Book Review: A Good Neighborhood by Therese Anne Fowler


I understand why the cover of this novel is simple; it doesn’t give away the multitude of emotions, twists, tragedies, and loyalties that will inhabit your mind and heart while you read this story.

It’s hard to discuss this book without digging into the plot points, but these characters will inspire you to confront your own feelings about class, race, marriage, and organized religion.  In short, there is no way this book will not change you – or at least bring realizations about who you really are to the forefront of your mind.

If this sounds like an adventure you’d like to go on, purchase your copy here.

Back Cover Copy of A Good Neighborhood:

In Oak Knoll, a verdant, tight-knit North Carolina neighborhood, professor of forestry and ecology Valerie Alston-Holt is raising her bright and talented biracial son, Xavier, who’s headed to college in the fall. All is well until the Whitmans―a family with new money and a secretly troubled teenage daughter―raze the house and trees next door to build themselves a showplace.

With little in common except a property line, these two families quickly find themselves at odds: first, over an historic oak tree in Valerie’s yard, and soon after, the blossoming romance between their two teenagers.

A Good Neighborhood asks big questions about life in America today―what does it mean to be a good neighbor? How do we live alongside each other when we don’t see eye to eye?―as it explores the effects of class, race, and heartrending love in a story that’s as provocative as it is powerful.

About Therese Anne Fowler:

Therese Anne Fowler is the NYT and USA Today bestselling author of Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald (adapted for television by Amazon Studios as Z: The Beginning of Everything starring Christina Ricci), A Well-Behaved Woman, and A Good Neighborhood. She is married to author John Kessel.

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