I posted a review on Amazon as well but the review has not shown up yet. I will come back and add it when it comes in)


Donna Everhart is a North Carolina native who knows the ways of the south and southern fiction. The Forgiving Kind is a coming of age story that will have readers feeling every emotion on the spectrum. This book is one of those books that you sit around and think about long after you've finished it. It makes you think, it makes you feel and makes you question your own ideas about forgiveness, bigotry, survival, friendship and many other things. A heart felt novel that readers will likely never forget.



What I liked:



Do you know what a divining rod is? It's generally a stick with two forks that allows a person to find water. But the magic isn't in the wood, it's in the person. Donna Everhart's character, Sonny Creech is a 12 year old girl, living in the south in the 1950s. She loves the land and she has a gift for finding water. But as the reader will quickly find out, she has a lot of other gifts as well. Everhart tells a story of a little girl whose family falls on hard times and must go to extreme links to survive.



This character was a real spitfire. I loved Sonny so much. As I read the book it became about so much more than a coming of age novel. Sonny taught me a lot about not only forgiveness but also friendship, family and the ties that bind that might be invisible but are strong and resilient. She taught me about remembering what matters and about standing up for what you believe even when your twelve and the evil in the world not only knocks at your door but moves right in.



Sonny's family is in crisis. The death of her father and a drought have put them in a position that many don't survive. Sonny's mother has to make some difficult decisions that ultimately change the course of their lives. Sadly, she believes all along that she has no other choice. This woman would literally do anything to provide for her family to do what she thinks is best for them. When a neighbor offers the only solution at hand, she does what she has to.The consequences become dire. I felt for Violet so much. I'm a single mother and there were times I didn't know what to do either. You make sacrifices and you pray and you trust that good things will happen, but sometimes they don't. I think there will be many readers who relate to this situation especially today when the world might appear to have changed a lot, but has it?



I thought a lot about what it means to forgive someone when I was reading this book. I thought about what the Bible says about forgiving a person 70 x 7, which is to say, just keep on forgiving. Are there things that people do that we just can't forgive? Or is there some undefined line in the sand. I also thought about what they say about forgiveness and that it is more for you than it is the person you are forgiving. This book is very thought provoking. This just scratches the surface of all of the things a person could potentially find in this book that will cause them to question. This is an emotional one and rightly so.



Another very important aspect of this book for me was Sonny's relationship with her friend Daniel. I loved Daniel. He was smart and funny and sweet, but he was "different" and that made him a target. Isn't that sad to you? It is to me. Our differences are what make us unique and special. They define us as a person. It's painful for me to envision a world that does not celebrate that, but one that hates and ridicules it. But that's the world they lived in and the one we live in too. It's time to change, do you think? I loved the way Sonny had Daniel's back no matter what. I want to be a friend like that. It's not just in childhood that we have that kind of hard love, we can have it in our own relationships if we want to fight for it.



What I didn't Like:



Well the easy thing to say that I didn't like about this book was the bigotry, the violence, Frank Fowler, the menacing neighbor. But that's all surface stuff. I don't think those are things you can dislike in this instance. I very much liked that the author tackled some really big issues, from racism to homophobia. I liked that she was stark and honest and showed the real gritty southern roots she probably grew up with. I know I did. That stuff happened in my life time and it is still happening. So we might not like that it makes a book a little dark or maybe it makes it a little hard to read. But we have to those are the kind of books that matter.



Some readers read to forget the things that go on in the world. They want fluffy, happy, sappy books. There is nothing wrong with that at all. Books are as much for escape and relaxation as anything else. For some this one will be too much. You know your preferences. You know what you can handle as a reader. Use wisdom when choosing what to read, but also take a chance and read something out of your comfort zone sometimes. I'd suggest this one.



I will say that there are definitely trigger warnings in this book. Some readers are advised to use caution if you've had traumatic experiences related to these kinds of topics. Everhart does an amazing job of describing situations in detail and that can be hard for those who have suffered similar fates.



Bottom Line:



Wow! This was soooo well written. It oozed southern vibes. It was frank. It was honest. It was hard to read but it was so thought provoking and relevant to today's world. Sonny was an amazing character that readers will not soon forget. It was about family and friendship, right along with racism and bigotry. It was dark, but Sonny was the light. Can't say enough good things about this one folks. Give it a read. Well worth your time.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
I enjoyed this book-the story, characters and writing were excellent.
It would make a great movie.
I would definitely read another book by this author.

Wow! The Forgiving Kind is a page turning coming of age story set in the South in the 1950’s. I loved the story of Sonny and her family. Donna Everhart did a magnificent job bringing the characters to life for me with the dialect and descriptive writing. I found myself glued to the pages, reading furiously yet not wanting the story to end. Five stars!!!

4.5 stars
<i>“Even when you believe someone else might be in the wrong, sometimes the best way is to simply forgive them. Don’t you think?”</i>

What exactly does it mean to be the forgiving kind? What does it take to forgive? Is there a line beyond which you could no longer forgive another person? And do the same standards apply if you have to forgive yourself?

These were all questions I pondered after reading Donna Everhart's terrific novel The Forgiving Kind but although the title suggests forgiveness would be the major theme I'm not so sure. The book forced me to think upon so many other things - the family's love of the land and each other, the difficulties of being a farmer, grief, survival at (almost) any cost, familial love, bigotry, domestic violence and so much more. In fact it was difficult to pinpoint any one specific element as the stand out because it was so well executed throughout.

From the first page the narrator, twelve year old Sonny, makes clear her love of the land. <i> Daddy said the land’s soaked into me the way blood soaks into wood, a permanent, everlasting mark.</i> Almost immediately there is a tragedy which steals her much loved father from the family tipping their world upside down. In the wake of this trauma life becomes tough and then tougher still.

Throughout Sonny's voice was perfect. She may only have been twelve but don't be mistaken this was not young adult fiction. Then again she wasn't one of those twelve year old's with more wisdom than her years should allow. She was at times insightful yet naïve at others. She wanted her parents to be proud of her. She wanted things to be the way they were before. She despaired of some of the decisions her mother made. She loved her friend Daniel fiercely yet innocently, and loathed her new step father equally passionately. Her struggles, and those of the family, felt real and invoked in me a range of emotions including happiness, sadness, anger, love, hatred, disappointment, anxiety and relief.

Every once in a whole you discover a book (or in this case get recommended a book - thanks Angela) which ticks all the boxes - story, characters, writing. I hope you'll try this one for yourself, especially if you enjoyed books like One Good Mama Bone or If The Creek Don't Rise.

My sincere thanks to the author, to Kensington Books, and to NetGalley for the opportunity of reading this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review which it was my pleasure to provide.

Donna Everhart books are always a priority. I requested this one as soon as I saw it on Netgalley, because her other two books had been favorites of mine. And while THE FORGIVING KIND was a different experience for me, I still believe Donna Everhart is a wonderful writer and this is a great and important book.

While I loved reading the first chapter and getting to know Sonny and her father, I admit I lost some interest when he died and the family had to continue with the business. I found the first half of the book rather slow, but I kept on going because I knew it wouldn’t disappoint me. And I’m so glad I did! This is a touching story about a family, about grief, love, racism, and friendship. And the importance of loyalty and never losng hope.

From one particular event on, I found this book unputdownable, and I couldn’t stop turning the pages. This is not a thriller or a fast-paced aventure, but I was so consumed by the story that I needed to know what would happen next. My favorite storyline was the one involving Sonny’s friend, Daniel. There were some scenes that broke my heart and the ending almost made me cry… it’s not a happy story, but it remains hopeful.

This is a book that talks about many important themes and even though it’s set in the 50s, it’s still relevant today. Also, I have never heard of divining water (I’m sorry!), and I found it fascinating. I believe that, like all three books by Everhart, this novel would translate beautifully to the big screen (picture something like The Secret Life of Bees).

At times of hardship it shows what a mother is willing to do to provide for her children, as the children struggle and begin to fear their stepfather with no help from the law who is friends to the stepfather the mother decides to sacrifice monetary security for the safety and well being of her children.

I wanted to like this one more than I did. While the events weren’t in any way unbelievable, they somehow seemed gratuitous or a bit flat. With such a potentially deep set of topics, there wasn’t enough groundwork laid or enough depth of character development to support the intensity needed to pull off the discussion in a significant, engaging way. Disappointing.

The cover I feel misled me when I first started reading it(I had forgotten the blurb by then). It has a very mild look(must be all that cotton) but it is a much harder book to stomach than expected. It tackles some very strong issues from the viewpoint of a child. This makes it both easier and harsher to watch the events unfold. 

Sonny/Martha is in love with her land. She gets that from her father, someone she looks up to and who holds the family together. Then tragedy strikes and her brothers and mother are left untethered and looking for direction and financial constraints weigh heavily on them. Then Sonny has to watch helplessly while the neighbour muscles his way into their lives with equal part intimidation and skill. Things are never the same but the family bond pulls them together at every crucial stage. This is a straightforward tale in most ways, and I did feel the sadness of the family and hoped for change with every turn of the page (this was a digital copy, but you know what I mean) and although it had the kind of ending I hoped for, it felt a little rushed considering the speed of the rest of the events. This is the only reason it is not a complete five-star read for me but it would be for anyone who is interested in reading books in this genre. I would definitely recommend it.

'Daddy said the land’s soaked into me the way blood soaks into wood, a permanent, everlasting mark. Three years ago, when I was nine, he placed an old willow branch into my hands, and showed me how to do what he’d been doing since I can remember, something he calls “divining water”. Turned out I could do this too.'

It is the 1950’s in North Carolina and Martha “Sonny” Creech works side by side with her father and brothers on their cotton farm. No one loves the land as much as Sonny and her father, despite the fact that most girls are meant for ‘softer’ more lady-like skills. Living on the cotton farm with her brothers Ross and Trent (a teen with a wild streak who hates farming), Sonny and her father have a special bond, both soaked to their marrow with their love of the land. It had all felt perfect, as long as they could farm and be a family until tragedy strikes and her father dies. That’s when Frank Fowler falls over her family like a dark shadow, with an offer that to the Creech siblings feels more like a deal with the devil.

Why can’t her Mamma see the real Frank, rather than the sly, charming man he pretends to be in her presence. How could her brother Trent be so accepting and chummy with him? No one understands Sonny more than her best friend Daniel, unlike the other boys, ‘different’, smart as a whip with big dreams of one day being a director. Such fancy ideals aren’t to be tolerated in a town like theirs, and Frank will bully every sign of weakness he witnesses in Daniel and the Creech siblings. For her mother’s sake, Sonny has to try to keep the peace, Frank is their salvation, their only chance to escape ruin. Daniel in all his wisdom, with the experience of knowing men’s desires watching his own mother as she entertains them, understands exactly what Frank wants from Sonny’s mamma. Surely her mother would never sully her father’s memory by taking up with a tyrant like Frank? What can a twelve-year-old girl do but obey her elders, as she was raised to?

Both Daniel and Sonny suffer the cruelty of other children for their odd ways yet in Daniel’s case, it’s the adults that are the biggest threat. For Sonny it’s her water diving skills, a gift she inherited, one she shared and was nurtured by her father. As her peers mock and call her ‘water witch’, her attempts at finding water hurt her more when Frank derides her for thinking her ‘gift’ isn’t real anymore than her father’s was. She’s just a girl in his eyes, and girls have no power, don’t belong taking part in any ‘man’s work’. There is an undercurrent of anything feminine as weakness, particularly if witnessed in boys. I also felt early in the novel when Daniel meets his sister at the bus stop, eyeing Sarah’s clothes Sonny starts to think about what it means to wear tight things and have a ‘reputation’, which absolutely expresses the thinking of the 1950’s, still true today to an extent.The author says a lot about our culture back then, just in that word “reputation”, a brand a small town girl could never wash off. When Frank isn’t bullying her siblings and best friend he spends his time insulting her father and how he handled his farming, a man who is no longer alive to defend himself. It isn’t long before he insinuates himself even deeper into her family, sitting at their dinner table but Sonny could never foretell the evil that beats in his bigoted heart. His calculated schemes culminate into an act so vile that keeping secrets for her mother’s sake may cost them their very humanity.

This is a dark, heavy novel that explores silence and power, those who have it and those who don’t. There is nothing so helpless as being a child, at the mercy of the grown ups, your very first leaders. Second to that vulnerable state, being a woman. At the start, the Creech children know a father who is tender, who teaches them values and is hard only when necessary because farming requires attention to detail and hard-work. A father who loves his children and treats his beloved wife with respect, a man his children can be proud of. All of that changes with his death, and with three children to feed, a farm to save and very few options their mother has to accept the only deal on offer. That’s how the world sometimes works for us, backed into a corner and you do what you can to survive. Often it’s too late when you discover the truth of the person you thought was your salvation. Sonny’s mother and Daniel’s both lack choices, and let’s think about Daniel, he is fodder for Frank because he lacked the protection of a father, or siblings. He also carries the burden of his mother’s choices, her alcholism (in the 1950’s for a woman to drink was considered far more deviant than a man who was a drunk), shouldering shame for a father who walked out when he was a baby and rather than empathy finds only contempt.

Too, the times have an enormous influence on our decisions and options. Women weren’t exactly in full control of their destiny in the 1950’s anymore than children were. Anyone who was ‘different’ or didn’t fall into line was more than just ridiculed, makes you understand why certain people were chomping at the bit to escape their small towns. Not every citizen accepted bigotry and bullying, nor were as small minded as Frank but when you could find your life at threat, the safety of your family, you knew to keep your mouth shut tight and if you didn’t, you would pay. Some people thrive on love, others on rage and hatred but it all catches up to you, doesn’t it? I think we ‘modern folks’ tend to judge people of the past under the safety and freedom of our own times. No one is going to beat you to near death for defending someone or having an opinion for the most part, unfortunately back then they could and the those meant to protect could be a part of the corruption. This novel exposes the uglier side of a small town in the 1950’s. Read the Author’s Note at the end, it’s worth your time. Disturbing and honest, yes read it.

Publication Date:January 29, 2019

Kensington Books

Rating: 4 stars (with a Trigger Warning)

This latest book from Donna Everhart, ‘The Forgiving Kind’, is a heart-tugging gem. It had me in a high state of anticipation or anxiety from about page thirty, onward. I knew this story, as it continued to unfold, probably wouldn’t end well; but the writing and plot line were so good. I couldn’t look away.

TRIGGER WARNING: Physical and verbal abuse. One intense scene of inferred child rape.

The book is told from the point of view of 12-year old Sonny Creech. Sonny is the youngest child in a tight-knit rural North Carolina cotton farming family. It’s the 1950’s. Jim Crow and the KKK are still alive and well in the area where they live. Sonny loves the process of growing cotton, and more than anything she loves her Daddy. She and her Daddy share an innate skill of being able to detect water underground by ‘dowsing’. They’ve just discovered her skill. Sonny was beginning to get comfortable this skill when a cataclysmic event, the death of her father, changes her family forever.

From there we watch what remains of her family try to keep themselves together, and hold onto their family farm. Sonny’s two older teen-aged brothers handle the death of their father in different ways. The older brother, Ross, takes on more responsibility and tries to become the man of the family. The younger brother, Trent, continues with his slacking and selfish habits. In order to get their cotton crop planted, eventually their mother reluctantly agrees to accept the aid of their nearest neighbor, Frank Fowler. They are to share the profits of that year’s crop 60/40 with Mr. Fowler. After they strike the deal, he starts hanging around the Creech household more and more. It starts with a supper here or there, and has soon escalated to breakfast, lunch and dinner as he tries to insinuate himself into Mama's good graces..

Fowler is a man who is adept at wearing the mask of a civilized person in front of Olivia, Sonny’s mother. But around the kids he doesn’t care if they see his true colors. He revels in taunting and commanding them to do things when Olivia is out of earshot. He takes special pleasure in tormenting Daniel Lassiter, who is Sonny’s best friend, when Daniel visits the farm. Eventually he bans Daniel from visiting the farm at all.

There are bits of lovely prose in this book. Several times I had to stop and re-read striking lines. Here are a couple of excerpts I had to pause and savor:

“SHE SMELLED OF CIGARETTES, JERGENS HAND LOTION, AND SORROW.”

“THERE WAS A SECTION MISSING IN OUR FAMILIAL LOOP, OUR WAY OF LIVING, THINKING, AND DOING SPILLED OUT OF THE BROKENNESS, CREATING A WEAKNESS WHEREAS WE’D ALWAYS BEEN SO STRONG.”

This is not a bucolic story of country life in the 1950’s. It’s fraught with the consequences of poor choices, and white men acting with impunity outside of the law. I learned a lot more about growing cotton in the 1950’s than I expected. Surprisingly, I enjoyed gaining that knowledge. I rooted for Sonny. She reminded me a bit of Scout in ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’. She was spunky and had a strong sense of right and wrong. How her friend Daniel was treated by Frank Fowler was just wrong, and she was indignant about that. I was frustrated by the way Sonny’s Mom downplayed her kid’s concerns about Frank.

I didn’t see the book’s ending coming in the way it did. Which is another good thing about the book. I recommend reading the Author’s Afterword. It laid out why she chose to tell the story the way that she did, and it helped me understand why she included some of the intense scenes that she did. It was a time when differences were not accepted, and people felt free to ridicule and persecute those who were different, or below them in the social strata.

I’ve just got to say, “Go Sonny go!” Don’t let anyone steal your own unique ‘soulshine’.

‘Thank-You’ to NetGalley; the publisher, Kensington Books; and the author, Donna Everhart; for providing a free e-ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
(Any quotes shown above were taken from an ARC and are subject to change upon publication.)

The Forgiving Kind by Donna Everhart is a very highly recommended family drama set in 1950s North Carolina.

Twelve-year-old Martha “Sonny” Creech and her two older brothers, Ross and Trent, work hard alongside their Dad on their cotton farm. Sonny feels a connection to and loves the land as much as her father does. She also inherited his ability for divining water. When a devastating accident claims her father's life, Sonny and her family are not only grieving, but heading for disaster and poverty if they can't pay for the seed to plant their cotton crop.

When their weird, but wealthy, neighbor, Frank Fowler stops by and suggests a deal to help finance their crop, Sonny's mom, Olivia, accepts the deal even though she and Ross don't trust him. Neither does her best friend, Daniel, who tells Sonny that the man must have ulterior motives. Soon it becomes apparent that Fowler is a cruel, mean-tempered bully who bosses the kids around and calls them names, but acts very different around their mother. Sonny tries to tell her mom that he is no good, but she doesn't see his dark side until it is too late.

This is a riveting, compelling, and emotionally complex story that grips you from the start and doesn't let go. The narrative is spellbinding, heartbreaking, beautiful, and tragic. It will make you cry, feeling furious and impotent, as foreshadowing clearly indicates that a violent disaster is in the making and you are waiting for the tragedy to happen. I found myself raging silently at Sonny's mom, Olivia, finding it hard to believe she couldn't see who Frank Fowler really was through his fake facade.

The writing is absolutely excellent. Everhart decisively captures time and place, placing her well-developed characters firmly in North Carolina in 1955 as they deal with what seems like a situation that will be impossible to escape. The well-paced plot raises the tension and anxiety of the reader and then keeps you there, anticipating, knowing something awful is going to happen. The descriptive prose depicts both the beautiful and sordid in this coming-of-age story of abuse, violence, prejudice, perseverance, endurance, friendship, and family. The juxtaposition of the exceptional writing with the disclosure of the ugliness within the narrative helps make the novel and its themes even more poignant.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Kensington.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2019/01/the-forgiving-kind.html
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2686335880
https://www.librarything.com/work/22234870/reviews/164816962
https://twitter.com/SheTreadsSoftly/status/1088155550632865795

"Well, that's all right, mama
That's all right for you
That's all right mama, just anyway you do
Well, that's all right, that's all right.
That's all right now mama, anyway you do" – by Arthur Crudup, recorded by Elvis Presley

"Snakes hide in grass – people, behind their lies." – Unknown

"All water has a perfect memory and is forever trying to get back to where it was." – Toni Morrison

1955 on a small cotton farm in North Carolina. Twelve-year-old Sonny Creech and her older brothers, Ross and Trent, live with their Mama and Daddy, growing cotton, working together, stretching the bills and loving each other with all their hearts. Until Daddy dies from a rattlesnake bite, and then suddenly the world is an unrecognizable place. For Sonny and her brothers, that one tragic incident shuts the door on the warmth of sunlight and opens the curtains to the darkness of mankind, in ways they had never fathomed.

As events unfold after their father’s death, and as Mama becomes distant and makes choices her children can’t understand, Sonny even seems to lose her “water witch” ability, a wonderful power that only she, of all the family, shared with her Daddy. Sonny leans on her longtime friend, Daniel, as confidante and burgeoning crush, to help her sort through the losses and turmoil. But Daniel has a secret that he hasn’t shared with Sonny, and a wedge slowly forms between them. Then one day another tragic event occurs, this time involving Daniel, and Sonny and her brothers are forced to witness firsthand the evil snake that can coil within men's hearts and strike down the most sensitive of us.

The Forgiving Kind is a beautiful coming of age book, and an excellent representation of the South and the times. It addresses many of the issues that were, and in many ways still are, a part of Southern culture. Bigotry, hate, and abuse are central themes in this story, but threaded throughout are love, kindness, and strength of character.

Every character in the book is believable and seemed so real to me. My heart ached for Sonny and the impotence and frustration of a child who sees wrong but is powerless to stop its onslaught. I hurt for Daniel and his secret, in a time and place that were unforgiving to anyone who was “different.” I was angered and disgusted by the men in the story who had reckless disregard for humanity, in all its colors and forms. And I felt frustration and understanding, and finally satisfaction, with Mama, who, throughout, was doing the best she could in an impossible situation.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington books for an ARC of this haunting novel in exchange for my honest review. 5 stars.

Sonny Creech must cope with more than any 12 year old should. The death of her father is the catalyst for a painful coming of age. Everhart has created a wonderful character in this young girl who has a talent for finding water and in her best friend Daniel as well. A cotton farm in 1950s North Caroline was not an easy place to grow up- it's a immense amount of work. Sonny's mother has to support her family and despite Sonny's misgivings, she forms an unholy alliance with Frank Fowler. A rude, crude, and violent man, he exerts power in destructive ways. Some of this is difficult to read but it's so well done that you'll find yourself welling up with emotion. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Try this one for a good read.

The Forgiving Kind
A wonderfully written story where the descriptions are an integral part to the bigger picture. It's the story of the Creech family, their struggle to survive in the face of adversity, to retain their values , and to persevere against the struggles.
The use of vernacular specific to the period helps to tell a story told through the eyes of a 12 year old girl. The characters are so well developed, you feel and understand their plight.
I really enjoyed reading this book, and I had many emotional ups and downs. I rooted for some characters and despised others. I highly recommend this book.
Thank you #Netgalley and #KensingtonBooks for approving my request. The opinions expressed in this review are solely my own.

I loved this book. This author has a way of creating characters and setting that you become attached to and love and she has a way of creating a setting that makes you feel as though you are there.
This is a wonderful coming of age boo
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book

The Forgiving Kind will take you back to the days of picking cotton as a way of making a living in poor, hard times. The story is rich in Southern dialect and interesting characters. I have to agree with the Editor - I wanted to reach in the book and punch one of them!!! It was a really good read!

4.5 stars

The year is 1951 and 'Sonny' Martha Creech, a 12 year old girl, lives a happy life on a cotton farm in North Carolina with her parents and two older brothers. Sonny adores her dad and wants to be just like him. One day, when Sonny and her brothers are tending the farm, a terrible tragedy strikes and Sonny's dad suddenly dies. Sonny can't imagine anything worse than life without her father, but sadly, a string of bad luck is just about to hit the Creech family. Struggling financially and with a long drought, Sonny's mother tries hard to make end meets but it isn't enough. When their rich neighbour Frank Fowler offers financial help, Sonny's mother has no choice but to accept it. Sonny dislikes Frank Fowler instantly, as he bosses them around, makes fun of her friend Daniel and even bans him from visiting her. Sadly, Sonny's mother does not see Frank's dark side at first and when she does, it is a bit late.

Sonny's relationship with her dad was touching and the grief and emptiness she felt after his death, heartbreaking. The novel reminded me a little bit of To Kill a Mockingbird with some of its themes. It is a coming of age story, depicting a stark contrast of the characters - the loving parents teaching their children to treat everyone the same and with respect, and the evil character of Frank Fowler, a narrow-minded, ignorant and prejudiced man who does not want to hear opinions different from his own, using violence to silence the others.

Kudos to Donna Everhart for tackling so well so many important issues in this thought provoking novel - family abuse, homophobia, bigotry and race. This book is beautifully written and despite the heavy topics, it was a delight to read.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

On a cotton farm in 1950’s North Carolina, a family working hard together, getting by, are happy and content with life as it is. We meet a sweet young girl Sonny Creech who inherits from her father a love of the land and the power of divining. Their lives are changed forever when her father suddenly dies. At first I thought this was going to be a commonly told coming of age story of a 12 year old girl, a family story with characters you cared about and reacted to as they made their way through this family crisis, and it was in a lot of ways. I wanted to smack Sonny’s brother Trent, hug her friend Daniel and tell him it was okay to be different, and shake her mother into opening her eyes to what was going on when a neighbor preys on them during a time of loss, grief and financial instability. It was was a slow burn until this story that I thought would be predictable, wasn’t, and until this wasn’t a run of the mill coming of age story, but one depicting serious issues of bigotry and racism. It is also about a mother whose decisions are blinded by the need to provide for her children. It’s about friendship and grief and an unforgettable character named Sonny Creech. The ending for me was unexpected, but made for a satisfying read.


I received an advanced copy of this book from Kensington Books through NetGalley. .

I chose to read this book because I grew up with a similar hard-scrapple cotton farming family in Texas and picked cotton with my cousins and migrant farm workers. Everhart really understands and is able to depict that sort of life.

The Forgiving Kind has themes of bigotry and acceptance of blacks and homosexuals and those with who stand out (Sonny herself is gifted with the ability to divine water and stands out from the crowd for this ability).

The Forgiving Kind captures the hardships and pleasures of being a cotton-farming family: the terror of bole weevils or drought or rain at the wrong time of cotton development. It is a coming-of-age story blended with family drama. When their father dies after being bitten by a rattlesnake, Sonny Creech, her mother, and brothers learn that they have little money to subsist on—not enough to plant the year’s crop of cotton. Faced with the potential loss of their farm, they accept help from the rich man, Frank Fowler, who lives on the farm next door. Eventually, Fowler seduces and marries the mother—which leads to unforeseen devastating consequences.

The richness of farm life and Sonny’s attachment to the land is exquisitely portrayed. I read this in one night and was sorry to see the book end.

Thank you to NetGalley, Kensington Publishers and the author Donna Everhart for this ARC.

This book took off from the very beginning and didn’t let go at all. It kept me captivated and wanting more. The descriptions were so realistic that I felt I was there. The love in this family was so kind and tender and sweet that it made what came later made it even worse. Sonny, the daughter, was such a free spirited young girl. She didn’t mind hard work at all. She loved her family deeply and completely. Even Trent, her brother, who tended to pick on her at times. But all three children were there for each other no matter what.

When their daddy was taken from them so suddenly, their mother was so lost without him and things just kept getting worse. She was suddenly raising three children totally on her own, with no job and bills everywhere. She could not get the seeds for growing cotton that would have been given to her husband. A point I noticed and took that it was because she was a woman. Even though the store owner knew she would pay him when the crops came in.

The reclusive neighbor, Frank Fowler, who I already didn’t like, came and offered to help them out. More to help out the mother than the children. He didn’t seem to have any empathy for them or their loss of a daddy that they loved dearly. He was pure evil in my opinion and I was very afraid of what he was up to from the start. Even when he made fun of Sonny about her ability for finding water. The way he treated her and her daddy when they found water on his own land for him. I did love how their daddy handled him.

When Frank Fowler convinced Ms Creech to let him help, things went from bad to worse. So much worse. He was so filled with hate and bigotry. He was not at all kind to the children. It was like they were in his way. But how he treated Daniel, and Sonny was the straw that did me in. He was so cruel. So full of hate and for children. 12 year old children at that. Frank Fowler was just a very cruel to the bone person. I hate cruelty and thought this author addressed it perfectly. She did a great job of describing events from that era.

I loved the characters in this book, except for Frank Fowler. Him I truly hated and won’t forget for a time to come. The abuse he put this this family through was unforgivable. I was a tiny bit angry at her for putting her children through this but also understood why she accepted help from the jerk. She felt she didn’t have a choice. She was overwhelmed with the bills, feeding her children, keeping their farm. She did what she thought was the best. She didn’t realized the extend of Frank Fowler’s evil ways or the fact that he just did not like her children at all. I felt bad for her in the end so much. But I also applauded her. I can’t tell you why because it would give away part of the story. But trust me, she is a strong woman when she has to be.

My heart broke bad for Daniel and Sonny’s friendship. I cried so hard at the ending of this book. For two reasons. You’ll have to read it to see why. It’s a very good, touching story of things that happened in the South in the mid 1950s. I am glad that for the most part this country is not still that bad. Though in some places it is and that is unbelievable considering we are in the 21st century.

The end of the book has an Author’s Note that is a must read. It explains a lot and is another part that brought tears to my eyes. The fact that things were so bad in the 1050s and I agree with the author in what she wrote here. It was spot on and yes you did a great job of telling what happened in those times. It was something that really needed to be addressed and you Ms Everhart did it beautifully.

This book will touch your heart. It will make you very sad and so very angry. It will bring hope in the end that forgiveness is possible. I loved it from start to finish. The title is perfect. It’s a bit of a roller coaster ride that will keep you wanting more.

A definite 5 stars and in this one I think we could be allowed to give more stars. It was well written. Told in a way that you felt every feeling. Felt the beauty of the land and the family. The evil in Frank Fowler and the sadness in Daniel and Sonny. The anger in Ross and Trent and the love of a mother for her children. I think this is my favorite book by Donna Everhart for sure. At least for now.

One thing that touched me in this book was at the very end: All that mattered was Daniel had sent me a sign by way of a tiny, twinkling light, an offer of forgiveness, and for me, that little light was big as the night sky above us.
That touched my heart and brought tears to my eyes....