READ OF THE MONTH: THE SWEET BY AND BY

Southern Living, Mar 2009 by McKinney, Wanda

READ OF THE MONTH: THE SWEET BY AND BY BY TODD JOHNSON (WILLIAM MORROW, $24.95)

This debut novel eloquently tells the story of five North Carolina women, and it is quite simply one of the most beautifully written books you'll ever read. Main characters Margaret and Bernice, residents in a nursing home, bring life to the story with their feisty personalities. Writer Todd Johnson rounds out the cast of strong Southern women in The Sweet By and By with the women's nurse, Lorraine; hairstylist, Rhonda; and Lorraine's daughter, April.

The story plays like music in the heart. Descriptions promise a laugh: "She starts out a cappella, but she's pitched it too high, so it's in the sort of soprano voice that makes you sit up straight just because you feel like if you don't something dreadful is going to happen to your spine." Beautifully crafted dialogue brings a quick catch in the throat. "I tell Margaret and Bernice they don't have to stand up if they don't feel like it, but they both surprise me and get on their feet by holding onto the pew in front of us and pulling up. I'm grateful they can. Rising up when you're weak makes a person stronger."

Strength fills this book, while reinforcing the love and respect Southerners hold for their mothers, grandmothers, friends, and daughters. -WANDA MCKINNEY