Books and Needlepoint: Flavors

Friday, May 13, 2011

Flavors by Emily Sue Harvey (Book Review)

Shared by Kristi

Title: Flavors
Author: Emily Sue Harvey
Publisher: The Story Plant

Emily Sue Harvey's first novel, Song of Renewal, was praised by New York Times bestselling author Jill Marie Landis as "an uplifting, heartwarming story," by bestselling author Kay Allenbaugh as a work that will "linger in the memory long after readers put it aside," and by Coffee Time Romance as "a must-read book for anyone doing a little soul searching." New York Times bestselling author Steve Berry said, "It captures your attention, and whets your appetite for more," while Peeking between the Pages called it "quite simply a beautiful book."

Now, in Flavors, this master storyteller of the human heart sweeps us along with twelve-year-old Sadie Ann Melton as she enters a life-altering season. The summer of 1950 will change everything for her. For in that summer, she will embark on an odyssey at once heartbreakingly tender and crushingly brutal. At times, she will experience more darkness than she has ever witnessed before. At others, she will thrill to lightness and joy she never imagined. By summer's end, the Melton women in Sadie's journey -- loving her, coaxing her, and commanding her -- will help shape her into the woman she becomes. And they will expose Sadie to all of the flavors of life as she savors the world that she brings into being.

Filled with charm, wisdom, and the smorgasbord of emotions that comes with the first steps into adulthood, Flavors once again proves Emily Sue Harvey's unique ability to touch our souls with her unforgettable stories.

My thoughts: This short book highlights the summer of Sadie's life that she turns the corner into adulthood. It is a quick enjoyable read and brought back memories of my own teenage years in which I spent a lot of time at my best friend's farm.

She highlights the title, Flavors, by associating flavors with different seasons of life. Such as: "To me, life is a huge pie, each slice a different flavor. Childhood is definitely lemon. Yet youth cannot completely contain it because a bit of its tanginess pops up still, a half century later." (p19) And when talking about her cousin Conrad: "How quickly my period of grace had expired. But with Conrad, I was totally okay. That was my first whiff of strawberry-flavored pleasure, a prelude to the age of teens." (p33)

This book has the capability of bringing nostalgic memories back to mind. Do you associate flavors with different memories?

About the author: Emily Sue Harvey is a past president of the Southeastern Writers Association. She has contributed to several volumes in the "Chicken Soup" and "Chocolate for Women" series and has published articles in multiple venues.; She is the mother of grown children and lives with her husband in South Carolina. You can find her at www.emilysueharvey.com or on Facebook.

~I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my review from Pump Up Your Book Tours. ~