The Red Garden is about the town of Blackwell in the mountains of western Massachusetts, founded in 1750. The town was originally called Bearsville. It sits on the banks of the Eel River so called because of the many eels that live in the river.
The book starts out at the town’s founding up until the present day. If you are believer in the power of place and that places can affect people for good or worse and that family traits can survive hundreds of years then this is the book for you. Ms. Hoffman displays her magical touch that submerges the reader in the story and can make the reader aware of magic in their own life. This book has lots of magic: the mysterious red garden of the title, the eels in the river, the bears in the woods, and the mountains outside of town.
This is a great book I give it five stars out of five. Go get it and read it. I found my copy at the library. My tax dollars at work.
Okay, so call me ‘thick as a brick’ but I take it that Blackwell is a fictitious place, and the only Eel River I know of in MA is near Plymouth.
Guess I’ll have to read the book!
☼ Sunny
Sounds interesting. I fell in love with Alice Hoffman when I read Turtle Moon.
Wow! You haven’t given very many books a 5 out of 5 so it MUST be good. I should go ahead and download it on my kindle! =)
I love Alice Hoffman and her magical realism – I’ve been reading her for years and years. I’ll see if I can get this one on my Kindle. I look your book reviews.
OK, I’m off to the library!! I, too, look forward to your book reviews! Hope your week is going well!
Sylvia
I love it when my library has a book I want to read. I wonder if this book is there! I’m writing it down in my to-read list. 🙂
Sounds like a great book! It’s on my Amazon Wish List :).
I once read Here on Earth and loaned it to several friends, all of whom really liked it.
I have a list a mile long…
Did you see my post at TPS about Isabel Allende’s book Aphrodite? I wish I was good at HTML but I never know how to do it easily.
I hope you guys are surviving winter!