bjkingape 's review for:

Big Stone Gap by Adriana Trigiani

3.75

funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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I went with the flow of this story set in 1978 mountain/ southwest Virginia because the lead character Ave Maria interested me, though she also was frustrating at times. I found the possum-stew, gossipy-women-concerned-with-each-other's-weight, strong-but-equally-stereotyped men tropes to be a little too folksy and Ave Marie to be a little too relationship-clueless.... but nonetheless kept reading. There was strength in her, and it did emerge. Not my usual type of novel but it had its moments.