by Beth Hoffman
First published 2010
Twelve-year-old CeeCee Honeycutt has spent years caring for her unstable mother Camille, a woman who still wears tiaras and believes she remains the 1951 Vidalia Onion Queen. When Camille dies in a truck accident, CeeCee faces an uncertain future. Her great-aunt Tootie Caldwell arrives in a vintage Packard convertible to take CeeCee to Savannah. There, CeeCee enters a world dominated by remarkable women. She meets Miz Thelma Rae Goodpepper, who takes outdoor baths and weaponizes garden slugs. Oletta Jones, Tootie's wise housekeeper, becomes a steady presence. Violene Hobbs entertains visitors in her bright yellow peignoir. These Gaston Street women surround CeeCee with their eccentric care throughout the summer. The novel blends humor with genuine emotion as CeeCee discovers that losing her troubled mother leads to finding multiple maternal figures who reshape her understanding of family.
Genres: fiction, coming-of-age, contemporary, southern-gothic, 21st-century, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, grief
Setting: Savannah, Gaston Street
Period: 1951
306 pages · Hardcover · Penguin