Vinegar Hill by A. Manette Ansay


This is another book which has been in my shelf, unread for years.  I bought this on the strength of the Oprah's Book Club logo on the cover.  Yeah, at one point I was reading a lot of the books recommended by Oprah.  The reason I finally got around to reading this is that I am trying to get rid of clutter, including books that I are not worth reading again.  And the only way to know is to read them! :)

I felt depressed reading this story and was happy that the very last few pages ended on a hopeful note.  Why suffer through it?  Because I felt connected to the characters, Ellen Grier in particular, and want to know what circumstances influenced the people who were the bane of her existence.  This is not an easy, happy story at all.  But again, Ellen decided to take her life and that of her two kids in a different direction.  And you are free to create the positive ending that she deserves.

Vinegar Hill is where James, Ellen husband, grew up.  This is where they find themselves again after James lost his job.  The family moved back with James parents where Ellen feels unhappy, but still obliged to support his husband's decision.  She takes the burden of managing the household, a thankless job.  Her in-laws don't like her and they think she is arrogant and frivolous despite all her efforts.

Chapters are devoted to each of the characters where events in their past are uncovered and unmistakeably shape how they turned up as adults.  Unresolved issues continue to haunt their relationships in negative ways.  As I've mentioned, it's depressing most of the way, and yet still engaging.  Ansay's writing makes you root for Ellen, as she dealt with the hardships, and as she decides to create a new life away from Vinegar Hill.

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