Ratings1
Average rating4
SALVATION is a fictionalized account of events that happened nearly fifty years ago, showing what can happen when being poor, or black, or small makes someone all but invisible; or when religion seeks to justify a multitude of sins.Summer 1971, Del Munro, a single mother of four, is struggling to make ends meet when Mother Franklin, a traveling evangelist, offers to take her daughters to the beach in Savannah.For nine-year-old Willie June and seven-year-old Glory, restless at the end of a long, hot summer in Charlotte, it's a dream come true. To their beleaguered mother, it's a much-needed reprieve.But what seemed like a blessing soon turns into a nightmare when the girls are pressed into service by the morbidly obese Mother Franklin whose needs are as outsized as her ambitions.When the girls fail to return, Del, evasive about the details of her arrangement with Mother Franklin, panics. People begin to wonder if instead of sending her daughters on vacation, she sold them to the evangelist.Based on a true story, Salvation is an evocative and unforgettable saga about stolen innocence that explores the tragic mistakes made by desperate people and the false prophets who exploit their vulnerabilities.
Reviews with the most likes.
Overall, I found this to be an entertaining read. I loved the time period, and the plot was interesting and thought provoking. Finishing the book, I was still of the opinion that Del knew exactly what she was doing when she accepted that envelope. It was only after she realized people would notice and want to know what happened to the girls that she got seller's remorse. Others may have a different opinion, but that was how this reader saw it!
The one issue I had with this book was I just didn't connect with Glory or Willie June at all. I get siblings fight, and not every family is close to each other. However, there seemed to be zero love or compassion between them. Being an older sister myself, I just couldn't understand Willie June's complete lack of caring about what happened to Glory. And I get Glory was a pain in the a$$. But it seemed given half a chance Willie June would have happily left Glory there to save her own butt!
So there were a couple of minor issues here and there, but overall I would definitely recommend this book.
ARC Via NetGalley