The Truth According to Us by Annie Barrows
I loved the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society so when I heard that one of its authors had a new book out, I hied to the library website to put in a request. After finishing it, I'd say it's a good story but not as good as Guernsey.
The premise is this: Layla Beck is kind of a spoiled rich girl (in the late 1930s). When she refuses to marry the man her father the senator thinks she should, he kicks her out and tells her to go work for a living. Her cousin Ben gets her a job writing a booklet on the history of Macedonia, W. Virginia for the Federal Writers' Project. She thinks she's being banished to the hinterlands--but by the end, Layla has become very fond of the people there. Layla's journey, much of it told in letters back home a la Guernsey, is one thread of the story. Another involves the young daughter, Willa, of the family Layla is boarding with in Macedonia, the Romeyns--who were formerly among the town's elite. Willa is very precocious and very attached to her charming rogue of a father, Felix, who may or may not be a bootlegger but is definitely up to something shady. Willa's version of that summer complements Layla's version.
The most likeable character in the book is Jottie, who has lost her true love under mysterious circumstances and has taken over raising her brother Felix's two daughters, Willa and Bird. She is definitely a force to be reckoned with.
The more research Layla does into the history of Macedonia, the more secrets are uncovered. And by the end, there has been much upheaval in the Romeyn family home.
The premise is this: Layla Beck is kind of a spoiled rich girl (in the late 1930s). When she refuses to marry the man her father the senator thinks she should, he kicks her out and tells her to go work for a living. Her cousin Ben gets her a job writing a booklet on the history of Macedonia, W. Virginia for the Federal Writers' Project. She thinks she's being banished to the hinterlands--but by the end, Layla has become very fond of the people there. Layla's journey, much of it told in letters back home a la Guernsey, is one thread of the story. Another involves the young daughter, Willa, of the family Layla is boarding with in Macedonia, the Romeyns--who were formerly among the town's elite. Willa is very precocious and very attached to her charming rogue of a father, Felix, who may or may not be a bootlegger but is definitely up to something shady. Willa's version of that summer complements Layla's version.
The most likeable character in the book is Jottie, who has lost her true love under mysterious circumstances and has taken over raising her brother Felix's two daughters, Willa and Bird. She is definitely a force to be reckoned with.
The more research Layla does into the history of Macedonia, the more secrets are uncovered. And by the end, there has been much upheaval in the Romeyn family home.
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