Josey Rose
A spellbinding novel of family secrets and forbidden love, this moving tale of innocence and misplaced souls echoes the intensity of the novels of Alice Hoffman and of Sheri Reynold's The Rapture of Canaan."Funny and heartbreaking at the same time...a novel of secrets". -- Rita Mae Brown, author of Rubyfruit Jungle and Riding ShotgunJosey Rose's childhood has been molded by such mysterious secrets as the whereabouts of his missing mother, whom he suspects is still alive; the inexplicable abuse of his father Willie, a man who can empty a whiskey bottle as quickly as he can fill it up again with tiny model wonderlands; and by the bizarre actions of Grandma Ru, a slightly mad woman who knows far more than she can reveal.Josey's life takes an irrevocable turn when he meets the enchanting and vulnerable Lily, a young woman who lives in an abandoned chapel in the woods and has a deep, yet unexplained connection to Josey's family. Both victims of Willie Rose's torment, Josey and Lily quicklyfind comfort in one another -- and within the gray area between mystery and truth they discover that the only escape from their present lives is
Format:Hardcover
Language:English
ISBN:0684837919
ISBN13:9780684837918
Release Date:June 1998
Publisher:Simon & Schuster
Length:281 Pages
Weight:1.00 lbs.
Dimensions:1.0" x 6.4" x 9.6"
Customer Reviews
3 ratings
Obvious....
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 23 years ago
The book started out wonderfully, and I liked it in the end. I was full of great imagery, and a good enough story, but I found the end to be painfully obvious before the big surprise is revealed. That's the only thing I didn't really like.
A story that stays with you...
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 25 years ago
I was really impressed with the depth of Wood's characters. Like a previous reviewer, I wish also that the story did not end so bleak and almost hopeless. The incest theme did not turn me off; but I wonder if Wood's decision to make the story end the way it did (as opposed to a happier ending) was related to trying to not fully confront the incest issue.
A compelling read: Part bildungsroman, part gothic novel
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 26 years ago
Josie Rose is an impressive first novel. The story involves an 11-year-old boy named, appropriately enough, Josey Rose, who has been told his entire life that his mother is dead. He lives with his eccentric grandmother and his alcoholic father, who is, at best, a loving yet distant parent and, at worst, is physically and emotionally abusive. In the course of the 280-page book, Josey investigates his past, which is criss-crossed with mysteries. The whereabouts of his mother is certainly primary, but the presence of Lily, a will-o'-the-wisp young woman who lives in a nearby abandoned chapel, also raises a number of questions regarding the Roses. Wood's prose is delightfully descriptive (she paints a scene of father and son ice fishing that is wonderfully vivid), often whimsical (scenarios involving the matriarch of a neighboring family reaches a delightfully wry conclusion), and emotionally deep. Josey Rose represents an auspicious debut. I look forward to reading this author again.
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