A Good Neighborhood: A Novel

Therese Anne Fowler

Mar 2020 · Macmillan + ORM

About this ebook

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * One of NPR's Best Books of 2020

"A provocative, absorbing read." — People

“A feast of a read... I finished A Good Neighborhood in a single sitting. Yes, it’s that good.” —Jodi Picoult, #1New York Times bestselling author of Small Great Thingsand A Spark of Light

In Oak Knoll, a verdant, tight-knit North Carolina neighborhood, professor of forestry and ecology Valerie Alston-Holt is raising her bright and talented biracial son, Xavier, who’s headed to college in the fall. All is well until the Whitmans—a family with new money and a secretly troubled teenage daughter—raze the house and trees next door to build themselves a showplace.

With little in common except a property line, these two families quickly find themselves at odds: first, over an historic oak tree in Valerie's yard, and soon after, the blossoming romance between their two teenagers.

A Good Neighborhood asks big questions about life in America today—what does it mean to be a good neighbor? How do we live alongside each other when we don't see eye to eye?—as it explores the effects of class, race, and heartrending love in a story that’s as provocative as it is powerful.

Ratings and reviews

It's never easy to review a book that had good intentions; a book that set out to cast a huge spotlight on a still largely ignored social injustice. Fowler attempted that with A Good Neighborhood, and while her writing was purposeful, it lacked so much of what was needed for such a heavy topic. The Whitman family has recently moved into their rebuilt home in the sprawling and coveted neighborhood of Oak Knoll, North Carolina, much to the annoyance and frustration of next-door neighbor, and professor of ecology, Valerie Alston-Holt, but to the extreme pleasure of her 18-year-old son, Xavier. Pleasure because the Whitman family includes 18-year-old Juniper, who Xavier immediately falls for. As their romance blooms innocently in the background, the forefront is filled with the legal clashing of Valerie and Brad Whitman, after Valerie opens a civil case against Brad for the destruction of some beloved greenery in her backyard. Disturbing secrets are leaked and relationships are tested in this narrative that strives to go beyond surface-level issues, and straight into those that are begging for more awareness. The author took the time to add a disclaimer at the start of the book, letting her readers know that she, a white woman, would be writing about black characters within, and assured us that she took the appropriate measures to ensure accuracy regarding their experiences. I appreciated her efforts, but I sadly found that she missed the mark with this novel. The writing was great, and her message, an extremely important one. Overall, I just felt like she lacked realistic emotion and subtleties during moments, and dialogue, where her black characters were suffering the most unspeakable injustices. It was a quick and addictive read nonetheless, I just wish more care was taken with the subject matter and those involved.

I love a good southern novel. And a story with a perceptive and openminded storyteller. A Good Neighborhood is a book I would have given a ten-star rating if I could have. I received a free electronic copy of the ARC of this novel from Netgalley, Therese Anne Fowler, and St. Martin's Press. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read this modern novel of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. Terese Anne Fowler writes a tightly wound story with heart and soul, about people we can respect and enjoy despite their flaws. It was obvious that her history formed the quirks that colored the highs and lows of the life of grandmother Lottie Corbett, to and to some extent, that of her daughter Julia. Valerie's whole adult life revolved around that oak tree - it wasn't just shade in her life, but also the well-spring of her happiness and serenity. And then we have Brad. Less said in that quarter, the better. I found myself waiting breathlessly to see what would happen next. It has been a long time since I was so lost in a book. This is one to share with friends and family, folks. I have read a lot of good books this year but nothing that topped the satisfaction I felt with the reading of this book.

Good

About the author

THERESE ANNE FOWLER is the New York Times bestselling author of A Good Neighborhood, A Well-Behaved Woman, and Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald. Raised in the Midwest, she migrated to North Carolina in 1995. She holds a B.A. in sociology/cultural anthropology and an MFA in creative writing from North Carolina State University.