Saving Grace by Lee Smith is a powerful and poignant tale of Gracie Shepherd's tumultuous journey, torn between her father's strict fundamentalism and the temptations of the world. Gracie's struggle for emotional stability amidst her father's charismatic yet flawed persona and her own inner demons is a central theme. Set in Appalachia, the novel masterfully captures the dialect and customs of the region, immersing the reader in Gracie's world of poverty, disappointments, and wavering faith. Through Gracie's character, Smith delves into themes of belief, redemption, and the search for light in a world overshadowed by darkness.
Gracie's character is portrayed as a complex and flawed individual, drawing readers in with her relatable struggles and emotional depth. Lee Smith's spare and polished writing style allows the story to take center stage, unfolding Gracie's journey with extraordinary detail and vivid imagery. The novel leaves readers pondering over Gracie's ultimate fate, grappling with themes of salvation, faith, and the complexities of human nature.
From The Publisher:
"LUCID IN EXECUTION, BREATHTAKING IN SCOPE AND HEART-RENDING IN EFFECT-A REDEMPTIVE WORK OF ART. . . . Lee Smith has done more than write another novel about the South. She has broken through the grotesque surface to the underground spring, the music of Scrabble Creek, and the effect is stunning-a beguiling, gentle prose formed by an honesty so severe we are brought to our knees. . . . This novel has a grand and singular purpose, to clothe the spirit with flesh. In this, Lee Smith succeeds."
-The Washington Post Book World
"A compelling journey into all matters southern and spiritual . . . . Set in North Carolina and Tennessee, we follow young Grace Shepherd from a cabin in the bucolic poverty of Scrabble Creek to independence as a single woman. Stops along the way include seduction by a half-brother, a failed marriage, motherhood, the loss of her son, residence in the aptly-named Creekside apartments in Knoxville and a job waitressing. . . . While Grace's path may be a journey many of us would not choose to undertake, we have to raise a small fist of jubilance to Grace for having survived."
-The Boston Sunday Globe
"Ms. Smith possesses a fine talent for creating narrative voices, whether the ungrammatical eloquence of a hill-country healer or the educated affectations of a Richmond gentleman."
-The New York Times Book Review
"Lee Smith patiently woos us into double vision. . . . As her fans know, [she] has one of the truest ears for the speech in her part of the world."
-Los Angeles Times Book Review
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