Sullivan's Island (Lowcountry Tales) [Paperback]

Dorothea Benton Frank (Author)

Book Description

Series: Lowcountry Tales | Publication Date: January 6, 2004

Set in the steamy, stormy landscape of South Carolina, Sullivan's Island tells the unforgettable story of one woman's courageous journey toward truth.

Born and raised on idyllic Sullivan's Island, Susan Hayes navigated through her turbulent childhood with humor, spunk, and characteristic Southern sass. But years later, she is a conflicted woman with an unfaithful husband, a sometimes resentful teenage daughter, and a heart that aches with painful, poignant memories. And as Susan faces her uncertain future, she realizes that she must go back to her past. To the beachfront house where her sister welcomes her with open arms. To the only place she can truly call home.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Frank's debut novel is a story of redemption set in South Carolina's steamy low country. Susan Hamilton Hayes's comfortable Charleston existence is shattered when she finds her husband in bed with another woman. Faced with a failed marriage, a confused teenage daughter and a mediocre job, she sets about the business of healing. Slowly, supported by visits to her sister in their childhood home on sleepy Sullivan's Island, Susan becomes a successful newspaper columnist, regains her confidence as a woman (despite a hilariously deflating date) and finally explores the death of her complex, abusive father decades before. Chapters alternate between the present and 1963, the year her father died, as Susan faces both the strength and the damaging effects of her family legacy. The ending - complete with a perfect suitor reemerging from Susan's youth - is almost too picture perfect to ring true but both the setting and the characters are blazingly authentic. Frank evokes the eccentric Hamilton family and their feisty Gullah housekeeper with originality and conviction; Susan herself - smart, sarcastic, funny and endearingly flawed - makes a lively and memorable narrator. Thanks to these scrappily compelling portraits, this is a rich read. (Feb.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

About the Author

Dorothea Benton Frank was born and raised on Sullivan's Island, South Carolina. The New York Times bestselling author of Sullivan's Island, Plantation, and Isle of Palms, she is a nationally recognized volunteer fundraiser for the arts and education, and an advocate of literacy programs and women's issues.

Product Details

• Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: Berkley Trade (January 6, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425193942
• ISBN-13: 978-0425193945
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (182 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #24,154 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #97 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Essays

More About the Author

I am the author of eleven novels placed in and around the Lowcountry of South Carolina and thanking God for my chance to speak. When I'm not writing, I'm reading or gardening or cooking. Love to travel, shoot the bull with people and most of all, be with my husband, children and dogs - not always necessarily in that order. Just finished my eleventh book - Lowcountry Summer for William Morrow and it will come out June 15, 2010. Love to have company so come visit at www.dotfrank.com. And by the way, serious huge gushing thanks for everything - your kind words and emails. Writing saves me, but without your support it wouldn't mean much. (So I'm a little sappy and sentimental - big deal.) xxoo Dot

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

71 of 73 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I would give it more stars if that were an option!, April 8, 2000

By 

Sofia Michaels (New York City, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sullivan's Island: A Lowcountry Tale (Lowcountry Tales) (Mass Market Paperback)

This is the first time I'm reviewing a book on Amazon, and I am apalled at the back and forth bickering between the bad reviews and the mostly rave reviews. I thought this book was simply...amazing. I loved Dorothea Benton Frank's writing style, her characters and her story. I read this book in two days, and that's only because I had started it right before going to bed. I was so completely transported into a whole other world, away from the traffic noises and putrid smells of urban life, and smack right into the salty air of sea water and sweet pie smells in the rambling house on Sullivan's Island. I felt like I was a part of the family, in this great story. It's obvious that all the authors who gave an endorsement to this book felt the same way. Instead of ranting and raving against them for giving their seal of approval, I am praising Pat Conroy, Bret Lott, Anne Rivers Siddons and Fern Michaels. They saw something special in this first-time author and they are completelly right. I would buy Ms. Frank's next book in a heartbeat! I only hope it comes out soon, because I'm starting to feel restless in my urban environment again, and am in need of some good ole' southern comfort, 'eah! Much thanks to the author for giving her readers this wonderful debut novel! Keep them coming!

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A real "keeper", April 28, 2000

By 

Karen White (Atlanta, Georgia) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Sullivan's Island: A Lowcountry Tale (Lowcountry Tales) (Mass Market Paperback)

I finished SULLIVAN'S ISLAND 3 days ago, and the characters have stayed with me constantly. I'm almost sad to have left them behind. I'll go to my reading chair with anticipation, only to realize with disappointment that the book's over.

This story, with its wonderful cast of real characters, is a gripping tale of growing up and finding oneself amongst the craziness of life. I laughed and cried and several times thought, "gosh, I _know_ that person."

I do wish we could have learned more about the father's death, and the conclusion of Susan's investigation--I thought it was wrapped up a bit quickly.

Otherwise, I can still smell that salt water and the feel of the gritty sand under my feet. If Ms. Benton Frank doesn't give me a new book to read soon, I'm going to end up as one of those dreaded summer tourists on Sullivan's Island in the very near future.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A great beach read, March 24, 2000

By 

Ashley Bierig (Mt Pleasant, SC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sullivan's Island: A Lowcountry Tale (Lowcountry Tales) (Mass Market Paperback)

I live and grew up a stone's throw from Sullivan's Island, and I was delighted to find a book that is chock full of the local color and flavor of Charleston's barrier islands. The author does a wonderful job of evoking the laid-back atmosphere of the Island that exists so close to the often stifling formality of Charleston proper. The characters were instantly recognizeable to me as "true locals",and I particularly enjoyed all of the segments set in the present day. I was a little impatient, however, with the parallel plot, a murder mystery set against the backdrop of the civil rights movement. All in all, it was an entertaining read-ideal for a beach vacation. I loved the voice and humor of the narrator-the author's real gift is evident in her ability to create such a believable and likeable heroine.