Book Review: Bound South by Susan Rebecca White

Reviewed by Yankee Rose

Bound South (Touchstone, Feb. 2009) is the first novel by Atlanta native and Inman Park resident Susan Rebecca White.  Written from the point of view of three Atlanta area women, the novel primarily addresses the class chasm that has become so prominent in modern Atlanta.  Louise, the Ansley Park matriarch who is stuck between her southern upbringing and modern culture, is the central character who brings us in contact with the other southern women who shape this novel: her best friend, her daughter, her mother-in-law, and her housekeeper.  The housekeeper’s daughter and Louise’s own rebellious daughter are the other two voices that narrate the novel.

While the class differences are evident from the author’s descriptions of the characters lives, to some extent there is a secret language spoken in this book.  As a recent transplant to Atlanta, this is a language I do not yet speak.  I found myself turning to a map on more than one occasion (where’s Loganville?), and I am sure there were subtleties stemming from the characters’ geographic origins that were completely lost on me.

As the dominant narrator, Louise brought her wealth and snobbery with her into every chapter.  The other storytellers are interesting, but it is as if they never have a chance to grow to full height in Louise’s shadow.

Though I found myself immediately turning away from Louise, by the end of the novel you cannot help but admire her.  She has a direct manner, is honest about her own faults, and gracious with her bounty.  Her daughter, Caroline, who has fallen in and out of her role as a transplanted southern woman, eventually sheds much of the expectations that came with that casting.

I would have liked to know much more about Missy, the housekeeper’s daughter.  The contrast between her lifestyle and that of her mother’s employer is the hidden power in this book.  The comparisons are dramatic: rich and poor, educated and unable to finish high school, Christian and agnostic, proper and uncultured.  Missy’s devotion to God and longing for her father make for a strong character who is able to stand on her own with these two privileged women.  However, and possibly a reflection of which side of town we live on, I was never able to identify with Missy.

We look forward to hearing more from Ms. White when we sit down with her later this month.  We expect to learn a little bit more about her women of Atlanta and find out what may be in store for her next work.  Look for that interview in the coming weeks only on Atlanta’s A-List.

In the meantime, if we’ve piqued your interest (and we hope we have), pick up a copy of Bound South, and please join us and Ms. White for a discussion of at Bound to Be Read Books on September 17 at 7PM.