Customer Reviews

A Place Called Wiregrass

5 star:		(42)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

What first attracted me to this book was the fact that it won the "Christy Award" for the best first novel. But what kept me reading past the first chapter was the realistic, delightful character of Erma Lee. When we first meet her, Erma Lee has left her no-good abusive husband. She takes her granddaughter Cher with her. They find a town called Wiregrass, Alabama where Erma Lee finds a job, friendship and a whole new life in the person of Miss Claudia, a wealthy older lady.

The author shows how being a survivor of bad circumstances isn't something just for the poor - even Miss Claudia has her secrets. This book is almost impossible to put down. The story line is so believable, and the writing style is incredible. I can't wait to read Michael Morris's next book!

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FINALLY A NOVEL ABOUT SOUTHERN WOMEN THAT DOES NOT PAINT THEM AS DIRT EATING FOOLS! THE WRITER SHOWS THE READER TWO DIFFERENT LIFESTYLES FROM THE RURAL WORKING CLASS TO THE OLD MONEY WHEELS OF SMALL TOWN LIFE. i VERY MUCH ENJOYED THE MAIN CHARACTER, ERMA LEE, EVEN THOUGH I CAN'T SAY THAT I LIKED HER. IT IS THE MORE REFINED MISS CLAUDIA THAT WON MY HEART. I FINISHED THIS NOVEL THINKING THAT I NEED A MISS CLAUDIA IN MY OWN LIFE. THIS IS REAL LIFE (FRIENDSHIP, FAITH, HURTS AND DREAMS). A SOLID FIRST NOVEL THAT LEFT ME WANTING TO KNOW MORE ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS TO ERMA LEE.

Erma Lee is an abused wife who runs off to Wiregrass with her granddaughter Cher. The story is told from Erma's point of view, so you understand why she does what she does even if it doesn't make sense. The relationships and chracters are the heart of this book. I was very touched by them and I could have almost cried at the ending. This novel is well deserving of the Christy Award that it received.

While browsing through some of the books that I love on Amazon I found this one reccomended. If you love good southern writing like Cassandra King (Sunday Wife) Pat Conroy and Silas House (Clay's Quilt) then this is the kind of book that you will love.I certainly did. Being a native of the real Wiregrass (Dothan, Al) I can speak to the authenticity of the characters and the dialect.Reading this book was like a visit back home. Just when I thought it was wrapping up the writer threw in a plot twist that kept me up until the early AM. This book is fine southern writing with a good plot.

I loved this book. After living in Alabama for a year and then returning to Canada, I yearned for some Southern comfort and found it in this book. The author brings the characters to life, and I found myself laughing and crying. I couldn't put it down and am sorry I've now finished it. It'll be hard to find another book to top this one.

I just finished reading the novel "A Place Called Wiregrass" by
Michael Morris and was captivated by the story and content. I
do hope the executives in Hollywood receive a copy for review and
attempt to make a movie. I would love to see the characters and
setting come to life on screen. It is hard to believe that a male
could write in the first person about an abused female and understand
the trials, obstacles, and feelings of that individual. I am
astonished and would be most interested in reading future novels
by this author. It is clearly a masterpiece and rare find.

The beautiful cover of this book first caught my attention and then I was reeled in by the quote of one of my favorites, Lee Smith (The Last Girls and Oral History).

This author captures the voices of the impoverished and the well to do; convincingly presenting two women from different sides of the track. Where this novel could have gone down the all too familiar avenue of male bashing or jaded romance, the author instead keeps the focus on the relationship between two strong willed women from different levels of society. The dialect in this novel will resonate as pitch perfect to anyone familiar with the south but what shines the brightest are the variety of people described in the small town of Wiregrass. You'll be pleased you took the time to pay a visit.

This was a feel good book. It is a story of Erma Lee who flees a brutal marriage with her grandduaghter Cher. Cher's mother is in prison. Erma Lee goes to work for a rich elderly woman named Miss Claudia, who has a few secrets herself. They develope a wonderful friendship and Erma Lee learns to love herself and life. It is a nice story with some hidden secrets that adds a bit of intrigue.

Our club picked this book after I read a newspaper review calling it a "beautiful work of art." But this book is more than some high brow literary novel that drags along without seemingly going anywhere -- its a page turner. This story of a woman rebuilding her life with the help of the community while dodging her convict son-in-law kept me glued to the pages. If you're like me and loved Where The Heart Is then you'll love this one too. My book club sure did!

This beautiful book is filled with characters to love, characters to hate and joy in the redeeming value of love and endurance. Rarely do I read a book ( and I read A LOT) that makes me sorry for the need for sleep and even more sorry to see it end. Wiregrass is a place we have all known, but few have taken the time to get to know well. Thank you Michael Morris for the rare novel that takes us through a multitude of emotions (without risk of being offended) and then gently comforts in the end!