Play Book Tag discussion

In the early 1920's, sisters Mabel and Bertie Fischer are left alone with their cruel step-father, Jim Butcher, after their mother dies in childbirth. As the girls became teenagers, Butcher's eyes fell on the beautiful Mabel who endured his advances to keep him away from her younger sister. On the day of Bertie's 8th grade graduation, Mabel and Bertie's boyfriend Wallace, devised an elaborate plan to escape the clutches of Jim Butcher. Unfortunately, the plan went awry, separating the sisters from one another due to a horrible misunderstanding. Thus begins a multi-generational story of estrangements between mothers and daughters, between sisters, and the search for love that should be so easy to grasp but is always just out of reach.

Bertie marries a hardworking man named Hans and has two daughters, Alma and Rainey. Alma is an excellent student and craves a life far removed from the poverty-stricken home in which she grew up. It seems her prayers are answered when she marries Gordon, a doctor and son of wealthy parents but although she has respect, dignity and the envy of many women, her marriage is a shell and her son, Milton, is exactly like his cold father. Rainey impulsively marries Carl at age 18 when she becomes pregnant with her first child, Lynn, but leaves him just as impulsively when she learns a secret that Carl has tried to hide from everyone. A short affair with another man produces Rainey's second child, Grace. Alma and Rainey, so different from one another, are never close and the next generation of Lynn and Grace fare no better in the sisterly love department.

Mabel became an accomplished photographer, first working for a newspaper and then working on her own. She unofficially adopted a young girl named Daisy who was in the same unfortunate position Mabel had been in as a young girl. Through the years Mabel had tried to contact Bertie but Bertie refused to read any of her letters and burned them when she received them. Hoping to put an end to any communication she scribbles "deceased" on the last envelope and returns it to Mabel. Although Mabel believes that Bertie herself might have written the words, she accepts the estrangement as permanent.

This is a difficult book to rate as I do like Jensen's writing quite a bit. The chapters are short, each focusing on one or another of the female characters. For the most part the characters are quite well drawn but Mabel's daughter and granddaughter are lost in the stories of Bertie's family. I kept hoping that somewhere through the years one of these women would have a happy life and be able to turn to her sister or mother and say "I love you". It is a very interesting story but not a satisfying one.

Thanks for such a thoughtful way of writing a review; I think I'll pass on this one due to your last sentence.

This sounded really good up until your last sentence. I think I need to check out some more reviews.