Kelsey Ronan

Had August Molloy not returned from the dead that morning in Detroit, the Molloy family line would've ended in the bathroom of a farm-to-table restaurant midway through lunch service.

And so opens this novel about August and how he moved back to Flint and met Monae at a small urban farm near the old General Motors plant. It's also a novel about earlier Molloys living in Flint during the sit-down strike in the thirties at that same plant and during the unrest of the sixties. These other storylines are given much less space than the one that follows August and Monae and despite this, much of the most interesting parts of their story happens between chapters. This is Kelsey Ronan's first novel and it shows. What is also evident is the author's real affection for Flint and her deep knowledge of local history, factors that make this book worth reading.… (meer)

This was an excellent debut novel from an author who clearly loves her hometown. It's unflinchingly Flint, not focusing on the hardships and tragedy that so many Flintstones experience, but not glossing over those experiences either. The historic scenes blended cinematically with the contemporary story, not quite fades, but connections on a theme. There was also an underlying perseverance between the various characters that embodies the city.

I only knocked it down to four stars because there were a few jumpy moments when I wasn't quite sure where the story was.… (meer)