Sunday, September 28, 2014

SABBATH SNAPSHOT : hometown partiali-TEA

Lisa Patton's "Dixie" series books are not exactly "high-brow" literature. Chick-lit might be a more appropriate label. But....folks who grew up in Memphis, will find lots of references to places they once frequented, Justine's, being one. Readers with an Ole Miss connection, will find that Patton has her finger on the pulse of tailgating in "The Grove" as football fans gather early for the Rebels traditional "Walk Through the Grove" 2 hours before kick-off the 3rd book in the series.!

Patton also puts a little south in the mouth of her characters, that folks north of the Mason-Dixon might have a little trouble interpreting. 
For a fluff, predictable read, Patton keeps it clean, which is rare these days. In Whistlin' Dixie in a Nor-easter, (#1) protagonist Leelee Satterfield, is a southern belle in who more than once has to draw on her southern grit, while maintaining her manners when her life seems to go awry at an inn in Vermont.  Yankee Doodle Dixie's (#2) rating is not quite as high as her debut book & finds LeeLee back in Memphis. Southern as a Second Language (#3) has LeeLee and her girls with Kissie, who raise her and continues to "watch out for her" as LeeLee frequents more places in Memphis----Central BBBQ, Rachel's Flowers and St. John's Episcopal to name a few. 
Ms Patton grew up in Memphis and now lives in Franklin, so she knows her subject. So if your drawn to an easy read set in Memphis with flashbacks to the 60s as well as more recent times, these books might fit your bill.