Verbena
A Novel
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3.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
A big-hearted novel of a Southern woman's trials and tribulations: "Kincaid's voice is a true original" (Alice Hoffman).
When Bobby died in a car wreck with another woman at his side, Verbena was left with five kids, a small house, and a big empty place in her heart. She did her best to pick up the pieces—and pick up where her husband left off, paying the mortgage, mowing the lawn, and raising her children so they'd turn out reasonably decent.
Five years later, Bena's got two daughters who have run off with no-good men, a backyard full of marijuana plants none of her kids will own up to, and a semi-personal relationship with Jesus. But she's trying. And when she's ready to fall in love again, she knows whom she wants: Lucky McKale. And despite the fact that he's married, he seems to want her too, in this "touching account of a middle-aged widow who puts her life back together even more spectacularly than it came apart . . . A well-told and likable tale" (Kirkus Reviews).
"Bena Eckerd has one of those fabulously unpredictable and noisy households that can both drive you crazy and make you sane again . . . Down-to-earth humor . . . and the nonstop plot twists keep us riveted to the adventures of her unruly clan and her messy search for love and meaning." —Orlando Sentinel
"Exuberant . . . Kincaid has a terrific knack for capturing Southern speech, customs, and characters." —The Cincinnati Enquirer
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Sixth-grade teacher Bena Eckerd's biggest fault outside of crying hysterically every time she walks into a church is to blame herself for "messing up" every time life deals her a low blow. She was happily married to Bob, or so she thought, until he died in a car accident with another woman at his side. She thinks she has raised her five children well, until her two oldest daughters run off with no-account men, her third moves away with Bena's arch rival, and her eldest son chooses the one woman in the world whose very name causes Bena anguish. She can't believe that good-natured mailman Lucky McKale really loves her, since he is married to Sue Cox, the most beautiful and richest woman in Baxter County, Ala. But after Sue Cox herself agrees to a divorce and blesses their union, Bena finally feels she can accept Lucky's proposal. A new kind of domestic unit is formed, with exes and stepchildren integrated into one colorful family. Then disaster strikes Lucky disappears. Kincaid is both warmhearted and clear-eyed about the compromises people make to find happiness. Bena and her children are fully dimensional, good at sassy give-and-take and credible in both mundane and dramatic confrontations. Race relationships are gently defined (Bena's best friend is Mayfred, a black colleague), and there's straight talk about religious faith and feminine jealousy and solidarity. Kincaid never lets sentimentality or the sitcom syndrome invade a lively and authentic story of a resilient woman's doubts, troubles, heartbreak and survival, and she crafts her tale with charm, humor and wise understanding.
