Цената на щастието

Plantation Trilogy #3

by Gwen Bristow, Гуен Бристоу, Сибин Майналовски (Translator)

Портрет на двама съпрузи, съвършено различни по произход и характер, опитващи се да намерят общ език, когато разкошът и любовта вече не са достатъчни.

Елинор Ъпджон е секретарка на баща си Фред, който с цената на много усилия е изградил успешна кариера като строител на речни диги. Тя е израсла в свят, в който отличното й образование и усърдната работа са ключ към успеха. За нея животът и хората са като математически уравнения, които се решават, като упорито продължаваш напред, без излишна сантименталност и пилеене на пари, за да угодиш някому.

За разлика от нея Кестър Ларн е роден със сребърна лъжичка в устата, израснал е в среда, в която джентълменските постъпки и приятелството са над всичко. Той е мъж, в когото живее весело и безгрижно хлапе, парите не го вълнуват, свикнал е да получава всичко наготово благодарение на момчешкия си чар.

Двамата от пръв поглед се влюбват един в друг и сключват брак въпреки съпротивата на семействата си.

Идва първата неприятна изненада… Елинор е потресена – някога проспериращата плантация Ардайт е обременена с дългове, натрупани от бащата на Кестър, който най-безразсъдно ги увеличава и нехае за последствията. С присъщото си упорство тя се заема да спаси Ардайт, но един изстрел в Сараево променя не само съдбата на семейството й, а на целия свят…

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical, Fiction, Romance, Historical Romance, Classics, Novels

364 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1940

About the author

Gwen Bristow (September 16, 1903 - August 17, 1980) was an American author and journalist. She studied at Columbia University and afterwards wrote for a number of literary magazines and journals. Eventually she moved to New Orleans, and worked at the Times-Picayune. She became interested in longer forms of writing—novels and short stories—through her husband, screenwriter Bruce Manning, and published her first novel in 1929.

Bristow reached the pinnacle of her career with the western romance Jubilee Trail, which became a bestseller in 1950, and was adapted to a moderately successful film in 1954.

Reviews

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

'How strange it was, Eleanor thought as she watched the trees glide past, you were told the accumulated wisdom of generations who had suffered to acquire their knowledge, and you simply did not believe it. Those difficult rules might be right for other people, but as for yourself, you were going to get what you wanted. You were the center of your own universe and intended to have supremacy in it.'

There's something magical and highly compelling about Gwen Barstow's writing. I can never put them down. I delayed reading this last in the Plantation trilogy because, as the most modern, I believed the time period would not interest me as much. I'm so happy that I was mistaken. Fascinating about the fall and the rise of the economy before, during and after the First World War; about the conflict between the Old South ways and the new carpetbaggers; about the uses of cotton during the war to make guncotton explosives. I was slightly disappointed (ba humbug) by the neatly wrapped up ending , but I suppose it was the end of the trilogy after all ...

If you've never read any Gwen Barstow and you enjoy historical fiction, you can't go far wrong giving it a try. They've aged well.

[Misfit · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the first book in what is known as her Plantation Trilogy, Deep Summer, Bristow began the story of Phillip Larne who brings his new bride to carve a new life out of the steaming jungles of Louisiana. The Handsome Road carries the Larne and Sheramy families through the Civil War and emphasizes the difference between the upper class and their struggles to hold onto their way of life through the carpet bagger era. Which brings us to the last book in this trilogy -

This Side of Glory begins in 1912, as Eleanor Upjohn works as secretary for her father Fred, who despite a poorer birth has made a successful career as a builder of river levees. She meets plantation owner Kester Larne and it's love at first site - but can they overcome the huge gaps in their two social classes and build a successful marriage? Eleanor is shocked at the run down condition of the Larne family plantation as well as the huge debts Kester's neglect has incurred. Eleanor cracks the whip and begins to put things to right, until a shot rings out in Sarajevo and as war breaks out it brings the price of cotton drops down to dangerous levels and threatens to destroy them all.....

And that is all I’m going to tell you. This is not one of those action-packed page-turning novels, but more one based on Kester and Eleanor's relationship as they try to grow and adapt to the death of one society and emergence of the new. Despite a bit too trite of an ending, I enjoyed this a lot and I can't remember the last time I stopped so many times to note a page I wanted to go back to and quote for the review. So without further ado,

“She began to understand what people might be like when they had lived for generations in this quiet grandeur, their instincts curbed by the standards of their culture till they had no uncertainties, their characters polished by their knowledge in all circumstances of what was expected of them."

“New people are generally those who have moved into the neighborhood since the Civil War. They all say ‘since the war’ as though it happened last Tuesday.”

Kester’s definition of ‘white trash’, “people who have no fineness, no delicacy, no knowledge that some things are Caesar’s and some things are God’s.”

“We fell in love because we were so different. Then all we did was twist and pull at each other, trying to make changes that couldn’t be made.”

“They had rushed into a marriage across a barrier that intolerant generations had been building for a hundred and fifty years; they had laughed when warned of its existence and then blamed each other when they had found that laughter did not blow it down.”

Don't let those used prices scare you on some of those editions in the Trilogy - they can be found in libraries in the US and if yours participates in the ILL program you should be able to get them. Four stars

[Tweety · Rating 5 out of 5]

I must say that this is my favorite of the three plantation novels. Maybe because I liked the characters better, not that they made better choices, but they weren't as.. Unlikeable then likable. Does that make sense?

Eleanor Upjohn has a mathematical mind and therefore is just the girl to work with her father in his levee business. Life and people are all equations to her, and everything can be solved by moving ahead, not being sentimental and never wasting time or money on pleasing people. As she herself said, "Tact is a form of fraud. Yes, it is-to get what you want you've got to use either tack or force. By force you take what you want, leaving your victim hating you: by tact you take it also, but with your victim happy in the belief they wanted to give it the whole time."

I like Eleanor, there's nobody better to get things done than her. Which is good considering her husband lacks motivation to finish things. But there were times when she really annoyed me. And I don't mean her temper, she had an explosive one that made her say all sorts of things, but I mean her "I can do it!" attitude. Her strong point was her weak point. She was efficient, non-sentimental and ready to do what needs doing. But sometimes she was too efficient, counting every penny to make sure none was wasted on what she considered "unnecessary expenses". Too unsentimental. If I had her running my house and updating things, little things that were special to me and made a house, home, I wouldn't have been happy. It's one thing being efficient and not clinging to out of date ways, it another to entirely remove them from an ancient home. But that's just me. (And Kester)

Kester Larne is a cheerful, wild boy in a man's body. He's sentimental, has no head for figures and overall laughs his charmed self through life. When his father handed Ardeith plantation down to him it was encumbered by debts. Kester add to them buy his own carelessness. He doesn't let it trouble him. He and Eleanor feel each other to be like no one else they know and can't help but be attracted despite their families both opposing the match. They don't realize till later how difficult the war will make things or how their differences will make it harder for them.

Cotton farming, debts, WWI, Spanish Influenza and personal tragedies all play a part in this book. I learned quite a few things some I'd never heard of before in any way shape or form. A very different take on the South and WWI. I loved it so much!

Highly recommended, if you can find a copy, well and good otherwise check your libraries. I chose to haunt EBay and while some out there are very expensive, there are a few that were a good price, you just have to keep an eye open.

PG some swears, mention of affairs and that's all I remember.

[Shin Mon Thway · Rating 4 out of 5]

The last book in plantation triology series. The ending is pleasant, hopeful and lovely. If you adore southern belles like me, you'll love the whole series. Won't disappoint ya .. try them. ❤️

[Mela · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a nice surprise. I was expecting a good historical fiction but I got something else/more.

First of all, it is a good historical fiction. We have here all levels which such kind of book should have. As I have pointed it out in my review of The Handsome Road we should have:

interesting historical information which doesn't overload a reader
a good fictional story
and a philosophical and psychological level.

In my opinion, the first point is here weaker than in other books of Bristow. I feel that I have learnt (about those times) less from this book than from the others. But maybe simply because it was about times more modern and more known by me. Nonetheless, I have learnt many things.

The fictional story is original in my view because I seldom read novels about relationship after a marriage. And the way it is written here is simply marvelous. And in combination with other philosophical thoughts make the book a jewel.

We have here (again) two world: old vs. new, charm and tradition vs. honest hard work and so on. But this time (contrary to The Handsome Road there seems to be a more powerful line of communication, a bond: love. But still:

“Why couldn’t we let each other alone? ” she asked in a low voice. “We fell in love because we were so different. Then all we did was twist and pull at each other, trying to make changes that couldn’t be made—”
“I know. Why should anyone do that? Why is it that we can’t think of any higher destiny for the people we love than that they become just like ourselves?”

So, even then it isn't a easy way. This book shows us it. It shows us what consequences brings an honesty in a marriage. Being honest isn't enough, it could be even deadly if it isn't used with care for other people. Bristow showed us a marriage as a fabric you can always mend but every mending makes the whole a little less strong. So, there isn't a point when you can stop taking care of the relationship.

What should I say more? Read some quotes:

"We think olden times were simple because we know how grandpa’s problems were solved, and any problem is simple when you can look up the answer in the back of the book."

If they had behaved with a decent sense of responsibility toward each other and toward the children they had no right to have until they were ready to stop being children themselves, this would not have happened. How strange it was, Eleanor thought as she watched the trees glide past, you were told the accumulated wisdom of generations who had suffered to acquire their knowledge, and you simply did not believe it. Those difficult rules might be right for other people, but as for yourself, you were going to get what you wanted. You were the center of your own universe and intended to have supremacy in it.

“That’s not just because we love each other , Kester. We’ve always loved each other. But I think it’s because we know now how hard it is to win this and how easy it is to risk losing it. And how terribly precious it is!”

I feel that I haven't fully conveyed the crux of the matter which I try to convey. This novel is a wonderful example of a story about a marriage and through it about being a human.

And we should repeat a prayer after Eleanor:

Help me to understand people who aren’t like myself. Help me to save me from pride in my own virtues.

[Kate Quinn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Side of Glory is the final installment of Bristow's Plantation Trilogy. Her first book in the trilogy saw the creation of Louisiana's upper class, the second book compared the upper class and the lower - and this book unites them. Kester Larne is the handsome and happy-go-lucky son of Louisiana's oldest aristocracy in the beginning of the twentieth century, and his family is appalled when he brings home as a bride the hard-headed and sensible Elinor from blue-collar river engineers. A charmed marriage has its first test when the plantation sinks into debt, and Elinor's common sense and hard work link to Kester's brilliant schemes in order to save it. This is another portrait of a marriage, a study of two loving but deeply flawed and deeply different people struggling to find common ground once luxury and love no longer make it possible. Kester's flightiness is maddening, but so is Elinor's bulldog stubbornness, and you will root for them both as they fight there way through massive debt, a scheming blonde's plotting, and World War I to a new beginning.

[nettebuecherkiste · Rating 4 out of 5]

Achtung, Spoiler für alle, die Teil 1 und 2 noch nicht gelesen haben

Louisiana, 1912. Eleanor, die Enkelin von Corrie May aus “Die noble Straße” arbeitet im Deichbauunternehmen ihres mittlerweile sehr erfolgreichen Vaters. Sie ist klug, gebildet und ehrgeizig – die Familie Upjohn, die früher zum sogenannten “arm weiß Pack” gehörte, hat sich nach oben gekämpft. Eleanor begegnet Kester Larne, dem Enkel von Anne Sheramy Larne und Erben der Ardeith-Plantage. Es kommt, wie es kommen muss, die beiden verlieben sich. Eleanors Vater Fred ist strikt gegen eine Beziehung, er ist der Ansicht, dass die alte Baumwollaristokratie heruntergekommen und verdorben ist. Und auch wenn Kester Larne ein durchweg sympathischer Geselle ist, es soll sich herausstellen, dass er da nicht ganz Unrecht hat.

Der dritte Teil der Louisana-Trilogie vereint die Nachkommen der Familie Sheramy, die einst Lousiana besiedelte, ohne dass die Betroffenen es ahnen. Gegenstand dieses Buchs sind vornehmlich die Beziehung zwischen Eleanor und Kester sowie die Schwierigkeiten, die sich für sie aus ihrer so unterschiedlichen, wenn auch letztlich gemeinsamen, Herkunft ergeben. Bezeichnend ist hierbei die Dekadenz des alten Südstaatenadels, der im Gegensatz steht zu den “neuen Amerikanern”, die sich alles selbst erkämpfen müssen und modern eingestellt sind.

Seite 23: “Sie begann zu begreifen, warum die Menschen die Generationen hindurch in der konservierten Atmospähre derartiger Häuser gelebt und geatmet hatten, so wurden, wie sie sich ihrer Umwelt zeigten. Ihre natürlichen Triebe waren durch die unverletzlichen Regeln einer kultivierten und aufs äußerste sublimierten Lebenshaltung nach und nach eingedämmt worden, bis schließlich die letzte Unsicherheit schwand; ihre Charaktere waren in dieser abgeschlossenen Welt, in der alles ein für allemal feststand, in der jeder von klein auf wußte, was er zu tun hatte und was von ihm erwartet wurde, bis zur äußersten Glätte abgeschliffen.”

Die ehrgeizige Eleanor nimmt es mit allen Problemen mit der Baumwollplantage auf, die sich ihr im Verlauf des Buches eröffnen. Eine große Rolle spielt dabei der Ausbruch des ersten Weltkriegs, der für die Protagonisten schwerwiegende Veränderungen bedeutet und ein schlimmes Ende vermuten lässt.

Insgesamt hat mir dieses Buch nicht so gut gefallen wie seine beiden Vorgänger. Die Beziehung zwischen Eleanor und Kester steht für meinen Geschmack etwas zu sehr im Vordergrund, auch wenn ich das Thema und die Zeit sehr interessant finde. Wie auch in den ersten beiden Teilen durchleben die Protagonisten einen Krieg, in diesem Fall den 1. Weltkrieg, anders als in den ersten Bänden findet dieser jedoch weit weg in Europa statt, auch wenn die indirekten Auswirkungen auf die Plantage sehr groß sind.

Was uns heute etwas unangenehm auffällt, ist die Art und Weise, in der von der schwarzen Bevölkerung geredet wird, es heißt immer: “die Neger”, es ist völlig selbständig, dass die früheren Sklaven weiterhin die Arbeitskräfte der Weißen sind, manchmal hat man den Eindruck, dass sich da im Grunde nicht viel verändert hat, abgesehen von Bezahlung und theoretischer Freiheit. Man muss es jedoch so hinnehmen, denn es war damals einfach so und wie auch im zweiten Band spielen die Schwarzen auch in diesem Buch nur eine Nebenrolle.

(Achtung, kleiner Spoiler)

Mit dem Ende dieses Buches schließt sich der Kreis, in den Kindern von Eleanor und Kester haben sich die beiden Zweige der Familie und ihre Eigenschaften und Erfahrungen wiedervereint und auf diesen Menschen baut sich schließlich das moderne Amerika auf. Ein würdiger und stimmiger Abschluss der Louisiana-Trilogie, der nicht ganz mit den ersten beiden Teilen mithalten kann.

[Glen Stott · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the third and final installment of the Bristow’s Plantation Trilogy. Fred Upjohn, who was a growing boy in “Handsome Road” has a grown daughter, Eleanor. Eleanor meets and falls in love with Kester Larne, the son of Denis Larne also from “Handsome Road.” The Upjohns had battled from the bottom of Poor White Trash to become a successful family with a prosperous levee building company created by Fred. The Larnes are a family of old money wealth where Kester was born with the silver spoon in his mouth. Eleanor and Kester fall passionately in love and get married against the strong objections of both their families. Eleanor has grown up in a world where her college education and her father’s culture of hard scrabble dedication, skill, and hard work is the key to success. Kester has grown up where gentlemanly culture and friendship are most valuable. No appreciation of the concept of the value of money, except to throw it around without regard, is something he is proud of. Though there is never any doubt about the love they have for each other, the sudden knowledge that their life style is threatened with bankruptcy will enflame the conflict between their opposite backgrounds which will threaten everything.

Again, Bristow shows a complete lack of understanding of the struggle of black men and women in the South. She, as narrator, and her characters refer to them predominately as “Darkies” but occasionally the “N” word rises in again. Blacks are used in the story predominately as compliant happy little sub beings. It is kind of the attitude I’ve heard of, “We like having our darky domestics around, though you can’t have the same one do the laundry and the cooking because they aren’t capable of both, so you have to have two.” I was put off by that, and this story went a bit too slow.

Started; 2018.07.20 - finished 2018.07.29

[Сибин Майналовски · Rating 5 out of 5]

Най-добрата от трилогията. Струва си.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eye-opening Journey!

This was a great story that tied the previous 2 stories together nicely. There is of course the plantation and how each generation fights to keep it through the American Revolution, the Civil War, and now World war 1.
Eleanor is left to handle the plantation that is in debt while her husband Kester Larne volunteers to join the army. She faces massive labor shortages, illness and many other issues while under the pressure to save the plantation from debt in her husband's honor.
The second theme running through this series is one of class. From the first story as they dug out a living from the wilderness that was Louisiana, there was the aristocratic landowners, the 'poor white trash', and the slaves. Each contributes to the livelihood of the Ardeath plantation. Eleanor's ancestors came from the poor white trash becoming part of the more well to do working class due to her father's hard work and determination. Keastor is full of Southern charm and the casual work ethic that is predominant in the astocratic landowners'. Both sets of parents are against the marriage of such opposites. The inevitable clash of such core beliefs surfaces. Eleanor and Keastor must each grow and change the way they see the world and each other. I would recommend this trilogy to anyone who likes history and stories with strong female characters.

[Sara G · Rating 2 out of 5]

The final book in this trilogy really disappointed me. It tells the story of the romance between Eleanor Upjohn and Kester Larne who marry and "reunite" the poor and wealthy branches of the family. Unfortunately, the author spends most of the book having them argue, and then settles a major argument with having Eleanor admit she's too unladylike and worries about money too much and should let Kester feel more needed. She also reminisces about a racist depiction of the old South and it really bothered me. This book was written in 1940 and I could really feel that, more so than the other books in this trilogy.

[Susan Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE DEEP SUMMER, THE HANDSOME ROAD, and THIS SIDE of GLORY

I read gwen bristow's trilogy many years ago. I enjoyed them so much that I just had to read the again. I taught history and English for 32 years. It made them even better. I loved every minute!

[Vicki Maloney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hard to put down, enjoyed all three books in the trilogy although sometimes it skipped a generation between book one and two - maybe nothing much happened to them? Book three was the best.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite author

Another great book by my favorite author. I just wish I could get her books on audible so I could listen to them over and over when I'm too busy to read.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This Side of Glory is the third of Gwen Bristow's Plantation trilogy. The descendants of the Upjohns, the Larnes and the Sheramys are well entrenched in South Louisiana now, having come through the travails of bush clearing, nation building, Civil War, and Reconstruction and passed gently into the twentieth century. Family history hangs as heavily as the Spanish moss, however, and so when Eleanor Upjohn and Kester Larne announce their engagement, all is not well. Together, and in the face of frequent opposition, they must find a way to navigate the changing world around them and build upon what their ancestors have begun.

There is nothing subtle about Bristow's characters in This Side of Glory. If I felt the characters in the second book, The Handsome Road, to be slightly caricaturized (I did! I did!), there's nothing slight about it now. Kester is the complete and utter personification of a debt-ridden Son of the South, languid and lazy, witty and wily. Eleanor is his opposite, a driven, dynamic woman whose mantra is progress, progress, progress, and whose life is ordered and orderly as Kester's is spontaneous. They are destined to clash, which of course they do.

The entire trilogy is well-written and I did enjoy it. Unfortunately, though, the first book (Deep Summer) was the strongest, with the others not quite able to fill the very large shoes Bristow created.

[Maurita Kling · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading The Handsome Road & it's story of the humiliation of the South after the Civil War & the Carpetbaggers & Scallawags. I was very disappointed when this 3rd book left Corrie May etc behind & jumped a couple of generations to another branch of the intertwined Family Tree.
We lived in the South for about 10 years & felt their dislike of us Yankees. We also reciprocated by ridiculing their 'pretentiousness' & pride in a way of Life that no longer existed. To be quite honest I couldn't wait to get back to New England!
So the attempt of this book to defend those people fell flat for me. I do recall feeling a bit of Understanding for the South's behavior when we lived there but not enough for me to approve of it. As this book illustrates there were still too many Negatives associated with their Way of Life to cause any admiration for it. Consequently I was unable to credit the way it ended & was glad to be done with it.

[Paula Singleton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Last book in this series

Book three continues with the heirs from the previous two books. It had very deep thoughts about making sure the man in a relationship feels important, and that he feels worthy and the head of the household. This book also dealt with infidelity and it took a family tragedy to bring them back together and for them to realize that they both loved each other and each other only. A very good book in this series. This is the first books that I have read by this author and plan on reading more.

[Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The third and last in the Plantation Trilogy. It ties all the books and the generations together.

Gwen Bristow's books should be among the classics and so well-written. I love historical fiction, but grow tired of some flowery words for the sake of words and description .

I would say her books are better than Gone With the Wind. I'm not sure why she's not given more credit and better well-known. Marketing, perhaps??

[Terry S · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gwen Bristow saved the best for last is an accurate way to describe the final book of a wonderful trilogy. The summation of life between the pages of a fast-past story. This author is definitely one to be explored. Her writing talent comes to life with impeccable description and well-developed characters. A gem!

[Reikista · Rating 4 out of 5]

The marriage of Eleanor Upjohn, Carrie May’s white trash descendant, and Ardeith plantation’s heir, Kester Larne. She tries to save the plantation from debt, just as WWI erupts and cotton prices fall.

Learned lots about class with this one.

[Rosie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good. I read the series.

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good, but I enjoyed the fist two more.

[MaryN · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful series. I am sorry there isn't more to read about this family. I recommend this trilogy for anyone interested in Southern life on the beautiful plantations of Louisiana.

[Linda Burger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good story

I really enjoyed this book and the two before it. For some reason it reminded me of gone with wind which is my alk time favorite book.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I sure enjoyed this trilogy by Gwen Bristow. This was book #3 and did not disappoint. Will definitely read more by this author!

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This Side of Glory is book three of the Plantation Trilogy by Gwen Bristow. It begins in 1912. I didn’t like it as much as the first two; but they were set further back in history in the Civil War era which is an era I really like reading about. I am not as interested in the era prior to WWI to WW II. This could be why I don’t like this as much. However, I was pleasantly surprised at how well written this book was and how it does spark an interest in this era.
Eleanor Upjohn acts as secretary for her father, Fred Upjohn, a levee contractor. He is a well-known and admired contractor and he does his job well. Eleanor admires her father for his work and his work ethics. He and his wife came from nothing and built their family and their way up. Eleanor represents the New South with an aggressive energy and a love for progress for progress’s sake. She is aggressive in her relationships; but she is capable of deep abiding love while she condemns what she sees as laziness.
Kester Larne is the son of aristocrat Denis Larne II. He and his contemporaries rebuilt the area after the Civil War with the same beliefs and traditions of the Old South. Gallantry and beautiful manners were a must and Kester had these; but not to the extent his parents did. His strength was endurance. Continuing with the traditions of old and enduring whatever comes to threaten them. He was easy-going and took his wealth for granted.
The two fell in love and married. Eleanor disregarded her father’s questions about the advisability of the marriage and married Kester and went to live at his family plantation, Ardeith. Here she found it mortgaged and kept in the fashion of Old South. It went against her values to have something mortgaged when it didn’t have to be. She set out to correct this, against Kester’s own wishes. Thus began the constant clash between Eleanor and Kester. He wanted things to stay as they were and move forward slowly while Eleanor wanted changes to happen now. When WWI began, Kester went to war leaving her in charge of the plantation. What will become of their marriage?

[Kathyelizabethannrachalblackman · Rating 5 out of 5]

The struggle of two young people to overcome years of prejudice taught through generations

This is the third and final book about two very different families, each strong and resilient in their own way, who survived the terrible reconstruction years of the civil war, that required them both to live day to day in an intense struggle just to put food on the table. The great divide between these families and the beliefs and prejudices they taught their children is that one came from an old aristocratic family for generations, and the other came from the wrong side of the tracts from a history of illegitimacy, and dropping out of school to help a single parent find relief from the grinding work of taking in people's laundry to wash on a handboard and then iron and deliver the clothes to some patrons who never paid on time. They were typical of young people in love, and though warned by each one's separate families not to marry, they did so anyway. As they face the challenges that married life inevitably brings, they slowly begin to become distant as these family beliefs and prejudices cause them to misinterpret the actions and words said in anger that they
learned from their respective families. It is only through the tragic accident that befall one of their children that they come together again in humility and admit the part that each has played in the division of their love and marriage. Unfortunately the attitudes and prejudices of these two families remain prevalent iin the South today and I suspect in other parts of the country as well. I think this book might be good for couples to read who recognize the differences in their upbringing might be part of their marital woes. very good read and quite educational in its illustration of a marriage in trouble.




.

[LemonLinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book concludes a trilogy of books all set in and around plantation life in upriver Louisiana. This is historical fiction set before, during and after WWI. Some are clinging to a lifestyle prevalent before the Civil War and others have overcome the restrictions and limitations of that time.

The old "easy, relaxed" lifestyle of the plantation owners clashes against the "bright, young, ambitious" upstarts and the two ways have to learn to come together with compromises and appreciation for the other "side" if they are to find a way to live and work together But that, however, is easier said than done. Old ways die hard and the nouveau riche have clawed their way forward with sheer grit, determination and a strong work ethic.

[Muriel Schwenck]

I remember the Plantation Trilogy as a very good read, and educational. I read them as a teenager and they still hold up. I learned two phrases from these books that I still use today:
lagniappe and "n----r rich". Now that's a bad phrase that we are not supposed to say today, but it's relevant: When a man, who is not used to money, gets a windfall, he buys a colorful silk shirt for himself instead of buying shoes for his children.
In a brutal yet truthful way, that's the difference between the couple in this novel, and how they manage to overcome their past, their stubbornness, and their class pride to achieve personal and business success. It's a bumpy road, and both people make big mistakes along the way.
The story is dramatic, insightful and educational.
HIghly recommended.