I recently finished a book I discovered while in Franklin, TN. The cover, of course, drew me in. The title intrigued me. And the story, well that I devoured. Whistlin' Dixie in a Nor'easter, by Lisa Patton, is the story of a woman, in her early 30's, from Memphis, who relocates her family to a small town in Vermont to run an Inn on the whim of her fickle husband.
"Memphis belle Leelee heads for Vermont, trading iced tea and kudzu for black ice, black flies, and a winter that lasts well into May. The result? An amusing, touching novel about a steel magnolia who faces an extreme culture clash" Karin Gillespie.
The book begins at a slow as molasses pace and I found myself initially unsympathetic to the hardships Leelee confronts during her first months in Vermont. As the book progresses Leelee faces a "sink or swim" situation where my image of her as a pushover is transformed to that of a steel magnolia. Leelee goes from pampered country club attending homemaker to an in the trenches inn keeper. Leelee’s transformation is hysterical and believable. Having worked at an Inn during my formative years, I found the behind the scenes inn keeping tidbits humorous. The novel possesses a diverse cast of characters ranging from Leelee's Southern belle childhood girlfriends left behind in Memphis to a crotchety older German couple who Leelee and her husband keep on to run the Inn. Patton’s first attempt at writing a novel is, in my opinion, a smashing success.
