BOOKS
Saint Clements Bay |
Title: Saint Clements Bay: A Novel of Remembrance Description: Della Elzina Mabrey, born in 1896—or perhaps 1897, she can’t be sure which—finds herself in charge of her brood of grandchildren in the steaming summer of 1959 at her cottage on Saint Clements Bay in rural southern Maryland. Marooned without telephone or automobile and with only a leaky rowboat and the occasional visit from relatives like Great-Uncle Haverman in his turquoise Chevy convertible, they must essentially fend for themselves. In this sheltered and voluptuously beautiful place, Della and the children find a resourcefulness within that surprises and fulfills beyond their expectations. Enchanting the children with the story of her remarkable life and the exotic characters she has encountered along the way, Della begins with her mother’s struggle to start again after the devastation of the Civil War; then on to her own challenges as a freshman nurse at the imposing Government Hospital for the Insane and as a young wife during the deadly influenza pandemic of 1918. We learn of the sadness of her sister Nan with nineteen children and a darkly vile husband; and shiver at the tale of the hangman who narrowly escapes the eerie hound of hell. Della emerges as a creative and resilient woman who reflects the transformation of the twentieth century with her modern independence, strength, and humor. |
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 Deftly woven in between the fabric of Della’s stories, are the adventures of her grandchildren who embark on a summer of discovery: of their family, past and present; of community, race, and religion; and above all, of themselves. Little Beep, the youngest, is a maddeningly mischievous child whose inquisitiveness and pluck both enrage and endear. She and her sisters and twin cousins embark on alternating hilarious or alarming adventures that remind us of the youth we once experienced — or wish we had. Saint Clements Bay is at times a funny novel that nonetheless has a serious side that shows us much about personal development and the development of the modern world. Its nostalgia for times gone by and especially for a less frantic though not necessarily less complex era has a universal appeal. Embellishing the bright depiction of this culture rich-region are recipes for the delectable meals Della prepares — the bounty of the bay — to nurture her grandchildren. |
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