The Homecoming of Samuel Lake: A Novel [Paperback]

Jenny Wingfield (Author)

Book Description

Release date: July 10, 2012

“Raw, dark, and powerful . . . Southern Gothic at its best. The Homecoming of Samuel Lake puts one in mind of Erskine Caldwell and Flannery O’Connor.”—Fannie Flagg
 
Every first Sunday in June, members of the Moses clan gather for an annual reunion at a sprawling hundred-acre farm in Arkansas. And every year, Samuel Lake, a vibrant and committed young preacher, brings his beloved wife, Willadee Moses, and their three children back for the festivities. In the midst of it all, Samuel and Willadee’s outspoken eleven-year-old daughter, Swan, is a bright light. Her high spirits and fearlessness have alternately seduced and bedeviled three generations of the family. But just as the reunion is getting under way, tragedy strikes, jolting the family to their core and setting the stage for a summer of crisis and profound change.
 
With the clear-eyed wisdom that illuminates the most tragic—and triumphant—aspects of human nature, Jenny Wingfield has created an enduring work of fiction.
 
“Jenny Wingfield has given us a spectacular novel [that] will make you laugh out loud one minute, hold your breath the next, and weep when you least expect it.”—Dorothea Benton Frank, author of Folly Beach
 
“[This novel] touches on many genres—family life, Christian fiction, coming-of-age, and suspense. . . . Readers will love it.”—Library Journal (starred review)
 
“Wingfield hooks the reader with her opening sentence. . . . The reader is thoroughly caught up in the family saga.”—Abilene Reporter-News
 
“A lovely debut . . . a bittersweet, inspirational tale.”—The Dallas Morning News
 
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“It’s all here. Faith. Honesty. Sin. Redemption. . . . Anyone who loves Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird will delight in Swan, the Lakes' eleven-year-old daughter.”—USA Today
 
“A deeply personal story, yet it has universal appeal . . . Swan Lake absolutely has the same plucky spirit as Scout Finch. . . . Wingfield also has the same mesmerizingly graceful way with words [as Harper Lee].”—Forth Worth Star-Telegram
 
“Jenny Wingfield has given us a spectacular novel [that] will make you laugh out loud one minute, hold your breath the next, and weep when you least expect it.”—Dorothea Benton Frank, author of Folly Beach
 
“[This novel] touches on many genres—family life, Christian fiction, coming-of-age, and suspense. . . . Readers will love it.”—Library Journal (starred review)
 
“Wingfield hooks the reader with her opening sentence. . . . The reader is thoroughly caught up in the family saga.”—Abilene Reporter-News
 
“A lovely debut . . . a bittersweet, inspirational tale.”—The Dallas Morning News

About the Author

Jenny Wingfield lives in Texas with her rescued dogs, cats, and horses. Her screenplay credits include The Man in the Moon and The Outsider. The Homecoming of Samuel Lake is her first novel.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks (July 10, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 9780385344098
• ISBN-13: 978-0385344098
• ASIN: 0385344090
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.7 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (71 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #85,735 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Born in Fountain Hill, Arkansas, Jenny Wingfield was a preacher's kid who grew up "pretty much all over Louisiana". She graduated from Southern State College in Magnolia, Arkansas, and for several years, taught English, French, and Language Arts.

Her screenwriting credits include The Man In The Moon, The Outsider, and Hallmark Hall of Fame's A Dog Named Christmas (winner of the 2010 Genesis Award). The Homecoming of Samuel Lake is her first novel.

She lives in Texas, surrounded by dogs, cats, and horses that she and her family have rescued.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Puzzling December 26, 2012

By Evelyn Uyemura VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

It's hard for me to decide whether I liked this book or not. On the one hand, yes, the characters are well-drawn, and the plot moves along at a fast, straight-forward clip, and the language is evocative. I think the problem is the voice--there's a stark contrast between the warm, cozy feel of much of the story, and the really brutal harshness of some of what happens in the story. If I compare it to The Secret Life of Bees, wherein there's a warmth and gentleness and humor to the story despite some pretty terrible events, this still feels a lot more jarring. It's almost as if you were reading along in To Kill a Mockingbird, and then suddenly there was a lurid description of a lynching, complete with an up-close description of a castration.

I am also a little unsure how to take the theme of the story--it seems to grapple with theodicy, why does God allow evil, especially evil perpetrated against children and even animals. But what is the resolution? is it that despite not having an answer, we should go on trusting in miracles and in love? Probably, and probably the point is that the pastor Dad embodies God's love in a way--but what are we to make of his action at the end? And are we to take Toy's action as Christ, taking the punishment that rightly belongs to us sinners?

I think the story probably does mean that, and that makes the whole thing even more jarring, because it is put into such a golden-hued setting, with a voice that uses devices such as capital letters to give a jocular tone: when The Bad Thing happened, she wanted to be Ready. (not a quote, just an approximation.)

I'm not sorry I read it, but if you have a hard time hearing about animal abuse or child abuse or spouse abuse, please beware.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A DEBUT WINNER! July 30, 2012

By Janet Babins

Format:Paperback

In Columbia County, Arkansas, 1956, members of the Moses Clan gather for the Traditional annual reunion at a sprawling hundred-acre farm. It is held every year on the first Sunday of June. The Patriarch and Matriarch of the Moses family are John and Calla. They have five children, four sons and a daughter. Their younger son, Walter, died in a sawmill accident the year he turned twenty.

The Moses house is a big two-story house. John and Calla stopped farming. They walled in the front porch of the house and turned it into a grocery store/service station, which they named Moses. Now, John liked to drink and this led to a problem in their once loving relationship. So now, the service station is turned into a bar and renamed Moses Never Closes. John works all night and Calla runs the grocery store during the day.

Willadee is the only daughter of John and Calla Moses. She is happily married to Samuel Lake, a vibrant and committed young Methodist preacher. They have three children, two boys named Noble and Bienville and a daughter named Swan. Swan is eleven years old, very energetic, sassy and a ray of sunshine. John Moses never liked Samuel. He had other plans for Willadee. He wanted her to marry someone else and remain in Columbia County. That was not to be, since Willadee fell deeply in love with Samuel Lake and moved to Louisiana.

People are now arriving for the reunion, bringing lots of food with them and preparing for a wonderful time. Just as the reunion is getting started, tragedy strikes. To add to it, Samuel Lake finds himself without a job, a home for his family and the future is looking bleak. The only temporary house is with the Moses Clan on their farm, while he looks for a job. The tragedy forces Samuel to question everything he stands for as a husband, father and a man of God.

Life has changed in the Moses home. Willadee is serving beer at the bar. Swan has brought home an abused little boy, named Blade. Willadee's brother Toy, a bootlegger, is in big trouble and his beautiful wife, Bernice, has her eye on a member of the family and with everything going on, life will never be the same in the Moses family.

The story is about family life, honesty, sin, redemption, faith, a miracle or two and a surprise ending.

Jenny Wingfield's book is so beautifully written and holds your interest from beginning to end. I highly recommend it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Good, but November 7, 2012

By ladybug

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

The book was well written. The characters were very memorable. I had a big problem with all the physical and verbal abuse to one of the wives, the child and the animals. I think it went too far and graphic for me.