"Georgianna, A Virginia Family Saga" by Fay L. Logan
(Brunswick, 2001, , 388 pages, ISBN 1-55618-191-4)
$24.95

Some stories of human survival have a universal appeal, because the characters reach into the depths of their hearts and souls to overcome obstacles like poverty, ill health, isolation, backbreaking workdays, and mistreatment at the hands of other people. Some stories practically tell themselves, the events taking place at a rapid pace, situations suddenly changing for the better or worse, characters reeling from new challenges thrown at them.

Such is the novel, "Georgianna," subtitled "A Virginia Family Saga," whose author is a local resident in her early eighties. Woven into the texture of this multi-generational tale of a woman named Anna and her family are an immense variety of regional and historical details of daily life in the early decades of the 20th century in southwestern Virginia. Lynchburg, Lexington, and Roanoke are all featured, as are mountain farms, foster homes, and vulnerable young girls trying to survive.

There are 97 short chapters, each brimming with details and people. The cover art for the book, done by a granddaughter, is a collage of antique treasures: tinted prints of the Opera House in Paris, a red rose, delicate crochet, pressed petals, satin ribbons, a silver angel pin, old newspaper pages, fragments of old letters, antique jewelry: the stuff of dreams for the characters in the book. The brilliant cover makes the book look like a jewelry box full of such treasures. And, in a sense, it is.

Straightforward, no-nonsense third-person narration moves the story along at a steady pace. There are no frills of literary style here, just solid, page-turning story-telling. Fay Logan has created characters, Anna and her daughter Georgianna in particular, who will remain in your heart long after you have put this poignant novel down. Here is a glimpse into the day-to-day routines of proud, strong, loving women and the world they had to contend with long before life was made easier by modern conveniences of any kind. Here is a novel to give to everyone you want to share southwestern Virginia culture and history with. This is the real thing.

Ibby Greer lives in Rocky Mount, and is the author
of "Moving Day: A Season of Letters."