Title: The Myth of Perpetual Summer by Susan Crandall
Publisher: Gallery Books
Genre: Historical (60s & 70s), Coming of Age
Length: 368 pages
Book Rating: B+
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley
Summary:
From the national bestselling author of Whistling Past the Graveyard comes a moving coming-of-age tale set in the tumultuous sixties that harkens to both Ordinary Grace and The Secret Life of Bees.
Tallulah James’s parents’ volatile relationship, erratic behavior, and hands-off approach to child rearing set tongues to wagging in their staid Mississippi town, complicating her already uncertain life. She takes the responsibility of shielding her family’s reputation and raising her younger twin siblings onto her youthful shoulders.
If not for the emotional constants of her older brother, Griff, and her old guard Southern grandmother, she would be lost. When betrayal and death arrive hand in hand, she takes to the road, headed to what turns out to be the not-so-promised land of Southern California. The dysfunction of her childhood still echoes throughout her scattered family, sending her brother on a disastrous path and drawing her home again. There she uncovers the secrets and lies that set her family on the road to destruction.
Review:
Weaving seamlessly between the 1960s and 1970s, The Myth of Perpetual Summer by Susan Crandall is an engrossing coming of age story full of family secrets and heartrending dysfunction.
Tallulah James and her siblings, Griff, Walden and Dharma live in the small town of Lamoyne, MS with their parents, Drayton and Margo. Tallulah is close to her grandmother who is the epitome of a traditional of Southern woman. Margo and Drayton’s relationship is turbulent and they frequently engage in screaming fights that are often precipitated by Drayton’s wild mood swings and Margo’s frequent absences due to involvement in many causes and social activism. With Margo often flitting off to her next cause and Drayton sinking into dark depressions, Tallulah is tasked with raising the twins and with Griff’s help, keeping food on the table. Following a series of heartbreaking events, Tallulah sets off for California where she remains until a family crisis brings home.
Tallulah has an overdeveloped sense of responsibility where her family is concerned and she often blames herself when things go wrong. She is frustrated with Margo’s ease in leaving her family as she joins one cause after another. Equally troubling is the extreme unpredictability of Drayton’s moods which veer from extreme highs to debilitating depression with bouts of normality in between. As she and Griff grow older, the duties at home mostly fall on Tallulah as Griff becomes involved in activities that keep him away from their dysfunctional family life.
Although Tallulah leaves Lamoyne, she cannot quite escape the effects of her childhood. She is closed off and finds it very difficult to open up about her past. Tallulah has managed to carve out a successful career that she dearly loves. However, it is not until she returns home after her brother ends up in serious trouble that she realizes how empty her life in California is. Upon her return to Lamoyne, Tallulah discovers disconcerting information that her grandmother has kept hidden and it is not until she presses her for answers that both women can begin healing.
The Myth of Perpetual Summer is a multi-generational novel that is absolutely compelling. Tallulah is a sympathetic character who is forced to grow up much too fast due to her chaotic home life. Her grandmother is quite dignified but her habit of sweeping problems under the rug is detrimental to herself and everyone around her. Throughout this captivating novel, Susan Crandall sensitively explores the long-term effects that undiagnosed mental illness, disinterested parenting and family secrets can have on family members. This glimpse of life during an oppressive and tumultuous time in the South will linger in readers’ hearts and minds long after the last page is turned.
