A Good Neighborhood: A Novel Hardcover – March 10, 2020

One of the most engrossing books I have read in a while. So well written, with such an interesting take on perspective, it really was great.The book is a modern Romeo & Juliet about two lovers with families who don't get along. Add racial lines, a bit of look into socio-economic dysfunction and the difference between progressive and conservative takes on situations, it really covers everything going on in the US in the last ten years in a quick volume.  It is not insensitive or prejudice against any viewpoint, though the father character, Brad fairs terribly and seems to get off scot-free. Such would be his position in the world though. The ending is typical, and therefore sad and reflective, you really want some redemption somewhere in there, but there is none. The chapters are a bit choppy, but it is an obvious and deliberate choice given the perspective the book is told from.It seems to have been well compiled, and it is well written.

A contemporary setting in a North Carolina neighborhood where the trees are older than the homes and the residents seem to have been there forever. They care for one another. They are in book clubs together. They know each other’s children. They’re tight. When bulldozers come in and build McMansions right up next to their property and bring their attitudes with them, well, that might not get you a ‘welcome to the neighborhood.’ This is Therese Anne Fowler’s novel A GOOD NEIGHBORHOOD.Valerie, a widow, with a soon-to-leave-the-nest teenage son, is content in her happy home, complete with dear friends and a long-distance relationship, until her life feels suddenly uprooted when the new people move in next door and their house encroaches on the livelihood of her beloved tree.Meet the neighbors. Self-proclaimed celebrity Brad buys ads like he’s running for office to showcase his successful HVAC business, further endearing himself to the town residents and beyond. His shark-like ways are yet to be revealed. He and his wife, teenage stepdaughter, and youngest, are moving into a showcase home.What separates the new neighbors – a big, beautiful, old oak tree. The backdrop of Val’s life. Just as you count the rings to determine a tree’s life, she measures her memories by its grandeur.The tree plays a pivotal role both physically and emotionally. As it fades, romance blossoms. A warning is ignored. Young minds that should be flourishing, left to fend for themselves. Are mistakes that adults made doomed to be repeated?Evil lurks and racism is looming. Yes, even in a good neighborhood.Outrage, distressing, thought-provoking issues that you can’t turn away from. Fowler forces us to face the real world in her book and gives us a powerful story to carry us through.

MAY 2020 : 5 STARS. In a tight-knit North Carolina neighborhood, professor of forestry and ecology Valerie Alston-Holt is raising her bright and talented biracial son, Xavier, who's headed to college in the Fall. All is well until the Whitmans, a family with new money and a secretly troubled teenage daughter, build a house next door.Thanks to a friend "gottapeanow" who gave it "5 explosive stars; a book she'll never forget". I totally agree! Enjoyed the writing style from the point of view of an outside storyteller. The author really brings you into the neighborhood. A few points of view or actions I totally disagreed with but I appreciated how they were presented. Definitely a morally challenging book that touched on numerous hard topics. Definitely a book that brought out all my emotions and, even though I was disappointed in the lack of punishment for one character, this story will stick with me for a long time. Loved the author's storytelling ability.

Hate to say it, but I was not feeling this book. I know, it's a very unpopular opinion but I just did not love it. I was torn between giving it 2.5 and 3 stars but decided to go with 2.5 rounded to 3. Take my almost <b>3 Star</b> rating with a grain of salt, I'm in the minority.<b>SUMMARY</b>This is sort of a Romeo and Juliet-ish story, if Juliet had an egotistical, pervy stepdad and Romeo had a tree hugging mom. The story is told in 3rd person from the POV of, I think, the neighborhood. The narrator gave it sort of a bedtime story feel, which I am sure a lot of people appreciated, but I did not.An established neighborhood of predominantly 1950's smallish ranch style houses with treed yards and a lot of long term residents had become popular for builders seeking a place to tear down houses and build their McMansions. The Whitmans, a <i>new money</i> family, built a very showy house next door to the Alston-Holt family's small 1950 's ranch style house. In doing so, they crushed the roots of Valerie Alston-Holt's beloved tree, causing it to decline and begin dying.Not only was there the tree incident, but the children, virginal white girl, Juniper and artistic biracial Xavier, met and fell for each other. Neither set of parents were in support of this relationship. For one thing, Juniper was not allowed to date since she had entered into a <i>purity pledge</i> when she was 14 which not only assured her virginity until marriage, but basically bound her to her stepdad until she found a man to marry who would all but own her. It feels like they took a time machine back to the 1800's to arrange this set up. For his part, Xavier was headed off to a prestigious college in the fall to study classical guitar and his mother didn't want him to get side tracked with a inconsequential girl. THEN to make matters even worse, Valerie decided to sue the Whitman's for an exorbitant amount of money over the death of her special tree. As I said before, there was definitely a Romeo and Juliet vibe going on. As you can imagine, Juniper and Xavier's path to true love was not an easy path.<b>WHAT I LOVED</i>The book had some significant moments of truth and beauty. I loved the story Xavier told Juniper about his best day ever. And, occasionally, I could see both sides of the story.I liked Juniper's little sister Lily. She was comic relief and the only person in the story, aside from maybe Pepper, who I never had an issue with.The story was compelling enough that, even though I was pretty over it, I managed to skim the last third because I wanted to see how it would end.<i>WHAT I DIDN'T LOVE</i>I felt like the characters were caricatures drawn from stereotypes. Most of the men were predatory and since they were white and southern, they were bourbon drinking, back slapping, back-door-dealing racists. With the exception, or course of Tom, but he died young so he was just a memory. Not a single (alive) adult man was a decent human. Brad in particular was a caricature, he was the <i>vilian</i> in every imaginable way. It's hard to believe anyone would actually push their own when as recklessly and unrelentingly as he did.It annoyed me that Valerie was so far removed from reality that she actually valued the tree over having a relationship with her neighbors AND made it clear to the rest of the neighborhood that they would have to choose her side, remaining neutral was not an option. She couldn't have had a conversation with them before blindsiding them with the lawsuit? And she was dumb enough to think that they would remain civil and maybe even thank her later for showing them the <i>light</i>? Seriously?Then the whole teenage love thing? Did Xavier really think his end decision was the way to resolve the situation? Really? And Juniper allowed the situation to get so out of control, she couldn't even speak her mind when her stepfather was not in the room?? Just tragically annoying and convoluted. And don't even get me started on Julia. It's ridiculous to think you can make a teenager never date anyone. And what the heck did she think she was doing trying to keep Julia from going to college? Is this 1920 or 2020? Such weak characters.And why did the book keep acting like there was a major class difference in favor of the Whitmans when Julia had never even finished high school and Valerie had a PhD. Money is only part of the equation, it made me want to roll my eyes constantly.<b>OVERALL</b>I was pretty unimpressed. I was expecting a lot since I had enjoyed both of Therese Ann Fowlers other books, <i>Z is for Zelda</i> and <i>A Well Behaved Woman</i>. Who knows, being in quarantine waiting to see if the world will actually fall apart may not have the best time for me to read this book. Maybe I would have liked it better at a different time.

great read

A great book. Thought provoking and well written!