This is the most recent book I read. It was an amazing read and so I decided it would be a grand idea to do a little review here. Especially since I haven’t posted anything in a while.
P.S. There might be spoilers because I’m terrible and a brat.
TITLE: Maude
AUTHOR: Donna Foley Mabry
READ: (I might be a little off on the start day as I read part of it while at a “party” because yeah I’m cool) April 4 – April 9, 2018
SUMMARY!
In 1906, I was barely over fourteen years old, and it was my wedding day. My older sister, Helen, came to my room, took me by the hand, and sat me down on the bed. She opened her mouth to say something, but then her face flushed, and she turned her head to look out the window. After a second, she squeezed my hand and looked back in my eyes. She said, “You’ve always been a good girl, Maude, and done what I told you. Now, you’re going to be a married woman, and he will be the head of the house. When you go home tonight after your party, no matter what he wants to do to you, you have to let him do it. Do you understand?”
I didn’t understand, but I nodded my head anyway. It sounded strange to me, the way so many things did. I would do what she told me. I didn’t have a choice, any more than I had a choice in being born.
Okay, so like first off, who is the picture on the cover of? I don’t know why, but that just kinda started bugging me part way through the book.
Anyway, the author of this book Donna Lee Mabry used the stories her grandmother, Nola Maude Clayborn Foley, used to tell her when she was little and research to put together this story of Maude’s life. Maude was born in 1892 and lived until about 1963. She started her life in a time when she had barely any choices, but managed to live through women getting the right to vote, two World Wars, and by the end was able to make the decision to get a divorce from her husband and support herself.
So, first things first, this book made me sad quite a bit, especially every time I remembered this was a true story. You don’t necessarily think it’s going to be a sad story. The saddest part of the beginning is Maude feels plain compared to her mother and sister and her mother is paying more attention to her older sister, who is 18 and ‘needs’ to be prepared to be a mom and wife. Once her sister is married Maude gets all of her mothers attention.
And then tragedy hits. Her mother and father die in a house fire and her sister loses the baby she was pregnant with. Now, Maude must live with her sister and brother-in-law who are still trying to have a baby.
The rest of Maude’s life is a bunch of ups and downs. She leaves school and is married to James when she’s 14. James is good to her and eventually they have a beautiful baby girl, Lulu. This was probably my favorite part of the story. Maude is so happy with her little family and you just have so much hope for her, which makes James’s death when she’s 16 so much worse. You can feel her heartbreaking. Their little baby girl is barely a year old and they had planned to have so many more children and then this happens. It shatters everything. And yet, she still preservers. For several years she raises Lulu, helps her mother-in-law, and makes a little bit of money doing sewing and washing.
Then, when her daughter was almost 10 (if I’m remembering correctly), Bessie’s brother, George visited town and apparently took a liking to Maude. He took her out on one damn ride around town and she had to marry him.
George was lazy, never kept promises, and honestly I don’t think he cared about Maude, but still together they had four other children, 3 boys and a girl, and made a pretty good life together, I suppose. George’s mom clearly didn’t like Maude.
AND THEN AS IF NOTHING WORSE COULD HAPPEN, POOR LITTLE LULU DIED IN 1918 AT AGE 11!!! THE ONE THING MAUDE WAS LIVING FOR JUST GONE. LULU WAS PROBABLY MY FAVORITE CHARACTER BESIDES DONNA AND BETTY AND MAUDE AND JUST NOPE STILL NOT OVER THIS NEED A MINUTE HOLD ON.
…..
That part broke me. And to make matters worse, they didn’t have money or a preacher for a funeral. Maude was heartbroken. I was heartbroken.
The next 10ish years seemed to go off without a hitch, at least until the Great Depression hit. George lost his job and slowly they made their way through the money they had saved up until they finally had no choice but to leave and head up to Detroit in hopes of more jobs. The trip is long, they get their stuff stolen, and around Toledo the car breaks down. They have to walk most of the rest of the way. Now, I don’t know about you, but I’ve made the trip from Cleveland to Detroit several times and it’s long from Toledo to Detroit. I would not want to walk that.
George tries to get away with not getting a job there, but thank God for Bessie putting him in his place (he later retires as soon as he can and they don’t have enough money until Maude starts bringing in borders).
Misfortune lead to happiness though. Learning about some {neighborly} loving leads to Maude standing up for herself and getting a divorce. Gene falling in love leads to a wonderful granddaughter.
Reading about Donna growing up and the United States during World War 2 was probably my other favorite part. To be able to get that clear of a picture of what it was like to live then was exciting.
I had major feels at the end. I with I could’ve said that in a better way, but basically here’s what you need to know: I wanted to cry by the end of this book. It feels like Maude has lost everything. Anytime something seems to be finally going right, two things seem to go wrong.
This book was amazing and my only complaint is I wish I could know more. There’s a few gaps here and there because obviously Donna couldn’t get all the facts and I completely understand that….and yet I still wish I could have those missing pieces. Oh, also I would’ve loved more Donna after the whole incident with Paul. After that she disappears and then suddenly she’s all grown up. Just curious about her childhood a bit more. I loved the glimpses into growing up in American during those several decades.
Oh also, did Donna ever get the family bible, the nightgown which Maude sewed for her wedding night with James, and Maude’s savings? Or was she not able to? AHHH.
Anyway, definitely worth a read even though I basically just summarized the first half of the book here. Okay, yeah well whatever I guess.
What did you guys think of the book?
Till we read again!
"I'm basically an Avenger" 