Mother of Pearl by Melinda Haynes

Description

Bibliographic Details

• Author: Melinda Haynes
• Title: Mother Of Pearl
• Publisher: ‎ Hyperion; First Edition (June 2, 1999)
• Language: ‎ English
• Format: Hardcover – 448 pages
• ISBN-10: ‎ 0786866276
• ISBN-13: ‎ 978-0786866274
• Item Weight: ‎ 1.75 pounds
• Dimensions: ‎ 6.5 x 1.5 x 9.5 inches
• Book Condition: Like New – Excellent
• Dust Jacket Condition: Excellent
• Edition: First Edition

Synopsis:

Marking the debut of a stunning new literary talent, MOTHER OF PEARL captures the irony and beauty of life in the Deep South in exquisite prose that brings to mind Kaye Gibbons and Olive Ann Burns. But Haynes creates a wholly distinctive new style by drawing on her own Southern roots and the "noble country" language of her youth in this remarkable first novel.

Set in a small Mississippi town in the late 1950s, MOTHER OF PEARL is populated by wonderfully rich and original characters with themes of identity and the true meaning of family interwoven throughout.

The story revolves around twenty-eight-year-old Even Grade, a black man who grew up an orphan, and Valuable Korner, a fifteen-year-old white girl whose is the daughter of the town whore and an unknown father. Their paths cross through Joody Two Sun, a seer, who sets up camp along the riverbank just outside of town and becomes Even's lover.

Both Even and Valuable are seeking the family, love and commitment they never had, and their search ultimately takes both of them to places they never dreamed they'd go.

Told in beautifully nuanced narrative with a staggering richness that resonates with emotional truth, MOTHER OF PEARL is a haunting, bittersweet tale of the search for identity and the power of renewal.

About the Author:

Melinda Haynes grew up in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. A painter for most of her life, she now writes full time from her home in Grand Bay, Alabama, where she is working on her second novel. She lives with her husband , Ray, and an adopted greyhound, Elaine. Mother of Pearl is her first novel.