The Second Diary
Author: Ciara Threadgoode
Sometimes we just want a novel that places us in a small town with characters whom enter in, sit down, and start telling us a story. Fannie Flagg, Ann Tyler, Garrison Keillor are authors who deliver locale: small town residents, and people: quirky and wonderfully warm characters. Now we have Ciara Threadgoode and Truckee, California and goings on of Dorothy Rose Nolte Hughes, her daughter Peggy, and her granddaughter Cherry, who narrates the story. Dottie, also known as Granny to Cherry, has died, and through the diary that Cherry discovers left behind, three generations of women are bound back together. Cherry, her husband Gene and their 6 dachshunds have taken care of Dottie as she nears death, for Dottie and Cherry do not talk to Peggy, who hates her mother and criticizes her daughter. Like Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café, we learn about the people and warmth in Trukee, California.
Granny (Dottie) is a love: and she has left behind the family secret that has Peggy refusing to have anything to do with her mother. As granddaughter Cherry and Gene read through the pages of the diary revealing the last 63 days after Dottie’s seventy-sixth birthday, they find clues that Dottie has left so that Cherry will know who she is, and why her daughter is the way she is. And the discover secrets about Dottie that bring smiles to their faces. And when Granny’s will is read, it surprises everyone.
Threadgoode not only creates her own world; she authenticates that world and gives us the gift of a family with treasures as well as secrets. Her prose captures this inside world as well as the nature of her characters: we are with Dottie and Cherry as they sip their tea; we love Gene as much as Cherry does; and we sit holding one little dachshund after another as the tale winds its way through heartbreak and hilarity.
Stunningly real, beautifully woven, this tapestry of family threads the reader right into the weave and leaves us hungry for the next novel in the series. When Ms. Threadgoode sent me this novel to review she stated she was an “unknown” – I believe Dottie Rose Nolte Hughes and her quirky and beloved family will top the charts.
I loved it!
Ratings are based on a 5-star scale
Overall: 4
Review by Broad “A” – Ava
We received a copy of this title for our book review. All opinions are our own
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