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A review by jeanstehle
The Kindest Lie by Nancy Johnson
4.0
Two words kept coming to mind as I dug into Nancy Johnson's debut, THE KINDEST LIE.
Book club.
If you're looking for a sink-your-teeth kind of story that will provide an opportunity for rich discussions and space for new perspectives, this is the book (now in paperback-- bonus!).
Set against the backdrop of President Obama's historic presidential win, Ruth Tuttle is the epitome of her own American Dream. Raised by her grandparents in an Indiana factory town, Ruth defies the odds to attend Yale. Now living in Chicago, and married to a loving, successful husband who is eager to start a family, Ruth seems to have it all.
Ruth carries a secret that threatens to destroy her marriage, her family in Indiana, and the life she worked so hard to build. When she was a teen, Ruth got pregnant. Fearing the stigma of being a teen mother, as well as the impediment to Ruth's bright future, Ruth's grandmother (loved this character's spunk and resolve!) convinces Ruth to hide the pregnancy from her classmates and best friend. Ruth reluctantly agrees and promises to move forward with her life, without looking back at what might have been.
Seized by the need to find her son, Ruth returns to her hometown, now economically depressed since the factory closed. The secrets she uncovers threaten her sense of self, family, and her future.
Johnson is an expert storyteller and performs an impressive balancing act of portraying the complexities of being a Black woman in America straddling two worlds while examining the individual struggles Ruth faced at the crossroads of motherhood.
I finished the novel with a heavy heart, and not because the ending was unsatisfying or depressing. Rather, it was a stark reminder of the idealistic assumption so many Americans made that Obama's win would finally usher the United States into a post-racial society.
This is an author to keep an eye on. Her next book, PEOPLE OF MEANS, coming in early 2025.
Book club.
If you're looking for a sink-your-teeth kind of story that will provide an opportunity for rich discussions and space for new perspectives, this is the book (now in paperback-- bonus!).
Set against the backdrop of President Obama's historic presidential win, Ruth Tuttle is the epitome of her own American Dream. Raised by her grandparents in an Indiana factory town, Ruth defies the odds to attend Yale. Now living in Chicago, and married to a loving, successful husband who is eager to start a family, Ruth seems to have it all.
Ruth carries a secret that threatens to destroy her marriage, her family in Indiana, and the life she worked so hard to build. When she was a teen, Ruth got pregnant. Fearing the stigma of being a teen mother, as well as the impediment to Ruth's bright future, Ruth's grandmother (loved this character's spunk and resolve!) convinces Ruth to hide the pregnancy from her classmates and best friend. Ruth reluctantly agrees and promises to move forward with her life, without looking back at what might have been.
Seized by the need to find her son, Ruth returns to her hometown, now economically depressed since the factory closed. The secrets she uncovers threaten her sense of self, family, and her future.
Johnson is an expert storyteller and performs an impressive balancing act of portraying the complexities of being a Black woman in America straddling two worlds while examining the individual struggles Ruth faced at the crossroads of motherhood.
I finished the novel with a heavy heart, and not because the ending was unsatisfying or depressing. Rather, it was a stark reminder of the idealistic assumption so many Americans made that Obama's win would finally usher the United States into a post-racial society.
This is an author to keep an eye on. Her next book, PEOPLE OF MEANS, coming in early 2025.