A Foggy Day at Lake Willastein

By Pam Rudkin
The Weight of Blood
by Laura McHugh
lot of us have
had the surre-
A
al experience
from time
to time of reading a
good book, only to
discover its setting is
a familiar one: either
it’s your hometown
or somewhere with
which you are intimately
familiar. The
Weight of Blood by Laura
McHugh is set in my neck
of the woods, the Ozarks,
and tells the gripping story
of a teenager’s quest to unravel
the mystery behind her
friend’s disappearance and
subsequent murder.
McHugh sets her characters
in this vivid southern
Missouri/north central Arkansas
setting with its alltoo
familiar hot and humid
summers, dense woods,
whisper of superstition,
and mountain people love
deeply and carry shotguns.
While the main character,
The Mothers
by Brit Bennett
Lucy, digs into clues she has stumbled upon
about her friend Cheri’s murder, an undercurrent
is slowly being revealed about a dark secret
of these seemingly friendly folk involving
human trafficking. Lucy’s own mother had
disappeared without a trace when Lucy was
a baby. Now suddenly a trail begins to form
that might explain what happened to her
mother as well.
Those closest to Lucy prize and protect
family, loyalty, and secrets. But those secrets
turn out to be deadly, illegal, and deeply disturbing.
The author expertly weaves in the
darkest of these secrets amid fierce love and
devotion, as Lucy risks her own life to learn
the truth about her mother and her friend.
Placing your ad in Maumelle Magazine
guarantees you an attentive audience!
January/February 2017
38
The word “mothers” within this story is
somewhat of a double (and arguably even
triple) entendre; first referring to the elderly
ladies of a small-town church, the widows
and voices of wisdom (and gossip); two girls
who experience motherhood very early, in
two very different ways; and
finally, the absence of mothers
for the story’s two main
characters, Nadia and Aubrey.
Nadia is 17 years old,
finds herself pregnant by the
pastor’s son, and alone with
her father. Her mother has
recently committed suicide,
breaking her heart and breaking
her world.
Aubrey has come to Upper
Room Chapel as a young
woman on her own, looking
for solace and stability in her
life. Her mother looked the other way when
Aubrey was molested by her stepfather, and
Aubrey fled to live with her older sister in a
new town.
Both girls are damaged and hurting, and
both girls find their lives deeply connected
to the Upper Room Chapel, and then to each
other as best friends.
This evangelical church openly condemns
abortion, but when Nadia’s boyfriend
confides in his parents that she is pregnant,
Pastor Turner and his wife swiftly and quietly
give him the cash to pay for Nadia’s abortion.
They also give Nadia a job at the church
and never acknowledge their
part in the abortion. Nadia believes
her boyfriend, Luke, has
come up with the money on
his own. Her heart is further
crushed when he doesn’t even
show up at the abortion clinic
the day of the procedure.
Aubrey’s entanglement
with the Turners takes a different
turn, when she becomes
involved with Luke herself,
not knowing about his past
with Nadia. Aubrey and Nadia
forge a friendship outside of
these betrayals, and the full weight of the
matter doesn’t surface until Aubrey has married
Luke and become pregnant with their
first baby.
This is a strong story of female bonding,
of betrayal, of youthful indiscretion, and of
hypocrisy and failure in the face of real testing.
The “mothers” of the church narrate the
story at times, giving the reader the outsidelooking-in
viewpoint. Bennett beautifully
illustrates humanity and youth, flawed and
naïve, and the strength to be found in mothering
itself.
Both books are available to read free in
multiple formats through the Central Arkansas
Library System. Happy reading!
Both of these books are available to enjoy
free with your library card through the Central
Arkansas Library System. Happy reading!MM
am Rudkin is the librarian for the Maumelle Library, a branch of the
P Central Arkansas Library System. She is a graduate of Texas Woman’s
University, where she earned her Master of Library Science degree. Rudkin
grew up in Harrison, Arkansas and continued her education at the University of
Central Arkansas where she earned her bachelor’s degree in journalism.
Pam is married and is the mother of three children. Her interests include
reading and music composition.
• 9,750 mailed directly to all households and businesses in zip code 72113
• Ad positioning for maximum visibility
• Devoted following and attentive audience
Reserve your Ad Space Today!
501.960.6077
Adverts@MauMag.com
MauMag.com
www.MauMag.com
39