The Southerners

Description

***''Widow financially weakens her cotton mill until others take over and rebuild the plant.'' Told in the ''1st person'' point of view, of Jessica Kildare, an orphan. But everyone calls her Jess. The place is Atlanta. The time is Early 1900s - World War I.*** *GOODREAD MEMBER REVIEWS:* ***Jessica (Aug 06, 2012) 'it was amazing.'' (Shelves: favorite-historicals):*** Stretching from the early 1900s to World War I, this novel's setting roams from the bright glitter of Atlanta Society to the grime of cotton mills, from the quiet of the peaceful countryside to the violent cries of Atlanta race rioters. It's a piece of history seldom talked about, and it's written in that lovely, old-fashioned, eloquent English language that is so quickly disappearing. ***Jodi (Jan 10, 2012) ''really liked it.''*** I picked this book off the shelf knowing nothing about it other than it has something to do with the south. Before reading it, I had checked out the reviews on here was a bit apprehensive. The star ratings were not very high. Despite this, I started the book and am glad I did! The Southerners follows the life of Jessica Kildare through life's twists and turns. I truly enjoyed Lee's writing! ***Stephanie (Nov 04, 2014) 'it was amazing.''*** I picked up "The Southerners" for free at a local library to use for one of my drawings on book pages. When I started reading this book, I couldn't put it down! It's a wonderful narrative through the life of Jessica as she experiences life in the south, in the early 1900s. Jessica experiences lost, love, adventure, concern, pain, and through all the twists and turns, it ends rather perfect. I highly recommend.

Description

KIRKUS REVIEW: THE SOUTHERNERS by Edna Lee ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 23, 1953 This -Edna Lee's best book,- counts on more than a holding story and a convincing central character to make its mark. For here is a story of the New South, that element that even before World War I first made use of Yankee ways to implement a lagging industry. The story tells of a cotton mill, milked by its owner, a woman, widowed, and determined to get what she wanted out of it, regardless of the cost to others. It tells too of a girl child whom Fate had buffeted- but whose character rang true. And of how later she found the responsibility of the mill hers, though she did not want it, and of how she built it into a mill which went beyond what the South had thought adequate- despite opposition ended, perhaps fortuitously, by violence. There's romance here, and there's a slow gradual knowing of an individual in the making. The early part savors a bit of Sara Crewe- but the complete Cinderella mot is not played out, and the more realistic handling gives the characterization greater authenticity. Edna Lee's The Queen Bee built on the reputation of her The Web of Days This may well repeat the success of that first book. Again -as with the others- the setting is Atlanta and its environs, and the theme of the false standards of the Old South is a recurrent minor note in a story reflecting changing times.

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