Miss Julia Stands Her Ground [Hardcover]

Ann B. Ross (Author)

Book Description

Series: Miss Julia | Publication Date: April 6, 2006

Ann B. Ross's most recent novel, Miss Julia's School of Beauty, was a New York Times extended bestseller, with more fans drawn to Miss Julia's adventures every outing. Miss Julia Stands Her Ground finds our steel magnolia looking forward to many peaceful and happy years with her new husband, Sam. But she still has plenty to worry about. When Hazel Marie's troublemaking uncle, Brother Vernon Puckett, comes back to town, he claims to have conclusive proof that Little Lloyd is not the son of Miss Julia's late, philandering husband Wesley Lloyd Springer-a fact to which Miss Julia would have gladly subscribed a few years back. But that was then, before Miss Julia's life revolved around Little Lloyd, before that magical holiday when he became the apple of her eye.

With DNA testing the only possible way to settle the dispute, Miss Julia shudders at the thought of exhuming her dead husband's body. But her housekeeper Lillian has a few souvenirs of Wesley Lloyd's life tucked away that, though a little creepy, might just be the key to ending the whole ugly mess. Another hilarious adventure, Miss Julia Stands Her Ground confirms what we know in our hearts-family is always thicker than blood.

Praise for Ann B. Ross and the Miss Julia series:
"Miss Julia is one of the most delightful characters to come along in years."
-Fannie Flagg

"Funny and endearing."
-The Dallas Morning News

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ross, reminiscent of Jan Karon and Fannie Flagg, reintroduces the popular Miss Julia, a plucky busybody "of a certain age," in this seventh novel (after Miss Julia's School of Beauty) in her ongoing series. Miss Julia again stands tall in a quaint, narrow-minded Southern city in the western North Carolina mountains, this time facing a paternity dispute over her beloved Little Lloyd, who may be her philandering, deceased former husband's son by another woman, Hazel Marie. To prove Little Lloyd's lineage without actually exhuming a corpse, Miss Julia's new husband Sam Murdoch suggests they retrieve a specimen of her late hubby's DNA, launching a search to find an appropriately personal item-a hairbrush comes to mind, as do the dead man's gallstones. As if that isn't enough to keep her busy, Miss Julia discovers the women of her church have circulated a petition nominating her to run for the board of elders, and the woman claiming Little Lloyd as her own volunteers Miss Julia's home for a wildly inappropriate party. Enjoyable but formulaic, it's light beach reading that should fulfill fans' expectations.
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Review

Ann B. Ross and Miss Julia are fast becoming Southern classics. (Winston-Salem Journal) --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 306 pages
• Publisher: Viking / Penguin Group; 1st edition (April 6, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670034924
• ISBN-13: 978-0670034925
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.8 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #817,868 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ann is the mother of two daughters and one son, and the grandmother of four grandsons (including twin boys) and two granddaughters, both of whom are her namesakes. When her children were in college, she decided to complete her own education, enrolling in the University of North Carolina at Asheville where she earned a Bachelor's degree in Literature. Reluctant to return to an empty nest, she continued her education by enrolling in the English Department of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she earned both the Master's and Doctor of Philosophy degrees. Afterwards, she taught Literature and the Humanities at the University of North Carolina at Asheville.

Ann's writing career began in the early eighties when two mysteries were published as original paperbacks: THE MURDER CURE and THE MURDER STROKE. A few years later, her first hardcover book was published: THE PILGRIMAGE, an adventure story set in the nineteenth century. All three books are now out of print, but occasionally a used copy of THE PILGRIMAGE appears on Amazon.com for sale.

The publication of the first Miss Julia book, MISS JULIA SPEAKS HER MIND in 1999, set Ann on a full-time writing career. This book went through six reprintings in less than a year, and was ranked #9 on the Independent Booksellers' seventy-six most highly recommended books for 1999. In addition, the book was named to the Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers list. The paperback edition of the same book was listed in The Best Books of the First Five Years by BookSense, as one of the titles independent booksellers most enjoyed handselling. The book was also published by Readers Digest Condensed Books, appearing in twelve foreign languages.

MISS JULIA TAKES OVER was one of seven nominees for the Book of the Year Award (2001) by the Southeastern Booksellers Association.

All of the books in the series are available on audiotape and in large-print editions, and are also available through The Literary Guild/Doubleday Book Club. All of the books, except the newest one each year, can be found in paperback editions.

MISS JULIA THROWS A WEDDING, MISS JULIA HITS THE ROAD, MISS JULIA MEETS HER MATCH, and MISS JULIA'S SCHOOL OF BEAUTY have all appeared on the New York Times Extended Bestseller List.

All of the books in the series will be published in German, Japanese, and Croatian editions, as well as on audiotape (in English) and in large print editions.

Inspiration for the escapades of Ann's much-loved character, Miss Julia, comes in all manner of ways -- a chance remark by a friend or family member, an incident she happens to see, in a dream, or by being reminded of something in her past experiences. It is always deeply satisfying to her when scenes in the book she is working on suddenly seem to fit together to make a good story. She does not outline or make detailed plans before starting a story. She does, however, have a general plot in mind before beginning to write, but this usually entails only the conflict and the final resolution, with few ideas of how they will be worked out. So, with just the beginning and the end of a book decided on, Ann relies on the characters themselves to fill in the middle with first one subplot after another. This, she says, is the joy of writing -- when a character suddenly does or says something unexpectedly, leading her to funny and surprising 'mini-scenes' that seem to delight readers.

Ann was once asked by an interviewer how she knew when something she'd written was good. She replied, "I know it's good when I fall off my chair laughing." From that response, we can be sure that she enjoys writing about her characters as much as we enjoy reading about them.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One of the most enjoyable books in the series...., June 12, 2006

By 

K. M. "literary devotee" (California) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Miss Julia Stands Her Ground (Hardcover)

I declare! I've read all seven "Miss Julia" books produced thus far, and although at times the situations are a little too outlandish or I lean toward thinking perhaps the series has run out of steam, like any durable serial, the characters draw me back again for the next installment.

I'm glad I picked up the newest offering because author Ross gets back to the basics that attracted me in the beginning, e.g., Miss Julia's relationships with Hazel Marie, Little Lloyd, Lillian, Mr. Pickens, the church folk, Sam, and others. Among its finest charms, this book features a timely balance between the narration of the present-day situation starring a more "evolved" Miss Julia and some lovely mid-book chapters reminiscing about the first Christmas Little Lloyd and his mama roomed under Miss Julia's roof and how that contributed to Miss Julia's personal evolution. Typically, Miss Julia first tipped toward one extreme about Christmas giving and then in reformed-Scrooge fashion flipped to the other extreme.

These antics of extremes are amusing but they also point to some recurring tight-rope acts a reader faces regarding the way Miss Julia herself (the sole narrater) is portrayed within this series. Her opinions, even as a more evolved character, spill out at the reader in a way that make one wonders whether one would really like to know her because she tartly tends to give with one breath and takes back with another! Her tendency toward being judgmental is very much in evidence. It is as if author Ross is either consciously or unconsciously putting a two-edged sword in Miss Julia's mouth.

For that reason, I tend to feel more empathy with those who surround Miss Julia. I love sweet-souled Little Lloyd and wish he were more an actor than one-acted-upon in the stories. More development of the Pickens/Hazel Marie relationship would be welcome too. On another a high note, how glad I am that in this book, dear Sam, that enlightened man of Miss Julia's, is not a source of plot conflict but a genuine partner with her in diffusing the book's main problem. Her growing bond with Sam is such a fine juxtaposition to Miss Julia's disfunctional previous marriage.

"Miss Julia Stands Her Ground" is a definite high-note-addition to this series.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Love Miss Julia!, May 26, 2006

By 

V. Christianson (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Miss Julia Stands Her Ground (Hardcover)

This is such a great series and this is a great addition to it. I really like how the author showed the character growth of Miss Julia through her relationships with Sam, Hazel Marie, and Little Lloyd. Latisha is always a hoot in it, Sam is caring and obviously adores his new bride, and Miss Julia takes on that mean ole' preacher man again. Miss Julia is my hero! :)

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The proper Presbyterian returns, May 5, 2006

By 

Karen Potts (Lake Jackson, Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Miss Julia Stands Her Ground (Hardcover)

Things are going well for Miss Julia and her husband, Sam, when their world is again turned upside-down by Brother Vernon Puckett, Hazel Marie's crooked uncle. He claims that Hazel Marie's son, Little Lloyd, is not the progeny of Miss Julia's late husband, Wesley Lloyd, as everyone has been led to believe. Since finances and living arrangements would be upset if this news is true, Miss Julia sets out to prove that it's not. Their only recourse is finding whether there is a DNA match, but that may prove to be difficult with Wesley Lloyd long since dead and buried. The other problem that Miss Julia has is deciding whether to run for the Session of her church. The women of the church have all signed a petition in favor of such a move, but Pastor Ledbetter is dead set against it. In the middle of the book is a rather long look back at the first Christmas which Miss Julia spent with Hazel Marie and Little Lloyd. Although it is an interesting and touching account, it seems that this part of the book is out of place with the rest of the story. Also Brother Vernon is becoming a little shopworn as a villain, and this plot seems too similar to other stories in the series. Hopefully, some future plots will highlight some of the other delightful characters in the book, such as Lillian's granddaughter Latisha.