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In this masterful new novel, set in 1950s North Carolina, the acclaimed author of The Road to Bittersweet and The Education of Dixie Dupree brings to life an unforgettable young heroine and a moving story of family love tested to its limits.
For twelve-year-old Martha "Sonny" Creech, there is no place more beautiful than her family's cotton farm. She, her two brothers, and her parents work hard on their land—hoeing, planting, picking—but only Sonny loves the rich, dark earth the way her father does. When a tragic accident claims his life, her stricken family struggles to fend off ruin—until their rich, reclusive neighbor offers to help finance that year's cotton crop.
Sonny is dismayed when her mama accepts Frank Fowler's offer; even more so when Sonny's best friend, Daniel, points out that the man has ulterior motives. Sonny has a talent for divining water—an ability she shared with her father and earns her the hated nickname "water witch" in school. But uncanny as that skill may be, it won't be enough to offset Mr. Fowler's disturbing influence in her world. Even her bond with Daniel begins to collapse under the weight of Mr. Fowler's bigoted taunts. Though she tries to bury her misgivings for the sake of her mama's happiness, Sonny doesn't need a willow branch to divine that a reckoning is coming, bringing with it heartache, violence—and perhaps, a fitting and surprising measure of justice.
What are you reading this week? And what did you think of last week’s books? (5/7/2026)
...ne yet! Hopefully soon!) In audiobook, I finished https://www.bookbrowse.com/bb_briefs/detail/index.cfm/ezine_preview_number/25853/the-forgiving-kind The Forgiving Kind by Donna Everhart. She's also the author of https://www.bookbrowse.com/bb_briefs/detail/index.cfm/ezine_preview_number/22747/women-of-a-promiscuous-nature Women of a P...
-kim.kovacs
What are you reading this week? And what did you think of last week’s books? (4/30/2026)
...yler. In audiobook format, I'm still listening to https://www.bookbrowse.com/bb_briefs/detail/index.cfm/ezine_preview_number/25853/the-forgiving-kind The Forgiving Kind by Donna Everhart. Next up will be The Little Red Chairs by Edna O'Brien for our 1000 Books Before You Die , which I've decided to read in audiobook format, since it l...
-kim.kovacs
BookBrowsers ask Donna Everhart, author of Women of a Promiscuous Nature
Here is where I'm going to sound like the politically correct parent. :grin: In some way, each of the books holds something special to me. In Dixie Dupree, I think Dixie's voice (as I've talked about) is what makes that book unique. Wallis Ann in The Road to Bittersweet with her survival skills a...
-Donna_Everhart
What are you reading this week? And what did you think of last week’s books? (4/23/2026)
...J. Gaines.) In audiobook format, I'm listening to https://www.bookbrowse.com/bb_briefs/detail/index.cfm/ezine_preview_number/25853/the-forgiving-kind The Forgiving Kind by Donna Everhart in preparation for her visit here next week, although it's looking iffy for me to finish it by the time I speak to her.
-kim.kovacs
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This information about The Forgiving Kind was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Donna Everhart is a USA Today bestselling author who writes stories of family hardship and troubled times in a bygone South. A native of North Carolina, she resides in her home state with her husband and their tiny heart stealing Yorkshire terrier, Mister. Readers can visit her at www.donnaeverhart.com.
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