A young mother finds refuge and friendship at a boardinghouse in 1960s Memphis, Tennessee, where family encompasses more than just blood and hidden truths that can bury you or set you free.
This storyline is designed to take you apart at the seams. Sara is an extraordinary soul. She has been damaged beyond repair by those who are supposed to love and protect her. As the story unfolds, you are introduced to a family of outspoken ideas. In the beginning, Sara is very withdrawn and unable to put forward her ideas. She’s alone, pregnant, and homeless. She finds a B&B where she can work for her rent and food, surrounded by people who do not judge and do not let her toxic background change them. Or her. She has been without love and protection her whole life, and the steel bars around her are not easily broken. The story has hope, and it glitters like gold in her mind; gently, she tries to respond to those who accept her as she is.
The book is beautifully crafted, the characters are authentic, and you want so much for it to work out. To indulge any more of the story would be to spoil it; suffice it to say, the Greek tragedies of old have nothing on this gem of a tale. I have read many books that tell the world about love lost, innocence damaged beyond repair, and hearts that strive to heal, but I have never been presented with a narrative so encompassing the gamut of emotions that humans are capable of.
I wept, smiled, and felt all that author Catherine Adel West gave me. Read ‘The Two Lives of Sara,’ feel it, and understand the need of humanity to love. Excellent storytelling at its best!
Available in Bookstores September 6th
