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Clover Blue
Set against the backdrop of a 1970s commune in Northern California, Clover Blue is a compelling, beautifully written story of a young boy’s search for identity.
There are many things twelve-year-old Clover Blue isn’t sure his exact date of birth, his name before he was adopted into the Saffron Freedom Community, or who his first parents were. What he does know with certainty is that among this close-knit, nature-loving group, he is happy. Here, everyone is family, regardless of their disparate backgrounds—surfer, midwife, Grateful Dead groupie, Vietnam deserter. But despite his loyalty to the commune and its guru-like founder Goji, Blue grapples with invisible ties toward another family—the one he doesn’t remember.
With the urging of his fearless and funny best friend, Harmony, Clover Blue begins to ask questions. For the first time, Goji’s answers fail to satisfy. The passing months bring upheaval to their little clan and another member arrives, a beautiful runaway teen named Rain, sparking new tensions. As secrets slowly unfurl, Blue’s beliefs—about Goji, the guidelines that govern their seemingly idyllic lives, and the nature of family itself—begin to shift. With each revelation about a heartbreaking past he never imagined, Blue faces a choice between those he’s always trusted, and an uncertain future where he must risk everything in his quest for the truth.
Part coming-of-age tale, part love story, part mystery, Clover Blue tenderly explores an unconventional but no less complex family that resonates with our deep-rooted yearning for home.
There are many things twelve-year-old Clover Blue isn’t sure his exact date of birth, his name before he was adopted into the Saffron Freedom Community, or who his first parents were. What he does know with certainty is that among this close-knit, nature-loving group, he is happy. Here, everyone is family, regardless of their disparate backgrounds—surfer, midwife, Grateful Dead groupie, Vietnam deserter. But despite his loyalty to the commune and its guru-like founder Goji, Blue grapples with invisible ties toward another family—the one he doesn’t remember.
With the urging of his fearless and funny best friend, Harmony, Clover Blue begins to ask questions. For the first time, Goji’s answers fail to satisfy. The passing months bring upheaval to their little clan and another member arrives, a beautiful runaway teen named Rain, sparking new tensions. As secrets slowly unfurl, Blue’s beliefs—about Goji, the guidelines that govern their seemingly idyllic lives, and the nature of family itself—begin to shift. With each revelation about a heartbreaking past he never imagined, Blue faces a choice between those he’s always trusted, and an uncertain future where he must risk everything in his quest for the truth.
Part coming-of-age tale, part love story, part mystery, Clover Blue tenderly explores an unconventional but no less complex family that resonates with our deep-rooted yearning for home.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published May 28, 2019
225 people are currently reading
8311 people want to read
About the author
Eldonna Edwards
5 books693 followersEldonna Edwards grew up in a large family nestled between cornfields and churches in the provincial Midwest. She eventually escaped the harsh winters, moving to California where she expanded her career from journaling teacher to author to beloved writer's conference instructor and public speaker. The voice in her best-selling debut novel THIS I KNOW, comes straight from the heart and has won over the hearts of readers everywhere. In her second novel Clover Blue (June 2019) Eldonna once again explores themes of otherness and belonging, and the true definition of home.
Eldonna is also the subject of the award-winning documentary Perfect Strangers that follows one kidney patient and one potential kidney donor in their search for a possible match. Her 2014 memoir LOST IN TRANSPLANTATION chronicles this life-changing decision. Eldonna currently lives and writes in a tiny pink house in beautiful San Luis Obispo, CA.
"Luminous Stories, Unlikely Heroes." Eldonna is drawn to stories about community--the places we live, the families we're born into, and the tribes we gravitate toward. She prefers hometown settings peopled with recognizable characters from the grocery store, a neighborhood cafe or noisy schoolyard. Her books explore the bigger questions of one's meaning and purpose, and the overlapping consequences of our choices, good and bad. Eldonna integrates humor into her stories to balance the complex and sometimes darker aspects of challenging situations. Please visit her at http://www.eldonnaedwards.com or find her on Facebook at Eldonna Edwards Author Page
Eldonna is also the subject of the award-winning documentary Perfect Strangers that follows one kidney patient and one potential kidney donor in their search for a possible match. Her 2014 memoir LOST IN TRANSPLANTATION chronicles this life-changing decision. Eldonna currently lives and writes in a tiny pink house in beautiful San Luis Obispo, CA.
"Luminous Stories, Unlikely Heroes." Eldonna is drawn to stories about community--the places we live, the families we're born into, and the tribes we gravitate toward. She prefers hometown settings peopled with recognizable characters from the grocery store, a neighborhood cafe or noisy schoolyard. Her books explore the bigger questions of one's meaning and purpose, and the overlapping consequences of our choices, good and bad. Eldonna integrates humor into her stories to balance the complex and sometimes darker aspects of challenging situations. Please visit her at http://www.eldonnaedwards.com or find her on Facebook at Eldonna Edwards Author Page
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 373 reviews
November 9, 2025
Utopia! Paradise! Clothing Optional!
Saffron Freedom Community is one of the "hippie communes" that were so popular during the 60's and 70s. Clover Blue is a boy with a mission: he yearns to be told which of the women in his communal family is his birth mother. He also has vague memories - flashes of another life, another identity.
I fell in love with Clover Blue: with his youthful innocence, his seriousness, his craving for knowledge, his love of reading - and just his over all inner and outer beauty.
Eldonna Edwards has created yet another character who will linger in your mind and in your heart long after you have turned the last page of this gripping, un-put-downable novel.
And yes, there is a Shangri-la but it only hovers on our horizons for fleeting glimpses, like a mirage.
We humans! We inevitably mess things up once we start putting our individual needs and desires ahead of those of our "commune" or community. But is this always a bad thing? Clover Blue is an excellent example of the price some of us pay when a community makes decisions for one member of their group. This is a very loving group of people, who try to embrace peace and love in all of its manifestations, but people get lazy - or complacent, as the author put it - and we start to rationalize why certain individual choices will also ultimately be good for the rest of the community - even if one individual ends up paying a terrible, life-altering price in the end.
There are also scenes where the author subtly points out that peaceful resistance is not going to work in certain situations, because individual rights and even their safety will be threatened as a result. Allowing others to be hurt and abused in the name of passivity is not an option in certain circumstances. The snake bite incident was one example where the community's extremist views and their decision to shun conventional medicines had me thinking deeply about my own views on the subject. I'm on the borderline: I limit my medical intervention to the bare minimum, but of course I will opt to have surgery and any other life-saving medical intervention when required. When adults make these decisions on behalf of children, though: I always want to err on the side of caution and give each young life the best available chance to heal and thrive.
Clover Blue loves his adopted family, but in the end, he has no choice but to start thinking for himself, to break free of his Guru's seductive influence and make the decisions that are right for him and those he loves and wants to keep safe. I loved the quirky plotline toward the end!
I highly recommend this very well-written, engaging book: we need inspirational novels like this one during these difficult times.
The "takeaway" message from this marvelous story? We need to stick together as a global community, while at the same time preserving individual rights and freedoms. I am so glad I grabbed this book while it was on sale. It is well worth having Clover Blue in your Kindle or book collection: you will definitely want to reread this one!
UPDATE: November 11, 2025: Just finished reading this one. I loved the ending and was able to have more compassion for Goji. Just goes to show that even communal love can't solve all of our problems. We messy humans let our personal desires and safety over-rule all other altruistic thoughts. Forgiveness is truly a virtue and the ending of Clover Blue left me feeling much more satisfied this time. Blue really was a special human being: no wonder everyone loved him. He was not perfect, but his heart was always in the right place.... I suspect this will not be my last reread!
Saffron Freedom Community is one of the "hippie communes" that were so popular during the 60's and 70s. Clover Blue is a boy with a mission: he yearns to be told which of the women in his communal family is his birth mother. He also has vague memories - flashes of another life, another identity.
I fell in love with Clover Blue: with his youthful innocence, his seriousness, his craving for knowledge, his love of reading - and just his over all inner and outer beauty.
Eldonna Edwards has created yet another character who will linger in your mind and in your heart long after you have turned the last page of this gripping, un-put-downable novel.
And yes, there is a Shangri-la but it only hovers on our horizons for fleeting glimpses, like a mirage.
We humans! We inevitably mess things up once we start putting our individual needs and desires ahead of those of our "commune" or community. But is this always a bad thing? Clover Blue is an excellent example of the price some of us pay when a community makes decisions for one member of their group. This is a very loving group of people, who try to embrace peace and love in all of its manifestations, but people get lazy - or complacent, as the author put it - and we start to rationalize why certain individual choices will also ultimately be good for the rest of the community - even if one individual ends up paying a terrible, life-altering price in the end.
There are also scenes where the author subtly points out that peaceful resistance is not going to work in certain situations, because individual rights and even their safety will be threatened as a result. Allowing others to be hurt and abused in the name of passivity is not an option in certain circumstances. The snake bite incident was one example where the community's extremist views and their decision to shun conventional medicines had me thinking deeply about my own views on the subject. I'm on the borderline: I limit my medical intervention to the bare minimum, but of course I will opt to have surgery and any other life-saving medical intervention when required. When adults make these decisions on behalf of children, though: I always want to err on the side of caution and give each young life the best available chance to heal and thrive.
Clover Blue loves his adopted family, but in the end, he has no choice but to start thinking for himself, to break free of his Guru's seductive influence and make the decisions that are right for him and those he loves and wants to keep safe. I loved the quirky plotline toward the end!
I highly recommend this very well-written, engaging book: we need inspirational novels like this one during these difficult times.
The "takeaway" message from this marvelous story? We need to stick together as a global community, while at the same time preserving individual rights and freedoms. I am so glad I grabbed this book while it was on sale. It is well worth having Clover Blue in your Kindle or book collection: you will definitely want to reread this one!
UPDATE: November 11, 2025: Just finished reading this one. I loved the ending and was able to have more compassion for Goji. Just goes to show that even communal love can't solve all of our problems. We messy humans let our personal desires and safety over-rule all other altruistic thoughts. Forgiveness is truly a virtue and the ending of Clover Blue left me feeling much more satisfied this time. Blue really was a special human being: no wonder everyone loved him. He was not perfect, but his heart was always in the right place.... I suspect this will not be my last reread!
June 18, 2019
3.5 Mid 1970s, located near Santa Rosa, the Saffron Freedom Community is a commune, like many that appeared during this time period. All members refer to each other as sister or brother, everything is shared, sex, drugs, chores, but despite this, thx ere are many who hold secrets. Clover Blue is a young boy, best friends with Harmony, and one day they witness a birth, which causes Clover to wonder who his birth mother was. Goji is the leader, and this birth and s new arrival will cause this small commune, great harm.
The time period is wonderfully, and I believe accurately portrayed. Readers enjoyment will depend on their connection to Clover and Harmony. Fortunately I liked them both, and the unraveling of the mystery at the heart of this novel, kept me interested. There is much going on here behind the scenes.
Loyalty to the family we make, grow to love against the pull of blood. I loved the totally unexpected ending and the full circle nature of this story. Plus, I'll admit to being a armchair gawker into the life of a commune, how they work, and how they manage day by day. Edwards writing is clear, concise and we'll done. The pace of the story flows nicely. Although can't see myself in commune living, it was interesting to get a small peak.
ARC from Netgalley.
The time period is wonderfully, and I believe accurately portrayed. Readers enjoyment will depend on their connection to Clover and Harmony. Fortunately I liked them both, and the unraveling of the mystery at the heart of this novel, kept me interested. There is much going on here behind the scenes.
Loyalty to the family we make, grow to love against the pull of blood. I loved the totally unexpected ending and the full circle nature of this story. Plus, I'll admit to being a armchair gawker into the life of a commune, how they work, and how they manage day by day. Edwards writing is clear, concise and we'll done. The pace of the story flows nicely. Although can't see myself in commune living, it was interesting to get a small peak.
ARC from Netgalley.
April 1, 2019
Oh, Eldonna Edwards, you’ve done it again. Your characters captured my heart in This I Know and again in Clover Blue. Set at a commune known as The Saffron Freedom Community, young Clover Blue is desperate to know about his birth parents, the ones who left him at SFC, and head of the commune (or cult leader, you decide) Goji tells him he will tell him when he’s older.
Clover Blue (the book, not the character) raises an interesting question about finding family where we can, even if it’s not family by birth. The commune members are all “brothers and sisters,” but for Blue this just isn’t enough at times. Edwards creates such unique characters in Goji, Clover Blue, Rain, Harmony, Lotus - and well, you get the point.
Clover Blue is a story unlike any I’ve read before with characters that will stay in my heart for quite some time. All I can say is that I want to be first in line to purchase whatever Edwards writes next!
Thank you to Kensington Books for an advance copy. All opinions are my own.
Clover Blue (the book, not the character) raises an interesting question about finding family where we can, even if it’s not family by birth. The commune members are all “brothers and sisters,” but for Blue this just isn’t enough at times. Edwards creates such unique characters in Goji, Clover Blue, Rain, Harmony, Lotus - and well, you get the point.
Clover Blue is a story unlike any I’ve read before with characters that will stay in my heart for quite some time. All I can say is that I want to be first in line to purchase whatever Edwards writes next!
Thank you to Kensington Books for an advance copy. All opinions are my own.
September 18, 2025
I need to take a lot of deep breaths before I start a review of this incredibly powerful novel by the author of This I Know, another amazing five star read for me. I can't believe these are the only two published novels by Eldonna Edwards, but what a writer she is.
We go back to the 1970s in Northern California and are immersed into a 'hippy colony' where Gogi and this collection of people are living off the grid, like totally. Clover Blue is our narrator, whom turns 12 at the start of the book. What a wonderful collection of different human beings, I truly was immersed into their lives. Some characters resonated more than others, but the friendship between Clover Blue and Harmony was one for the ages.
By the end I was totally blown away, the last ten percent was as intense as any book I have read in a while. I certainly hope Ms Edwards revisits her incredible writing for us sometime real soon. Five solid stars.
We go back to the 1970s in Northern California and are immersed into a 'hippy colony' where Gogi and this collection of people are living off the grid, like totally. Clover Blue is our narrator, whom turns 12 at the start of the book. What a wonderful collection of different human beings, I truly was immersed into their lives. Some characters resonated more than others, but the friendship between Clover Blue and Harmony was one for the ages.
By the end I was totally blown away, the last ten percent was as intense as any book I have read in a while. I certainly hope Ms Edwards revisits her incredible writing for us sometime real soon. Five solid stars.
August 23, 2024
Clover Blue lives at the Saffron Freedom Community, in Northern California, Blue’s twelve and he’s not sure of his real birthday and why he was adopted into the commune. Everyone is part of one big family, the leader of the group is Goji, he’s the guru and founder and created the rules. They grow all their own vegetables, raise chickens and goats, practice yoga and meditation and have no running water, indoor plumbing and the children are home-schooled.
Harmony is Blue’s best friend, they grew up together and her mum Gaia was a member of the commune, and she left and Harmony hasn’t heard from her in sometime. While life is idyllic in the commune, Blue knows other people live very differently and they notice this when they visit the closest town, clothes are a must and not like at Saffron where everyone walks around naked.
When Rain arrives at Saffron Freedom Community, her story is she ran away from her stepfather and she’s eighteen and Blue’s not sure if he believes her. A teenage Blue starts to question the guidelines they all follow, the family structure and the adults are scared of the authorities, and why he’s the only child adopted into the commune, and how did it happen?
I received a copy of Clover Blue by Eldonna Edwards from NetGalley and Kensington Books and in exchange for an unbiased review. The well written and interesting narrative is set in 1970's America and during it's hippie faze and it explores what it’s like to live in a commune and the extremist lifestyle. A unique coming of age story, about Blue's search for his identity and who he is and it's truly complicated and full of mystery and secrets.
I enjoyed reading Clover Blue, family versus tribe, truth versus lies and five stars from me.
Harmony is Blue’s best friend, they grew up together and her mum Gaia was a member of the commune, and she left and Harmony hasn’t heard from her in sometime. While life is idyllic in the commune, Blue knows other people live very differently and they notice this when they visit the closest town, clothes are a must and not like at Saffron where everyone walks around naked.
When Rain arrives at Saffron Freedom Community, her story is she ran away from her stepfather and she’s eighteen and Blue’s not sure if he believes her. A teenage Blue starts to question the guidelines they all follow, the family structure and the adults are scared of the authorities, and why he’s the only child adopted into the commune, and how did it happen?
I received a copy of Clover Blue by Eldonna Edwards from NetGalley and Kensington Books and in exchange for an unbiased review. The well written and interesting narrative is set in 1970's America and during it's hippie faze and it explores what it’s like to live in a commune and the extremist lifestyle. A unique coming of age story, about Blue's search for his identity and who he is and it's truly complicated and full of mystery and secrets.
I enjoyed reading Clover Blue, family versus tribe, truth versus lies and five stars from me.
May 11, 2019
Eldonna Edwards has crafted a unique coming-of-age story in CLOVER BLUE.
For Clover Blue, how he came to be among the members of the Saffron Freedom Community was never a question in his mind until he witnessed one of his "sister-mothers" giving birth at age 12. Edwards chose this profound, natural act to capture a young boy's curiosity about his own beginnings. After the baby is born, he innocently asks who gave birth to him, and the answer he receives from Goji, the quasi-guru/leader of the community is less than satisfactory. What begins as a mild curiosity becomes a burgeoning quest for a truth kept carefully guarded.
Eldonna Edwards did a fantastic job of world-building with the Saffron Freedom Community. It is a fully functioning, self-contained habitat for the humans who live there. Filled with day to day responsibilities taken on by the "Olders" and the "Youngers," the reader is drawn into their quiet, peaceful existence.
The creativity with regard to each member, and their backstory showcases Edwards' ability in building solid, believable foundations for each. I loved the unique names given to each one upon their arrival, and this process was revealed when a young girl is brought in by one of the former members, Gaia, the biological mother to Harmony. The name Rain is chosen for her, by Goji, as names were for all of them. Clover Blue, Harmony, Doobie, Coyote, Gaia, and all the rest, are characters readers will grow to care about, which is always crucial to any good story.
The 70s culture is vibrant, as is the lifestyle of the community, from milking goats to rigging up an outdoor shower, to the Sacred Space, where "Older" members express free love, to shopping at thrift stores, all of it transports the reader to this iconic time.
The question of family and how one fits into that dynamic, how one loves them, whether biological or adopted, is perfectly juxtaposed into the story as Clover Blue begins a personal mission to understand exactly what happened to him all those years ago. His decision to pursue the answers will carry him toward several unexpected revelations, and the realization that what once was, can never be again.
Clover Blue is a heartfelt, engaging story about beginnings and endings, blood ties, loyalties, and betrayals, innocence lost, and wisdom gained.
For Clover Blue, how he came to be among the members of the Saffron Freedom Community was never a question in his mind until he witnessed one of his "sister-mothers" giving birth at age 12. Edwards chose this profound, natural act to capture a young boy's curiosity about his own beginnings. After the baby is born, he innocently asks who gave birth to him, and the answer he receives from Goji, the quasi-guru/leader of the community is less than satisfactory. What begins as a mild curiosity becomes a burgeoning quest for a truth kept carefully guarded.
Eldonna Edwards did a fantastic job of world-building with the Saffron Freedom Community. It is a fully functioning, self-contained habitat for the humans who live there. Filled with day to day responsibilities taken on by the "Olders" and the "Youngers," the reader is drawn into their quiet, peaceful existence.
The creativity with regard to each member, and their backstory showcases Edwards' ability in building solid, believable foundations for each. I loved the unique names given to each one upon their arrival, and this process was revealed when a young girl is brought in by one of the former members, Gaia, the biological mother to Harmony. The name Rain is chosen for her, by Goji, as names were for all of them. Clover Blue, Harmony, Doobie, Coyote, Gaia, and all the rest, are characters readers will grow to care about, which is always crucial to any good story.
The 70s culture is vibrant, as is the lifestyle of the community, from milking goats to rigging up an outdoor shower, to the Sacred Space, where "Older" members express free love, to shopping at thrift stores, all of it transports the reader to this iconic time.
The question of family and how one fits into that dynamic, how one loves them, whether biological or adopted, is perfectly juxtaposed into the story as Clover Blue begins a personal mission to understand exactly what happened to him all those years ago. His decision to pursue the answers will carry him toward several unexpected revelations, and the realization that what once was, can never be again.
Clover Blue is a heartfelt, engaging story about beginnings and endings, blood ties, loyalties, and betrayals, innocence lost, and wisdom gained.
May 29, 2019
I cried hard at the end of this book. The beauty of this story took my breath away. Clover Blue is such an extraordinary character; he is loving, intense, devoted; he overcomes his own doubt and trepidation with bravery and goodness. This is the kind of story that seeps into your bones...my emotions were all over the place. I felt great joy and deep sorrow; I could laugh at the antics of Harmony while fretting over Gaia. I celebrated the great love and closeness of the Saffron Freedom Community as I mourned the families who had been left behind. I was immersed in the 1970s; I was present in the treehouse, the forests, and the Sacred Space of the commune. Truly an outstanding coming of age story as Clover Blue must make the agonizing choice between the family who has loved him and raised him and uncovering the truth of his past. This a story that is lush and rich; with so many layers to uncover and discover, characters that are diverse and complex, written with warmth and honesty.
March 22, 2019
I loved the timeline being in the 1970's. Set in Northern California at Saffron Freedom Community a peace and love community compound run by a guru that holds a deep secret. I was pulled in from the first page. A coming of age novel about a little boy named Clover Blue who was adopted into this peace and love community but, Blue wonders where he comes from. He wonders what mother gave birth to him. I just loved Blue and watching him grow. Blue resembles Leif Garrett my childhood crush and his best friend Harmony who I also loved. This was a serious look inside a cult holding deep secrets that forever changed the life of Clover Blue. I loved this story! So compelling I couldn't put it down. It's lyrical and witty. An emotional ride that if it didn't end like it did I don't know if I could have recovered from it. A tear jerker you won't soon forget. Eldonna Edwards does it again!
I was given a copy of this book for my honest review.
Dawnny Ruby-BookGypsy
Novels N Latte Blog
Novels & Latte Book Club
Hudson Valley NY
I was given a copy of this book for my honest review.
Dawnny Ruby-BookGypsy
Novels N Latte Blog
Novels & Latte Book Club
Hudson Valley NY
May 19, 2019
This was such a good book. It was so well written and obviously researched or lived it one. Maybe both. It touches on a few subjects that existed back in the late 60s and early to mid or late 70s. I was a teen in the 70s but living where I did we didn’t see a lot of free love. We did have us a wonderful senior class president who had very long hair. He was perfect for the job. My now husband had the hair too. It was just the thing back then along with the bell bottoms that covered your feet. Halter tops and either barefoot or in sandals..
I loved how this author captured this era so perfectly and the names of the characters were perfect. I fell madly in love with Clover Blue. He was such a good child and Harmony, she was one tough kid. The whole group in this book were so very likable and well developed. I was drawn in from the very first page and could not put this book down. Another one I read in two days. At times we have to put things on hold just to read. This was one of those times.
I refuse to write a book report here. I just have to say that you will love this book. Especially if you are a child from the 70s. Even if you aren’t you will want to be after reading this book. It makes you feel like you are there with these characters. Running around barefoot and free. I didn’t see myself running around naked but sure did the barefoot part. I think the 70s was one of the best eras ever.
Thank you to NetGally and Kensington Books for my ARC in exchange for my complete and honest review.
I give this book a huge 5 stars. It is so very good. There are parts that will make you laugh and parts that will make you cry, hard cry too. But it’s such a good story. I highly recommend this book. Peace, Love and No War please!!
I loved how this author captured this era so perfectly and the names of the characters were perfect. I fell madly in love with Clover Blue. He was such a good child and Harmony, she was one tough kid. The whole group in this book were so very likable and well developed. I was drawn in from the very first page and could not put this book down. Another one I read in two days. At times we have to put things on hold just to read. This was one of those times.
I refuse to write a book report here. I just have to say that you will love this book. Especially if you are a child from the 70s. Even if you aren’t you will want to be after reading this book. It makes you feel like you are there with these characters. Running around barefoot and free. I didn’t see myself running around naked but sure did the barefoot part. I think the 70s was one of the best eras ever.
Thank you to NetGally and Kensington Books for my ARC in exchange for my complete and honest review.
I give this book a huge 5 stars. It is so very good. There are parts that will make you laugh and parts that will make you cry, hard cry too. But it’s such a good story. I highly recommend this book. Peace, Love and No War please!!
May 13, 2019
Edwards is the author of This I Know, and here, once again, she creates a powerful story based on a youthful yearning for identity. My thanks go to the author and her publicist for the printed galley, and to Kensington and Net Galley for the digital copy. It will be available May 28, 2019.
Our setting is a small commune in California in the early 1970s. Our protagonist, Clover Blue, sleeps in a tree house with some of the other commune members. There’s no running water or electricity, but we don’t miss what we don’t have, and California has a mild climate. Though decisions are made collectively, with younger and older residents each having a vote, Goji is the spiritual leader of the group. In place of formal education, young commune members study with him. Blue can read as well as other children his age, and he knows more about nature than most would because it’s part of his everyday experience. He doesn’t remember living anywhere else; his life is happy, and his bonds with his communal family are strong ones.
But everyone wants to know their origins, and Blue is no different. As puberty approaches, he begins to ask questions. He gains the sense that older members know things they won’t tell him, and it heightens his desire to find out. Goji promises him that he will be told when he turns twelve, but his twelfth birthday comes and goes, and still Goji evades his queries.
And so the story darkens just a bit as Blue undertakes research on his own. He has a hunch as to who his biological parents might be, and despite the communal culture that regards every older person as the mother or father of every younger person, he wants the particulars and is determined to get them. The things he learns are unsettling and produce further questions.
A large part of the problem the communal elders face is that the State of California does not recognize the commune, and the living conditions and educational process used there are not legally viable. Because of these things, Goji discourages interaction with the outside world, and sometimes essential services—such as medical care—are given short shrift because of the risks they pose. Instead, naturopathic remedies are used, often to good result.
Edwards builds resonant characters, and I believe Blue, the sometimes-mysterious Goji, and Harmony, the member of the commune that is closest to Blue. There is enough ambiguity within each of them to prevent them from becoming caricatures; everyone holds various qualities within them, none being wholly benign or malevolent. The way that we judge these characters isn’t built upon their ability to do everything well, but in how they deal with their mistakes when they make them. In addition, some writers of historical fiction—which technically this isn’t, but it has that vibe—fall into the trap of establishing time and place through the cheap shortcut of pop cultural references and well known historical events. Edwards doesn’t do that, but she does use the speech of the time period so effectively that at times, I feel transported back to my own adolescence. There are aspects of the period I’d forgotten entirely that surprise and delight me; if there are errors, I don’t see them.
Ultimately, the story takes a turn that harks back (somewhat) to George Orwell’s classic, Animal Farm, in that while everyone at the commune is said to be equal, some are “more equal than others.” Cracks in the foundation of their once-idyllic lives form, and we see who has strength of character, and who is lacking.
If I could change anything, I would make the ending less rushed, and I’d also urge the author to be less afraid of letting the ugly parts play themselves out as they most likely would in real life. In this novel and her last, it seems like the tragic aspects that occur near or at the climax are a hot stove, and we have to move away from them quickly. I’d like to see Edwards let the stove burn a little more.
I do recommend this book to you. In fact, it may be a five star read, but it’s almost impossible to evaluate it without comparing it to what the author wrote earlier, and this made the five star standard difficult to achieve here. Those that love historical fiction should get it and read it.
Our setting is a small commune in California in the early 1970s. Our protagonist, Clover Blue, sleeps in a tree house with some of the other commune members. There’s no running water or electricity, but we don’t miss what we don’t have, and California has a mild climate. Though decisions are made collectively, with younger and older residents each having a vote, Goji is the spiritual leader of the group. In place of formal education, young commune members study with him. Blue can read as well as other children his age, and he knows more about nature than most would because it’s part of his everyday experience. He doesn’t remember living anywhere else; his life is happy, and his bonds with his communal family are strong ones.
But everyone wants to know their origins, and Blue is no different. As puberty approaches, he begins to ask questions. He gains the sense that older members know things they won’t tell him, and it heightens his desire to find out. Goji promises him that he will be told when he turns twelve, but his twelfth birthday comes and goes, and still Goji evades his queries.
And so the story darkens just a bit as Blue undertakes research on his own. He has a hunch as to who his biological parents might be, and despite the communal culture that regards every older person as the mother or father of every younger person, he wants the particulars and is determined to get them. The things he learns are unsettling and produce further questions.
A large part of the problem the communal elders face is that the State of California does not recognize the commune, and the living conditions and educational process used there are not legally viable. Because of these things, Goji discourages interaction with the outside world, and sometimes essential services—such as medical care—are given short shrift because of the risks they pose. Instead, naturopathic remedies are used, often to good result.
Edwards builds resonant characters, and I believe Blue, the sometimes-mysterious Goji, and Harmony, the member of the commune that is closest to Blue. There is enough ambiguity within each of them to prevent them from becoming caricatures; everyone holds various qualities within them, none being wholly benign or malevolent. The way that we judge these characters isn’t built upon their ability to do everything well, but in how they deal with their mistakes when they make them. In addition, some writers of historical fiction—which technically this isn’t, but it has that vibe—fall into the trap of establishing time and place through the cheap shortcut of pop cultural references and well known historical events. Edwards doesn’t do that, but she does use the speech of the time period so effectively that at times, I feel transported back to my own adolescence. There are aspects of the period I’d forgotten entirely that surprise and delight me; if there are errors, I don’t see them.
Ultimately, the story takes a turn that harks back (somewhat) to George Orwell’s classic, Animal Farm, in that while everyone at the commune is said to be equal, some are “more equal than others.” Cracks in the foundation of their once-idyllic lives form, and we see who has strength of character, and who is lacking.
If I could change anything, I would make the ending less rushed, and I’d also urge the author to be less afraid of letting the ugly parts play themselves out as they most likely would in real life. In this novel and her last, it seems like the tragic aspects that occur near or at the climax are a hot stove, and we have to move away from them quickly. I’d like to see Edwards let the stove burn a little more.
I do recommend this book to you. In fact, it may be a five star read, but it’s almost impossible to evaluate it without comparing it to what the author wrote earlier, and this made the five star standard difficult to achieve here. Those that love historical fiction should get it and read it.
March 2, 2019
Sometimes when you read a book, you are aware that it's a story that you are watching from the outside. Very, very rarely is a book written that consumes you totally and makes you feel like you are part of the story. Clover Blue is one of those books. I felt like it was the 70s and I was living in a commune with all of the people who lived there. I laughed with them and cried with them and understood their feelings about the outside world. I read the last 50 pages very slowly because I wanted to stay with these characters as long as possible. When I finished the book, I set it down and then the next day re-read the last 50 pages. I had a major 'book hangover' when I finished and haven't been able to start another book. Believe me when you I tell you that this is a MUST read.
As the book begins, Clover Blue is 10 years old. He has lived in the Saffron Free Community since he was 3 and doesn't remember anything about his earlier life. He feels part of this commune and loves the members as his own family. Goji, the leader of the commune looks after everyone's well-being. It's a small commune but there is a surfer, a Vietnam deserter, a Grateful Dead groupie, a mid-wife and most important of all, Blue's best friend Harmony. They are the same age and spend time doing chores and roaming through the woods. He talks to her about his unsettled feelings about his life in the commune. No one will really answer his questions about his real parents and how he got to the commune and he begins to question his past more as he grows older. As secrets slowly get shared with Clover Blue, he realizes that he has to make a choice between the family that he lives with and loves and the family he was born into.
This book is so full of wonderful characters. Clover Blue is a maturing young man who has to make some huge decisions at an early age; Harmony has been abandoned by her mother and covers it up with her bravery and outspokenness; Rain is new to the commune but holds the key to many secrets. As you get to know all of the characters, you feel a connection to them. You understand their feelings and you laugh and cry with them -- I must admit that I cried at lot during the last 50 pages - both times that I read them.
This is an unforgettable book about family and love and how we all yearn to have connections with other people no matter what the circumstances are. It's beautifully written and the characters - especially Clover Blue -- will stay with you for a long time. This book is going to be THE book that everyone talks about once its published so make sure that it's on your TBR lists - you don't want to miss it.
Thanks to the author for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.
As the book begins, Clover Blue is 10 years old. He has lived in the Saffron Free Community since he was 3 and doesn't remember anything about his earlier life. He feels part of this commune and loves the members as his own family. Goji, the leader of the commune looks after everyone's well-being. It's a small commune but there is a surfer, a Vietnam deserter, a Grateful Dead groupie, a mid-wife and most important of all, Blue's best friend Harmony. They are the same age and spend time doing chores and roaming through the woods. He talks to her about his unsettled feelings about his life in the commune. No one will really answer his questions about his real parents and how he got to the commune and he begins to question his past more as he grows older. As secrets slowly get shared with Clover Blue, he realizes that he has to make a choice between the family that he lives with and loves and the family he was born into.
This book is so full of wonderful characters. Clover Blue is a maturing young man who has to make some huge decisions at an early age; Harmony has been abandoned by her mother and covers it up with her bravery and outspokenness; Rain is new to the commune but holds the key to many secrets. As you get to know all of the characters, you feel a connection to them. You understand their feelings and you laugh and cry with them -- I must admit that I cried at lot during the last 50 pages - both times that I read them.
This is an unforgettable book about family and love and how we all yearn to have connections with other people no matter what the circumstances are. It's beautifully written and the characters - especially Clover Blue -- will stay with you for a long time. This book is going to be THE book that everyone talks about once its published so make sure that it's on your TBR lists - you don't want to miss it.
Thanks to the author for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.
June 12, 2019
This is one of the best books I have read all year. I responded to each of the characters from the depths of my heart. Eldonna is a masterful storyteller. I loved this I know, but this one is only better. My friends know I rarely give 5 stars to a book, but I would give 10 to this one if I could. Clover, Harmony, Rain are all etched in my heart.
I listened to it on Audible and heard it almost non stop. I could not stop reading!!!
I have book club today and am going to select it for our July book.
I listened to it on Audible and heard it almost non stop. I could not stop reading!!!
I have book club today and am going to select it for our July book.
October 16, 2019
This book is a great peek into life of a commune in the 1970's. In the beginning it was hard to get used to the members' names: Gaia, Moon, Sirona, Harmony, Rain.
Basically a coming of age story of a young boy, Clover Blue, who can only ever remember living in the commune. Lots of secrets to discover.
I always enjoy a book where I learn something. While the structure and way of life in a commune was not high on my things that I would like to learn more about, I found it very interesting.
Simply written, unusual characters, great story.
And, the ending almost knocked my socks off!
Basically a coming of age story of a young boy, Clover Blue, who can only ever remember living in the commune. Lots of secrets to discover.
I always enjoy a book where I learn something. While the structure and way of life in a commune was not high on my things that I would like to learn more about, I found it very interesting.
Simply written, unusual characters, great story.
And, the ending almost knocked my socks off!
June 24, 2019
4.5 Eldonna Edwards is one of my favorite authors, creating realistic, interesting characters. I was quickly drawn in to the life of Clover Blue and his family at Saffron Community. The setting is the 1970s and Clover witnesses one of his sister mother's giving birth. This makes him think about who his "real" parents might be. He came into this loving hippie family as a toddler, and now questions how he got there. I could easily picture the characters of Doobie, Jade, Willow, Wave, Goji and his best friend, Harmony. It is a wonderful coming of age story with a new taste for me. I have never read anything quite like this, and I am already looking forward to this author's next book!
April 12, 2019
Clover Blue is a fantastic coming of age novel that made me laugh, cry and feel deeply for the tumultuous journey to adulthood, as a young man searched for the truth hidden from him by the people he looked up to and totally trusted.
The opening lines gave insight into a tribe of sorts that exalted in the cycle of life, the joys of birth, freedom and held a deep connection to nature.
An important character (Harmony) is introduced, one who became a heroine to the protagonist later on in the novel, “The Olders are letting us watch the birth. Harmony runs down the path ahead of me, her bare feet kicking up a cloud of dust.”
Blue is a young man just shy of his twelfth birthday. He is earnest and straightforward, a trusting soul with a curiosity for life, with purity of thought and a knack for learning. He is intelligent and analytical, but he has a placid rationale and an emotional wisdom that is rare in children and just as unusual in most adults. He is a complex character who reflects the best things in humanity: patience, acceptance with a deep thirst for clarity in all things that are important to him.
The teacher, father figure and the community elder, Goji is all that is good about the Hippie movement in the 60s and early 70s. Their peaceful leader is charismatic and a bit mysterious who seems almost cult leader versus the figure he shows to his family. He teaches philosophy, Yoga and veganism to his band of misfits called, Saffron Freedom Community, which is made up of women, a few men and their offspring. All of them share manual work, food gathering, family structure and the grownups also have a “Sacred Space” that becomes a beacon for Harmony and Blue to discover what being an adult and sexuality means to the Olders.
In all of this story there is much truth and revelation about what it might have been like to live off the land in Northern California, to have a goat to milk and what it would be like to have no TV, no bed time and groovy parents who smoked marijuana out in the open and didn’t conform to the rigid ideals of modern society.
The colorful characters all have community names given to them by their leader, Sirona, Rain, Coyote, Wave, Gaia etc. They leave their traditional selves behind when they join and all is harmonious until Blue asks Goji an important question…
“Where did I come from?” As all the children are considered everyone’s, but Blue is different and he knows it, because every time he asks about his birthday, the answer is avoided or his question is ignored.
As the story goes on there are cracks in the visage of a perfect world and whom all of the adults in this community might be from the outside world looking in. What really brought them all to this place and are they really who they say they are?
The children live open and easy-going life swimming in the river, sleeping in a tree house and most of the time wearing no clothes, but there is darkness to some of the people at Saffron. It makes the reader wonder what they are hiding or whom they are running from?
Undoubtedly secrets are the undoing of the leader and perhaps a few others when Blue refuses to ignore what he feels is true in his heart. When all is revealed it changes the dynamics permanently and forces everyone to re-evaluate where they fit into the puzzle.
This story isn’t just about Hippy Culture or the things we hide to protect our loved ones, it’s about knowing yourself, loving without expectations, making tough choices and learning to live with our life, when it fails to bring us what we deserve or desire.
I’m not exactly sure how I knew I would love this novel when I saw the cover, but it exceeded my expectations and I am so thrilled that I took the time to read and review it.
Clover Blue and Harmony collectively stole my heart. They made me believe and hope that this sort of friendship they forged really can move mountains, as it most certainly did in this wonderfully written and authentic story about growing up in an alternative space in the 1960s.
It brought back a few memories of my own as a child of the 70s and I was grateful to return to an experimental time in history that I had almost forgotten.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The opening lines gave insight into a tribe of sorts that exalted in the cycle of life, the joys of birth, freedom and held a deep connection to nature.
An important character (Harmony) is introduced, one who became a heroine to the protagonist later on in the novel, “The Olders are letting us watch the birth. Harmony runs down the path ahead of me, her bare feet kicking up a cloud of dust.”
Blue is a young man just shy of his twelfth birthday. He is earnest and straightforward, a trusting soul with a curiosity for life, with purity of thought and a knack for learning. He is intelligent and analytical, but he has a placid rationale and an emotional wisdom that is rare in children and just as unusual in most adults. He is a complex character who reflects the best things in humanity: patience, acceptance with a deep thirst for clarity in all things that are important to him.
The teacher, father figure and the community elder, Goji is all that is good about the Hippie movement in the 60s and early 70s. Their peaceful leader is charismatic and a bit mysterious who seems almost cult leader versus the figure he shows to his family. He teaches philosophy, Yoga and veganism to his band of misfits called, Saffron Freedom Community, which is made up of women, a few men and their offspring. All of them share manual work, food gathering, family structure and the grownups also have a “Sacred Space” that becomes a beacon for Harmony and Blue to discover what being an adult and sexuality means to the Olders.
In all of this story there is much truth and revelation about what it might have been like to live off the land in Northern California, to have a goat to milk and what it would be like to have no TV, no bed time and groovy parents who smoked marijuana out in the open and didn’t conform to the rigid ideals of modern society.
The colorful characters all have community names given to them by their leader, Sirona, Rain, Coyote, Wave, Gaia etc. They leave their traditional selves behind when they join and all is harmonious until Blue asks Goji an important question…
“Where did I come from?” As all the children are considered everyone’s, but Blue is different and he knows it, because every time he asks about his birthday, the answer is avoided or his question is ignored.
As the story goes on there are cracks in the visage of a perfect world and whom all of the adults in this community might be from the outside world looking in. What really brought them all to this place and are they really who they say they are?
The children live open and easy-going life swimming in the river, sleeping in a tree house and most of the time wearing no clothes, but there is darkness to some of the people at Saffron. It makes the reader wonder what they are hiding or whom they are running from?
Undoubtedly secrets are the undoing of the leader and perhaps a few others when Blue refuses to ignore what he feels is true in his heart. When all is revealed it changes the dynamics permanently and forces everyone to re-evaluate where they fit into the puzzle.
This story isn’t just about Hippy Culture or the things we hide to protect our loved ones, it’s about knowing yourself, loving without expectations, making tough choices and learning to live with our life, when it fails to bring us what we deserve or desire.
I’m not exactly sure how I knew I would love this novel when I saw the cover, but it exceeded my expectations and I am so thrilled that I took the time to read and review it.
Clover Blue and Harmony collectively stole my heart. They made me believe and hope that this sort of friendship they forged really can move mountains, as it most certainly did in this wonderfully written and authentic story about growing up in an alternative space in the 1960s.
It brought back a few memories of my own as a child of the 70s and I was grateful to return to an experimental time in history that I had almost forgotten.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
April 11, 2019
Clover Blue, the book, is a coming-of-age story, it is a story about love and friendship and it is a reminiscence of an era which was defined by the longing for individuality, freedom, and peace. Clover Blue, the character, is faced with the difficult task of learning how to define “family.” Blue grows up in the Saffron Freedom Community, a peaceful California commune, in the mid-1970’s, where he is surrounded by a cast of loving “brothers and sisters.” As Blue grows, he begins to be curious about his past, about how he came to be at the commune, about who his biological parents might be, and he begins to question what secrets are being kept about the past he can’t quite remember. Clover Blue teaches us what it means to love and be loyal, what defines family and friendship, and what it takes to become, finally, who we were meant to be. Beautifully written, perfectly paced, and full of emotion, this is a story which stays with you long after the last page is turned.
May 21, 2019
Won this in a Goodreads giveaway. It’s a story about finding oneself. Interesting plot but slow at times and I didn’t always feel connected to the characters but I’d recommend it
July 8, 2020
Such a lovely story that was beautifully told. I am always impressed when a writer is able to capture the true essences of children and Miss Edwards knocked my socks off. I highly recommend!
May 28, 2019
Clover Blue by Eldonnna Edwards is heartwarming and heart wrenching story about growing up in an alternative style family and the difference between tribe and family. It is an emotional story of a boy’s search for identity and coming to terms with what he has been told and reality. This is a story with many ups and downs and held me from the start.
Clover Blue is a 12-year-old boy who has lived in the Saffron Freedom Community, SFC, for as long as he can remember. Clover Blue knows that he is loved and safe living among the sister-mothers and brothers. This is a community that lives off the grid and lives according to the tenets of Goji, their teacher.
After witnessing the birth of a new member of the community, Clover Blue begins to question his identity. Who was he before SFC adopted him? What is his real name, since Goji renamed him? Who is his mother How did he come to SFC? Goji has always been able to answer and soothe Clover Blue’s inquisitive mind, however this time, it is not working. Clover Blue loves this close knit family group that he has at SFC, but something seems to missing.
Clover Blue continues to seek answers to his questions and it leads him to doubt his place in SFC. He loves the community and does not want any of the members to come to harm. But one final act by Goji leaves him unforgiving.
This is a compelling story. It is well written and the characters are very interesting. It would be very easy to make them cliché, but Eldonna Edwards has written them not as portrayed as stereotyped hippies but as individuals who are seeking something better for themselves and creating it with love and compassion.
I highly recommend this book. It is well written and the characters are well defined and interesting, each with their own story. Thank you #Netgalley and #JohnScognamiglioBook for approving my request. The opinions expressed in this review are solely my own.
Clover Blue is a 12-year-old boy who has lived in the Saffron Freedom Community, SFC, for as long as he can remember. Clover Blue knows that he is loved and safe living among the sister-mothers and brothers. This is a community that lives off the grid and lives according to the tenets of Goji, their teacher.
After witnessing the birth of a new member of the community, Clover Blue begins to question his identity. Who was he before SFC adopted him? What is his real name, since Goji renamed him? Who is his mother How did he come to SFC? Goji has always been able to answer and soothe Clover Blue’s inquisitive mind, however this time, it is not working. Clover Blue loves this close knit family group that he has at SFC, but something seems to missing.
Clover Blue continues to seek answers to his questions and it leads him to doubt his place in SFC. He loves the community and does not want any of the members to come to harm. But one final act by Goji leaves him unforgiving.
This is a compelling story. It is well written and the characters are very interesting. It would be very easy to make them cliché, but Eldonna Edwards has written them not as portrayed as stereotyped hippies but as individuals who are seeking something better for themselves and creating it with love and compassion.
I highly recommend this book. It is well written and the characters are well defined and interesting, each with their own story. Thank you #Netgalley and #JohnScognamiglioBook for approving my request. The opinions expressed in this review are solely my own.
May 26, 2019
Clover Blue was my first read by author Eldonna Edwards. It definitely will not be my last. This book was very well written and researched. It was so good it pulled me right in and I did not want to put it down. The characters were well written and likeable. Clover Blue was a quick and easy read and it will stay with you for a long time. This book made me laugh and it made me cry. I felt as if I was right there with the characters. I was a teenager in the 70’s and I remember Rock and Roll, free love, hip hugger bell bottoms, running around barefoot, sex and drugs. Communes with secrets. It is all here in this book. The ending will definitely take you by surprise. I highly recommend this book to all readers,
August 1, 2023
Nicest book about a “cult” you’ll ever read. Edwards does a beautiful job of taking a peak into what a hippie commune might have been from the inside in the 1970s while creating a beautiful and somewhat gut-wrenching, totally unconventional, family tale. I love how it’s written in diary style entries, allowing it to be a quick read. I also love how Edwards doesn’t waste much page space over describing everything, it makes it easier to use your own imagination.
May 24, 2019
Eldonna Edwards, Author of “Clover Blue” has written an intriguing, captivating, compelling, emotional and memorable novel. I love the way Eldonna Edwards writes her story and vividly describes the characters, community, and landscape. The Genres for this story are Fiction and Mystery. This is also a Coming of Age Novel. The author has written an amazing and thought-provoking story. The story takes place in Northern California in the 1970s in a small commune. The music that is described takes me back in time, singing songs silently. The author describes her colorful cast of characters as unique, questioning, hardworking, complicated and complex.
Clover Blue has the most amazing blue eyes, and often enjoys his days with his best friend Harmony in the Saffron Freedom Community. The leader of the group, Goji believes in living off the earth, going back to nature, and homeschooling. Goji is extremely Philosophical and seems to have an answer for everything. There is a spirit of caring and love in this commune with the differences in the individuals that make it up.
When one of the women gives birth, Clover Blue starts to wonder which of the women is his mother. After asking Goji, Clover Blue seems to get only the information that he is adopted by the group and will find out more information when he is 12 years old. As time passes some new members join.
Clover Blue becomes obsessed with knowing who he is, not realizing the danger and damage that can be caused. Can Clover Blue’s deepest wishes come true?
I loved everything about this novel, and would highly recommend this story.
Clover Blue has the most amazing blue eyes, and often enjoys his days with his best friend Harmony in the Saffron Freedom Community. The leader of the group, Goji believes in living off the earth, going back to nature, and homeschooling. Goji is extremely Philosophical and seems to have an answer for everything. There is a spirit of caring and love in this commune with the differences in the individuals that make it up.
When one of the women gives birth, Clover Blue starts to wonder which of the women is his mother. After asking Goji, Clover Blue seems to get only the information that he is adopted by the group and will find out more information when he is 12 years old. As time passes some new members join.
Clover Blue becomes obsessed with knowing who he is, not realizing the danger and damage that can be caused. Can Clover Blue’s deepest wishes come true?
I loved everything about this novel, and would highly recommend this story.
August 18, 2021
Oh my gosh! I love this book and love this author! I love coming of age books and the fact that this one took place in a commune made it all the more interesting!
April 15, 2019
The opening of Clover Blue introduced us to a ten year old boy who is part of the Saffron Free Community, a group of people living ‘off the grid’ in the 70’s. Within the group there is a surfer, a Vietnam deserter, a groupie, a mid-wife, and Clover’s friend Harmony – the leader of the commune is Goji. Each are termed brother or sister and decisions are generally made by consensus and debate. It is a harsh life, no electricity, no running water; accommodation is in a tent or tree house and everybody has their own duties to attend to. The commune ‘respects’ the natural world and the environment; and they respect each other. Blue is called upon to witness a birth at the opening of the book. Is this traumatic experience what opens his mind to his own birth – his own family. He has no recollection but as we witness Blue’s development and analysis of the characters that make up his world we come to understand his struggle to make sense of what came before and the secrets that surround him. In contrast to Blue’s introspection we see Harmony’s certainty of her place in the family. Her mother is ‘a free spirit’ and comes and goes as it pleases her – abandoning Harmony and then reappearing for a short while and then gone again.
As the plot develops, so does Clover Blue. He struggles to make sense of the commune’s way of life – so simple, so respectful, but what about…? A normal questioning life for an adolescent boy.
You have to love Clover Blue – how could you not? He is an inherently good person. What becomes apparent as I read is that I am not an inherently good person – as a reader I question the commune. Is that fair? Is Goji changing the ethos of the commune? Has the Sacred Space been rejected as couples form on a more exclusive basis?
My review of Eldonna Edward’s book ‘This I Know’ stated that “When reading this I felt joyous. I felt a resounding echo in my soul. I probably also felt envy – for such beautiful writing; for creating a personality that is so uplifting”. So it was with great anticipation that I embraced ‘Clover Blue’. Sadly, I didn’t feel the same level of joy and I think that is because I was worried for Blue; concerned that his trust and faith in his family would be tarnished and this shining example of an honourable soul would suffer. One thing is for sure, Eldonna Edwards sure knows how to present powerful, perfect characters.
Thank you to the author, publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.
As the plot develops, so does Clover Blue. He struggles to make sense of the commune’s way of life – so simple, so respectful, but what about…? A normal questioning life for an adolescent boy.
You have to love Clover Blue – how could you not? He is an inherently good person. What becomes apparent as I read is that I am not an inherently good person – as a reader I question the commune. Is that fair? Is Goji changing the ethos of the commune? Has the Sacred Space been rejected as couples form on a more exclusive basis?
My review of Eldonna Edward’s book ‘This I Know’ stated that “When reading this I felt joyous. I felt a resounding echo in my soul. I probably also felt envy – for such beautiful writing; for creating a personality that is so uplifting”. So it was with great anticipation that I embraced ‘Clover Blue’. Sadly, I didn’t feel the same level of joy and I think that is because I was worried for Blue; concerned that his trust and faith in his family would be tarnished and this shining example of an honourable soul would suffer. One thing is for sure, Eldonna Edwards sure knows how to present powerful, perfect characters.
Thank you to the author, publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.
May 1, 2019
I graduated from high school in the mid 70's so many parts of this book resonated with me; the longing to make a difference, the creating community within whatever tribe you're part of, the loosening of stifling rules, etc. Eldonna Edwards writes coming of age novels full of the intensity and angst that accompany that stage of life so well. This one is no exception.
Clover Blue, the main character lives in a commune where all are considered one big happy family - until questions about who his real family is rise to surface. Secrets emerge, evasion occurs and threaten to permanently scar this peaceful tribe of people.
With names like Willow, Goji, Harmony, Rain and so on, you'll almost feel the fringe on your vest swing and those huge bellbottoms sway as you walk. The characters, plot and setting are pitch perfect just as was accomplished in the author's previous book, THIS I KNOW. (If you haven't read that one, you need to do so. It's a outstanding novel that ranks on my list of top twenty books of all time.)
What will Clover Blue discover about his past?
What constitutes family anyway?
I highly recommend this tender hearted novel. It was a blast from the past to read. I received an Advance Review Copy. All opinions are my own.
Clover Blue, the main character lives in a commune where all are considered one big happy family - until questions about who his real family is rise to surface. Secrets emerge, evasion occurs and threaten to permanently scar this peaceful tribe of people.
With names like Willow, Goji, Harmony, Rain and so on, you'll almost feel the fringe on your vest swing and those huge bellbottoms sway as you walk. The characters, plot and setting are pitch perfect just as was accomplished in the author's previous book, THIS I KNOW. (If you haven't read that one, you need to do so. It's a outstanding novel that ranks on my list of top twenty books of all time.)
What will Clover Blue discover about his past?
What constitutes family anyway?
I highly recommend this tender hearted novel. It was a blast from the past to read. I received an Advance Review Copy. All opinions are my own.
June 17, 2019
I received this book in my May @onceuponabookclub box. This is the fifth box I received and this one was a bit disappointing. The items in the box related to the story, but contrary to the other boxes I purchased, I will not be able to use any of them. As per the book, the story was well written and often frustrating (signs of a good book). Some of my brothers were somewhat hippies and I grew up with the music and the clothing. I kind of fantasized about this lifestyle, but after reading this book I no longer find it appealing. The writing was excellent and, truth to be told, very honest. The characters offered real insights on the free love life and each had a story true to that era. I love the names of the characters and how they related to each person so well. I am happy it ended the way it ended.
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March 20, 2021
I'll be honest: cults have always scared me. Reading Clover Blue led me into the minds and hearts of people who find peace and love in a culture that not only terrifies me but also intrigues me.
It was hard not to love the characters; they came alive on the page as if an artist had sketched them.
The story of Clover Blue, the boy, is filled with love and pain. He is incredibly intelligent, honest, and filled with faith in the people who become his family. His need to know leads him down a path none of us saw coming.
Kudos to Ms. Edwards for another coming-of-age story that satisfies completely.
It was hard not to love the characters; they came alive on the page as if an artist had sketched them.
The story of Clover Blue, the boy, is filled with love and pain. He is incredibly intelligent, honest, and filled with faith in the people who become his family. His need to know leads him down a path none of us saw coming.
Kudos to Ms. Edwards for another coming-of-age story that satisfies completely.
March 30, 2019
"Everything happens for a Reason."
I was quickly engaged in this novel where the setting takes place in a commune during the 70's.
The peace of the characters made me take my time reading each page.
I immediately felt a serenity and became a part of the this group living and loving in nature.
The main character Clover Blue, is a ten year old with many questions for his "family". How did he get to this fabulous residence? Who are really his parents? Does he have other family members?
Will he find the answers he seeks as the time goes on?
Eldonna Edwards has once more written a beautiful tale of love, family, friendship and hope that I truly believe everyone will enjoy.
I was quickly engaged in this novel where the setting takes place in a commune during the 70's.
The peace of the characters made me take my time reading each page.
I immediately felt a serenity and became a part of the this group living and loving in nature.
The main character Clover Blue, is a ten year old with many questions for his "family". How did he get to this fabulous residence? Who are really his parents? Does he have other family members?
Will he find the answers he seeks as the time goes on?
Eldonna Edwards has once more written a beautiful tale of love, family, friendship and hope that I truly believe everyone will enjoy.
March 13, 2019
As in her debut novel, This I Know, Eldonna Edwards has once again given us an unforgettable cast of characters in Clover Blue. In this coming of age story set in a California commune in the mid 1970’s, we learn what it was like to be a member of the free spirited hippie counterculture that gave us open love, dirty feet and flowers in our hair. From the surprising revelation mid-way to the unexpected plot twist near the end, her talent as a writer will have you turning the pages of this story long past your bedtime. I fell in love with this boy and his search for identity. You will too.
May 27, 2020
I just really love this book for some reason. Maybe it’s the idea of living on a commune that is intriguing to me. I’ve always wanted to know what it would be like to live free and have one person in charge of everything pretty much.
With that being said, this story just pulled me in and held my interest all the way through. The storyline was so well developed, and the setting and characters were very realistic. I feel that I will think of Clover Blue often, and I am so glad that I just read this amazing book 💙.
With that being said, this story just pulled me in and held my interest all the way through. The storyline was so well developed, and the setting and characters were very realistic. I feel that I will think of Clover Blue often, and I am so glad that I just read this amazing book 💙.
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