First published 2002
Holly Faye Lovell has the voice everyone in Biscay, Mississippi, talks about. At fourteen, she becomes the youngest student ever awarded a scholarship to the Haverty School of Music. Her singing dreams are finally within reach. But success means leaving behind her mother Wanda for the first time. They've never had money, yet love has always filled their home. Wanda bears a red birthmark across her face that makes strangers look away. As Holly enters her new world of wealthy classmates and opportunities, she discovers something troubling about herself. She feels embarrassed by her mother and their poor background. Meanwhile, Wanda wrestles with a secret she has kept buried for years. This hidden truth could shatter the bond between mother and daughter forever. Holly must choose between her glamorous new life and the woman who raised her.
Genres: literary-fiction, coming-of-age, contemporary-romance, family-drama
Vibes: emotional-atmospheric, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Biscay, Mississippi, Haverty School of Music
Period: 20th-century
223 pages · Paperback · Aguilar
Content warnings: emotional-abuse