American Pie : A Novel

The sisters and their grandmother Miranda take turns in relating current events, flashbacks and analysis. This makes for a great variety in view points. I loved to read how the same incident is seen by different characters and how they perceive themselves and are perceived by others.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit.

Three different adult sisters (cautious Eleanor, scholarly Freddie, and often-married Jo-Nell -- even her first name is hyphenated!) live and learn after the youngest (Jo-Nell) is in a car accident. They live with their grandmother Minerva Pray in Tennessee -- their mother had killed herself years earlier and Eleanor found the body. Gradually, she is getting afraid to leave the house. Freddies marriage is crumbling and, when she hears of the accident, she returns to her hometown from California and runs into her high-school love. And Jo-Nell is breaking hearts despite her broken bones and bedriddance.

This is still a good novel but it takes a while to appreciate it if you read Wests other works first.

While I did like CRAZY LADIES better than this effort, AMERICAN PIE is still worth your time and money. For that matter, read all of Wests books.

Also recommended: CRAZY LADIES, BARK OF THE DOGWOOD, FRIED GREEN TOMATOES