East of Troost's fictional narrator has moved back to her childhood home in a neighborhood that is now mostly Black and vastly changed by an expressway that displaced hundreds of families. It is the area located east of Troost Avenue, an invisible barrier created in the early 1900s to keep the west side of Kansas City white, "safely" cordoned off from the Black families on the east side.
When the narrator moves back to her old neighborhood in pursuit of a sense of home, she deals with crime, home repair, and skepticism--what is this middle-aged white woman doing here, living alone? Supported by a wise neighbor, a stalwart dog, and the local hardware store, we see her navigate her adult world while we get glimpses of author Ellen Barker's real life there as a teenager in the sixties, when white families were fleeing and Black families moving in--and sometimes back out when met with hatred and violence. A regional story with universal themes, East of Troost goes to the basics of human behavior: compassion and cruelty, fear and courage, comedy and drama.
This title will be released on September 6, 2022.
Goodreads | Amazon
Rating: 4 Stars
My Review: Going home is never easy and this book features that. It also tells and shows us what we can learn in that process of returning to a place that maybe we never thought we would go. I loved the lyrical story that this gave me and I was sucked in from the first journal entry.
Review
“The pace was perfect, and there was never a dull moment. The momentum suited the story exceptionally well. Ellen Barker wrote an emotive tale with a fascinating protagonist and a powerful message.”
—Readers’ Favorite, 5-star review
“Ellen Barker has written a book that should give women of a certain age and privilege a lot to think about. What happens when you try to go home again, and what can you learn in the process?”
—Beth Lisick, author of Edie on the Green Screen and New York Times bestseller Everyone into the Pool
“A quiet, candid recalibration of memories against a changed landscape, Ellen Barker’s East of Troost is a journey both touching and powerful, reminding us how gentle courage and faith in humanity can overcome the fear of what divides.”
—Lorraine Devon Wilke, author of The Alchemy of Noise
“The chapters in Ellen Barker’s timely novel East of Troost read like entries in a diary—a year in the life of a white woman who decides to move into a black neighborhood. Why does she do this? Will she and her neighbors get along? We keep reading, eager to find out.”
—Jill McCroskey Coupe, author of Beginning with Cannonballs
—Readers’ Favorite, 5-star review
“Ellen Barker has written a book that should give women of a certain age and privilege a lot to think about. What happens when you try to go home again, and what can you learn in the process?”
—Beth Lisick, author of Edie on the Green Screen and New York Times bestseller Everyone into the Pool
“A quiet, candid recalibration of memories against a changed landscape, Ellen Barker’s East of Troost is a journey both touching and powerful, reminding us how gentle courage and faith in humanity can overcome the fear of what divides.”
—Lorraine Devon Wilke, author of The Alchemy of Noise
“The chapters in Ellen Barker’s timely novel East of Troost read like entries in a diary—a year in the life of a white woman who decides to move into a black neighborhood. Why does she do this? Will she and her neighbors get along? We keep reading, eager to find out.”
—Jill McCroskey Coupe, author of Beginning with Cannonballs
Review
“Ellen Barker has written a book that should give women of a certain age and privilege a lot to think about. What happens when you try to go home again, and what can you learn in the process?”
—Beth Lisick, author of Edie on the Green Screen and New York Times bestseller Everyone into the Pool
—Beth Lisick, author of Edie on the Green Screen and New York Times bestseller Everyone into the Pool
Did you know that comments are DELICIOUS? Well they are and if you comment on any of these posts you could win some awesome goodies!
Don't forget to check out our Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and out other social media found on the side bar!
Disclaimer: "All opinions are 100% honest and my own." Thanks to Goodreads and Amazon for the book cover, about the book, and author information. Buying via these links allows my site to get a % of the sale at no cost to you.
FTC Guidelines: In accordance with FTC guidelines regarding endorsements and testimonials for bloggers, I would like my readers to know that many of the books I review are provided to me for free by the publisher or author of the book in exchange for an honest review. If am compensated for any reviews on this site I will state that post has been sponsored.
FTC Guidelines: In accordance with FTC guidelines regarding endorsements and testimonials for bloggers, I would like my readers to know that many of the books I review are provided to me for free by the publisher or author of the book in exchange for an honest review. If am compensated for any reviews on this site I will state that post has been sponsored.
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment
Hateful and Unrelated Comments Will Be Deleted. Anonymous comments are invalid to enter into giveaways.