The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love: A Novel [Paperback]

Beth Pattillo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2, 2009

“[Pattillo] creates a sweet story of redemption that will go down well with knitters as well as the knitting-challenged.” — PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

“The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society cries for a sequel.” — BOOKPAGE

Once a month, the six women of the Sweetgum Knit Lit Society gather to discuss books and share their knitting projects. Inspired by her recently-wedded bliss, group leader Eugenie chooses “Great Love Stories in Literature” as the theme for the year’s reading list–a risky selection for a group whose members span the spectrum of age and relationship status.
As the Knit Lit ladies read and discus classic romances like Romeo and Juliet, Wuthering Heights, and Pride and Prejudice, each member is confronted with her own perception about love. Camille’s unexpected reunion with an old crush forces her to confront conflicting desires. Newly widowed Esther finds her role in Sweetgum changing and is surprised by two unlikely friends. Hannah isn’t sure she’s ready for the trials of first love. Newcomer Maria finds her life turned upside-down by increasing family obligations and a handsome, arrogant lawyer, and Eugenie and Merry are both asked to make sacrifices for their husbands that challenge their principles.
Even in a sleepy, southern town like Sweetgum, Tennesee, love isn’t easy. The Knit Lit ladies learn they can find strength and guidance in the novels they read, the love of their family, their community–and especially in each other.

Beth Pattillo learned to knit in the second grade. She is the author of the book, Heavens to Betsy, the recipient of the Romance Writers of America Best Inspirational Romance Novel in 2006, and its sequel, Earth to Betsy. Beth lives with her husband and children in Tennessee.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Praise for The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love

“You’ll fall in love with the ladies of Sweetgum! Beth Pattillo knits an engaging novel where so many lives are woven together seamlessly.”
–Leanna Ellis, award winning author of Ruby’s Slippers

“I love the ladies of the Sweetgum Knit Lit Society! Beth Pattillo has created characters so real I want to join their group and a setting so charming I want to visit on my next vacation. Thankfully, I can get away and do that without leaving my cozy reading corner just by opening the pages of The Sweetgum Ladies Knit For Love. Warm and sweetly southern, Pattillo delivers everything you want in a story and then some.”
–Annie Jones, award-winning southern author


Praise for The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society

“Jan Karon meets Jodi Piccoult. The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society is an intriguing look into the minds and hearts of a diverse group of women. This is a compelling and heartwarming story full of love and grace you don’t want to miss!”
–Julie L. Cannon, author of The Romance Readers' Book Club

“Like Debbie Macomber, Beth Pattillo spins warm, compelling stories out of the lives of everyday people. Five women and a girl gather regularly at the Sweetgum Christian Church to knit, read, and talk, and in the process they confront their own secrets, dreams and challenges. I hope this is the first of a series so I can revisit the Knit Lit Society again and again!”
–Mary Jo Putney, author of A Distant Magic

“Thank you, Beth Pattillo, for ‘casting on’ characters who so vividly reveal our human failing to render and receive love, which, as you so artfully depict, we too often withhold, delay, rush, misdirect, or hide from. But thank you most of all for showing us how the smallest of tentative steps we take toward each other can help us to find our true selves, and therefore lead us closer to God’s perfect love.”
–Charlene Ann Baumbich, speaker, humorist, author of the Welcome to Partonville series

“I could almost hear the clack of knitting needles as I read through the pages of The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society. Beth Pattillo’s motley group of true-to-life characters deal with life’s struggles and share a camaraderie that few take the time to discover in this heartwarming yarn of true friendship. A must read!”
–Diann Hunt, author of For Better or For Worse

About the Author

RITA Award—winning author, Beth Pattillo combines her love of knitting and books in her engaging Sweetgum series. Pattillo served on staff with churches in Missouri and Tennessee before founding Faith Leader, a spiritual leadership development program. Pattillo is the married mother of two children and lives in Tennessee.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: WaterBrook Press (June 2, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1400073952
• ISBN-13: 978-1400073955
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.8 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #135,298 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Beth Pattillo's love for Jane Austen was born when she studied at the University of London, Westfield College, for one glorious semester. Her passion quickly became an obsession, necessitating regular trips to England over the past twenty years. When not dreaming of life 'across the pond,' Beth lives in Nashville with her husband and two children.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Great Light Reading that Women Will Really Enjoy, June 29, 2009

By 

FaithfulReader.com (New York, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love: A Novel (Paperback)

The head of the Sweetgum Knit Lit Society is Eugenie Carson, the town librarian and wife of Paul, Pastor of Sweetgum Christian Church. Eugenie and Paul have recently married after his wife of several decades passed away from cancer. The other ladies of the Knit Lit Society are Merry, mother of four and wife of a local lawyer; Camille, the 24-year-old owner of a dress shop in town, grieving the recent loss of her mother; Esther, a widow in her 50s under financial duress; Hannah, a 15-year-old who was taken in by Eugenie and Paul when her mother left; and Maria, the newest member who works at the family's near-obsolete five-and-dime store downtown. These ladies are readers and knitters, some more than others, but they gather to discuss books and to gain perspectives from the connection of the group.

The theme Eugenie has chosen for discussions is classic romance, and the women of the group are assigned to read romantic pieces like ROMEO AND JULIET, WUTHERING HEIGHTS, SONG OF SOLOMON and PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, along with corresponding knitting patterns. Eugenie asks each one of them to define love, and they do so in their own way and discuss ideas as a group. Naturally, their perspectives about love change with experiences each one of them goes through over the weeks between meetings.

Eugenie is trying very hard to be a loving guardian to Hannah and faces new pressures of being a pastor's wife, with one gossipy woman giving her a hard time about not being "Christian enough." Merry is trying to support her husband and manage motherhood while going back to work for the first time since her children were born. Camille is struggling with her desires to leave Sweetgum to go to college and hooking up with a past love who has just moved back to town. Esther has realized the necessity of major life changes because of her recent financial situation, and when she hits a dog on the road, she finds a new friend who might just be the love of her life. Hannah is trying to find stability and acceptance and falls in love with her closest childhood friend. Maria faces the sale of her family's farm after the death of her father and meets an intriguing new man.

THE SWEETGUM LADIES KNIT FOR LOVE is great light reading that women will really enjoy. All the characters are very likable and have unique perspectives and desires. One of the scoops in the book that I really enjoyed was that of Eugenie and the town gossip, Hazel, who likes to spend all her time dealing out judgment and harassing Eugenie that she isn't "Christian enough" to belong or to be married to the pastor. Eugenie responds by telling Hazel that she has a right to keep her relationship with God private and that it doesn't fall within ethical standards to deal out judgment.

Although the novel isn't generally deep or thought-provoking, its message is an important one, about being a good person and learning to find love in your own way.

--- Reviewed by Melanie Smith

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Light and predictable, but entertaining., August 27, 2009

By 

Holly (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love: A Novel (Paperback)

Picking up where the first novel left off, we again meet The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society: a group of women get together once a month to talk about the latest book they've read for the book club and show off the latest knitting project. It sounds so good and, relatively speaking, it is. Prickly librarian Eugenie has married her youthful sweetheart, now a widowed pastor and finds herself trying to find her place in his life and church. Esther is newly widowed with a potential younger suitor. Hannah finds first love and heartbreak in high school. Merry struggles with returning to work and Camille tries to find her place in the world. Newest addition, Maria, tries to find a new life and home for her family.

I'm not sure what it is about this series that doesn't quite do it for me. The premise sounds so promising, but like the first one, it sort of falls flat. The women here are more likeable, even the prickly Eugenie and Esther. But, it's completely predictable. Eugenie chooses "Great Love Stories in Literature" for the group's reading list and as the chapters unfold, we find the inevitable comparisons: Maria and James are Elizabeth and Darcy; Hannah can relate to Wuthering Heights and Romeo and Juliet; Camille can sympathize with Scarlett O'Hara and her desire to put her own needs before everyone else's...

There was a bit more depth to it and the characters seemed to interact more than in the first one. Here, they actually seemed more like friends. Two missing parts stand out to me: we never really do find out why Camille always turned down Dante in high school, even though she liked him and the bit about Esther's first child was just tossed in without any subsequent explanation, even though it seemed significant to her.

It's very light Christian and the faith of these women isn't in the forefront of their lives, it's more of an afterthought.

Still, it's a light, entertaining read and I did enjoy it more than the first one. While reading the first book adds a bit of history, each stands alone well. I'd give it 2.5 stars if I could.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great ensemble book!, August 29, 2009

By 

Janna R. Ryan (Nebraska) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Sweetgum Ladies Knit for Love: A Novel (Paperback)

It takes a special gift to be able to bring a group of 6 special gals to my attention and then have them equally share in the storyline without any one of them stealing the spotlight. I think ensemble books are incredibly hard to write, generally one character takes the lead while showing or telling what is happening in the lives of the others. Beth Patillo has a true talent for ensemble writing. "Sweetgum Ladies Knit For Love" is book #2 in the Sweetgum Ladies series and while I really enjoyed the first book, this second book was a sheer delight to me. The way she balanced telling about the lives of these 6 ladies who were connected once a month by their book club and knitting group and yet by so much more was amazing to me.

Eugenie, the librarian who has finally found her first love again. Esther, who has just lost her first love. Merry, the young wife and mother who only thinks she knows that love is overwhelming. Hannah, the youngest of the group at 13 who has experienced more of life than some of the grown-ups already. Camille, who's life has been all about sacrifice and is now about solitude since the death of her ailing mother. And now the newest member of the group, Maria, who is trying to find where she fits in.

These ladies quickly become old friends and I really wanted to see how everything would play out for them. The ending was beautiful and bittersweet, not everyone gets their lives wrapped up with a red bow (good for Beth!) and yet I was so satisfied at the end. You do not have to enjoy knitting to enjoy this book, a truly pleasureable read.