Under the Tulip Tree

July 13, 2020
Shocklee (The Women of Rose Hill) grapples with the legacy of slavery in this rousing yet uneven inspirational romance. Sixteen-year-old Rena Leland’s comfortable life as the daughter of a prominent banker in Nashville is uprooted by the stock market crash of 1929. Seven years later, with her father suffering from alcoholism and her mother toiling in a sewing shop, Rena accepts a job with Roosevelt’s Federal Writers Project. She’s assigned to interview and transcribe the stories of former slaves, and her first encounter is with 101-year-old Frankie Washington, a resident of Hell’s Half Acre, one of Nashville’s poorest neighborhoods. The narrative switches between the 1930s and Frankie’s account of her life in 1842, when she endured horrendous acts of cruelty and dehumanization. Rena and Frankie form a strong bond that spans generational, racial, and socioeconomic divides until a twist of fate (or, as Frankie would view it, divine intervention) tests their friendship after Rena learns their two families may be intimately connected. While Rena’s evolution is inspiring, Frankie’s heart-wrenching sections feature an awkward balance of introspection and colloquialisms that often distracts from the narrative. Shocklee elevates the redemptive power of remorse and the grace of forgiveness in this moving saga.

Starred review from September 1, 2020

The Leland family's fortunes fell with the stock market crash in 1929, and sheltered teenager Lorena Leland must go to work to support her family. Out of desperation, she accepts a job in Nashville, interviewing individuals who were formerly enslaved, for the Federal Writer's Project. Her first interviewee is Frankie Washington, a spry 101-year-old who has vivid memories of growing up enslaved and of the Civil War that set her free. As they meet in Frankie's tiny house in a less than desirable part of town known as Hell's Acres, Lorena's eyes are opened to the injustice of slavery and to the still-present racial divide in her own time and place. The more the old Black woman and the young white woman talk, the more each understands about the other's experience-and her own. VERDICT Shocklee (The Planter's Daughter) beautifully unveils Frankie's past while developing Lorena's awareness of inequality. Though set years ago, this title resonates today, as many struggle with the same issues and questions of racial reconciliation. With its haunting message of forgiveness, this is a must-buy for any Christian or historical fiction collection.--Christine Barth, Scott Cty. Lib. Syst., IA

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