Customer Reviews

FIERCE DISPUTE

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The Fierce Dispute was Helen Hooven Santmyer's second novel, originally written in 1929. Following the success of "...And Ladies of the Club" it was reprinted in 1987. It was the only one of her four novels to take place in Xenia, Ohio by name. Her other novels take place in fictional Ohio towns modelled after Xenia. The Fierce Dispute tells the story of three generations of women who live a secluded life in a large house where nothing is ever cleaned and the grounds are overgrown. The grandmother, Margaret, looks after her granddaughter, Lucy Anne, and treats her like a daughter, even though Lucy Anne's own mother, Hilary, lives in the same house. Margaret grew to resent Hilary after she married Paolo, an Italian musician. She took Lucy Anne into her care in order to distance her from learning anything about her father after her parents split up.

In spite of the dramatic title, there is no "fierce dispute" in the novel. I was expecting something to develop to explain why the novel was entitled as such. There is not even any tension between mother and grandmother over the care of Lucy Anne; the girl's own mother seems to let the grandmother have her way with making decisions for her. The book got off to an interesting start as the description of the house and its inhabitants reminded me of the Maysles' "Grey Gardens", yet this interest did not last. Aside from a visit to an amusement park, where young Lucy Anne perceives merry-go-rounds and cotton candy for the first time, the storyline is boring. When Margaret dies, Santmyer spends five pages laying down the intricate details of her last will as it is read to her heirs. This is wholly unnecessary and ruins the end of the novel. As with Herbs and Apples, Santmyer's first novel from 1925, one can read the start of a great novelist who would take a half century to develop before producing her masterpiece "...And Ladies of the Club".

In order, my favourite Santmyer books were "...And Ladies of the Club", Ohio Town, Farewell, Summer, The Fierce Dispute and Herbs and Apples.

Helen Hooven Santmyer is one of my favorite authors. Although, "The Fierce Dispute" is not one of my favorites. The characters are beautifully written and are easy to visualize. However, the end of the book left me dissatisfied and wanting more. The plot is good, but it is just not as endearing as some of the author's other novels.