A Place Called Sweet Shrub (Lucinda Richards Trilogy) [Paperback]

Jane Roberts Wood (Author)

Book Description

Series: Lucinda Richards Trilogy | Publication Date: January 1, 2000

In 1915 it has been three years since Lucy Richards left her teaching post in West Texas and returned home where she is busy being indispensable to her eccentric mother, keeping her Aunt Catherine comfortable, and taking on many of the chores her very pregnant sister no longer feels up to. She decides to choose a husband from the local beaus, but none of them stands a chance when handsome, irreverany Josh Arnold comes to town. The newlyweds move to the sleepy hamlet of Sweet Shrub, Arkansas, where they are soon caught up in the lives of their neighbors and discover that the surface tranquility of the town hides simmering tensions and unrest that will inevitably result in tragedy.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This second entry in Wood's proposed trilogy of young love in Texas at the start of World War I is generally engaging but not totally successful. Lucy Richards (first met in The Train to Estelline ) has returned home from a year of teaching. Trying to save the family hardware store and tend a tubercular aunt, Lucy contemplates the fate of old maids and maintains an inventory of available local suitors. There is no need for her concern, however, as Josh Arnold finds her after a three-year absence and sweeps away all objections. The newlyweds travel to Sweet Shrub, Ark., where Josh has a position as a school principal. Becoming acquainted with the various residents of their boarding house, they discover an incipient vein of bigotry against the black population, which is beginning to seek fairer wages and civil rights. Another concern is the fate of a foundling raised by a black woman, whose identity becomes confused as adolescent growth suggests that he may actually be white. Lucy is at her most appealing when she is still living with her family in Texas, and the reader is privy to her changing views of life and marriage. After she weds, there is more focus on Josh's qualities and more straight narrative. Wood's treatment of racial tensions is uneven, with some episodes striking a chord and others failing to generate much feeling. In general, however, this wholesome novel makes for easy, pleasant reading.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

Written in 1993, 1990, and 1987, respectively, these novels are known as the Lucy Richards trilogy in honor of their central character. Spanning the years from 1911 to 1931, the story follows Lucy's life as a young school teacher in west Texas through marriage, childbirth, and the Great Depression. Through all the hardships, her indomitable spirit wins out. Good stories with a strong woman in the lead.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 286 pages
• Publisher: University of North Texas Press (January 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1574410792
• ISBN-13: 978-1574410792
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #787,669 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely charming!, June 20, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Place Called Sweet Shrub, A (Hardcover)

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It took me to another place in time and I enjoyed every second of it. I highly recommed this book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very good book., December 17, 2003

By 

JJ "avid reader" (Meridianville, Alabama United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: A Place Called Sweet Shrub (Lucinda Richards Trilogy) (Paperback)

I found & read this book first. Later I found the first in the series, Train to Estaline. They are both very good. I enjoyed reading about Lucy & her family & all their quirks. Enjoy.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Time Travel, April 28, 2000

By 

Mamalinde "mamalinde" (Dallas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Place Called Sweet Shrub (Lucinda Richards Trilogy) (Paperback)

Set in pre-WWI east Texas and Arkansas, this is a book that surprises. Look at the cover, and you suspect it might be a little syrupy. It certainly starts out that way. But the writing is intriguing and the characters begin to show a surprising depth. The emerging rights of women are delicately addressed together with the civil wrongs of the era. The characters surprise us from time to time, the goodness of Queenie, the shallowness of Edna and Bob, the gentleness and persistence of Josh. And Mama with her talking without moving her lips, is a high-spirited throw back to the prim and proper and occasionally clueless era. The reader is left hanging at the end, in particular the whereabouts of Jeremiah and Keats - we can only hope? In the meantime, I am headed for the library to find more by this author. This would make a wonderful audio book (with some of the music, too?).