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There are currently 28 member reviews
for Folly Beach
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Terri H. (Battle Ground, washington)
"'S wonderful ! 'S marvleous !"
"'S wonderful ! 'S marvelous !
(That) You should care for me !
'S awful nice ! 'S paradise !
'S what I love to see!"
The juxtaposition of story lines, the beach air, the sun and the sand, all added to this very delightful summer read. Slightly predictable, but who cares? It's Folly Beach !
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Sharon A. (Tierra Verde, FL)
The Folly of Reading
Initially I found the back & forth between the current story and the play confusing. It caused the reading to be a chore at the beginning. The current story was well written and interesting, it made me want to go to Folly Beach. The character development & interaction was great. At the end I went back and read the beginning and the light bulb came on.
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Debbie S. (Paso Robles, CA)
Good Summer Reading
This story that intertwines the past and the future of residents of Folly Beach, South Carolina is both witty and charming. The characters draw the reader into their lives and the sights and smells of a small beach town seem real.
Not having read Dorothea Benton Frank before, I was pleasantly surprised and will certainly look for other books by this author.
Would be a good read for those looking for a nice, good romance to read.
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Teresa R. (Evansville, IN)
Great read!
While the author's books are always some of my favorites, this book was by far her best. It captured my attention immediately and mixed two of my favorite elements- a little history and a lot of southern! The book tells two stories - one historical and one set in the present. The historical "play" - for lack of a better word - was interesting and thought-provoking. The present story is filled with quirky characters and good dialogue. Loved it!
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Bettyann M. (Davidson, NC)
Folly Beach by Dorothea Benton Frank
Newly widowed Cate Cooper returns to her childhood home in the South Carolina low country to put the pieces of her life back together. She moves into Porgy House, a small cottage in which Dorothy and DuBose Heyward long ago lived and wrote the libretto for Porgy and Bess. In alternating chapters Cate's story unfolds, as does the tale of the Heywards. Fiction is thus intertwined with non-fiction and combines to make a charming story. This is Dorothea Benton Frank at her best. I enjoyed it thoroughly as will, I am sure, all her many fans. This is a lovely, light summer read.
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Karen H. (Auburn, MA)
beach read meets historical fiction
The story sucked me in (to a degree) from two different angles. The saga of Cate's life falling apart and needing to start over is what drew me in as the summer read I was craving. It was light-hearted, dramatic enough to keep me interested, and it featured some fun characters (her love-to-hate daughter-in-law and her quirky aunt). Prior to reading the book, I was not familiar with Porgy and Bess--not at all actually. I felt I was kind of clued in to why it's considered an important play, because Cate brought it up several times, but it still didn't interest me fully. Something a little more along the lines of "mainstream" history would be better, so I could feel a little more connection to it and better appreciate its significance. I, for one, enjoyed the back and forth with the "flashbacks", because it at least tied Dottie and DuBois into the story. The end was disappointing and cheesey.
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Teresa H. (Mechanicsville, VA)
Loved the History but
I received a copy of Folly Beach to review. I had never read anything by Dorothea Benton Frank before but was familiar with her Lowcountry Tales series.
When the book began I had a difficult time following the story line since it jumps back and forth between scenes from a play set during the Charleston Renaissance and the present. Once I got the hang of that I enjoyed the story. I was totally unfamiliar with the Charleston Renaissance and learned quite a bit about that time which I enjoyed. I will certainly look into the history of the Charleston Renaissance before my next trip there.
The present day story opens at the funeral of Cate’s husband. As details of their relationship are revealed it became apparent this was not a great relationship and her husband had been hiding a lot from his family. I found her total lack of awareness a bit unbelievable but soon grew to like her. The story was decent and overall I enjoyed the book mostly because of the history more than the story itself.
