming of age story about a white girl and a black girl. It provides a good atmospheric view of evolving race relations in the south in the 60s. It brings in enough characters to look at the issues from all sides. While the story focuses on the two girls, the character that drives the story is crazy Aunt Eugenia. Eugenia grew up a family who's history included one of the founders of the Ku Klux Klan. The plaque in a small town honoring this relative stands in as a symbol for the established ways that the races dealt with each other. You get to see the progressive and reactionary forces in both the white and black communities.

While this story has some pretty dark moments, it still manages to be a sweet story typical of today's southern writers. Not great literature, but an enjoyable read.