As a native of Raleigh, North Carolina, I am a sucker for things set here. Most of us are. We hoot and shout during Wagon Wheel, we at least attempt to tackle Outlander because in like season 37 they come to North Carolina or some bizarre representation thereof, we are flattered (if confused) by Where the Crawdads Sing and its use of our state's geography (who knew quick shopping trips from the beach to Asheville were so common?!), we will fight you over Charles Frazier.
So it's no surprise that when I found out (directly from the author herself) that Therese Anne Fowler was coming out with a book set in a fictionalized version of a local neighborhood, I was very interested. Therese is always excessively kind in coming to our book club meetings and so we've snagged her again for a Zoom meeting later this year where we'll discuss A Good Neighborhood, the third of her books that we've read. And we don't just keep reading them because we can have a brush with celebrity afterwards. We read them because they're freaking good.
Her writing is believable, even when addressing strange topics. And the characters are complete people with realistic motives and feelings. It's hard for me to not relate to a book where a character says, "I might could."
A Good Neighborhood does not disappoint. It hurts and bewilders, and at times frustrates. But it's a good book with a lot to say and a unique way of saying it. Like a Greek chorus, a third-person semi-omniscient narrator representing the residents of the neighborhood guides us through this story. We enter the minds of all the relevant characters and find the sources of misunderstandings and resentments.
This story could easily take place in many different places in this country, but I recognized so many of the things that form our character here. There is the tension of a neighborhood changing from a modest, quiet place to one now sprouting mini-mansions filled with the nouveau riche while still housing the long-established residents. There is also the tension between races in a world quickly changing but not always keeping up with itself.
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There is one typo I noticed in the ebook.
