A Good Neighborhood is an engrossing read that deals with current issues like racism and environmentalism, and Therese Anne Fowler vividly depicts these kinds of conflicts that currently divide people in North America. The trouble that erupts between Valerie Alston-Holt, a black single-mother and ecology professor, and Brad Whitman, a white businessman who builds a house that damages Valerie’s beloved oak tree, encompasses many of the arguments of the left versus the right. With the use of the neighborhood, Fowler initially seemed to be asking how such people can live together when there is so much hurt and disagreement, which is a very timely question. I think, though, that I may have placed too much importance on this aspect of the novel, and I'm not sure it actually was a central theme Fowler tried to address. Ultimately, I think such a question requires a very nuanced approach, one that seemed clearly lacking by the end of the book. It’s hard to explain this without giving away too much, but the characterization sometimes felt like caricature. For example, some of the characters spoke in ways that felt more like talking-points than authentic dialogue. This approach to characterization led the plot away from the theme I thought I saw at the beginning. Personally, I would have preferred to see Fowler tackle the question of how we come together rather than reinforcing divisions. Perhaps, though, acknowledgement of our different lived experiences is part of what will ultimately help us to come together, and this book is certainly a good examination of people who have societal privilege versus those who don’t. It’s also an entertaining read that could make for an interesting book club choice, and I really enjoyed reading it.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I feel like this novel will be a bestseller once it hits the market! It has everything in a novel you want to read about. I think what I loved most about this book is because it is definitely set apart from other books I have been reading lately. I felt so immersed in the story, and it made me open my eyes to see things I don't usually pay attention to in my every day life. If you are looking for your next read, then here it is!!

This book stood out because of the unusual point of view it is written in. It’s written in second person - you don’t see many of those - with a group of neighbors relating the story. And this is part of what makes the book so good – the author writes things like “we all thought this was the worst it could be, but then we realized we were wrong – it could be worse” and other comments that made you want to keep reading!

I had a difficult time predicting what would happen at the end – the book kept me guessing! The only part of the book I wasn’t happy with, though, was the end – it felt sort of rushed and the reader really didn’t have time to process it all before it was over.

Thanks so much to Netgalley for providing this ARC for me! I will be interested to see how other readers rate this one.

I had a lot of feelings about this book, which seems intentional. The author states in the novel that it is a cautionary tale, and it reads in some ways in the ways that cautionary tales from childhood read. Clear definitions of right and wrong, outsized bad guys, and that horrible, sinking pit in your stomach at the hint of climax for the book. These characteristics could work really well for some readers, but to me, it didn't.

A few things I enjoyed: when the novel was from the perspective of "the neighbors", it shone. That omniscient 'we' reminded me of THE MOTHERS (which I adored), but the perspective varied a bit too widely and lost oomph for me because of it.

This seems, in some places, to be a book to read in a group to affirm, "Yes, we believe in" xyz (environmentalism, fighting racism, questioning the patriarchy, women working outside the home), and I can see how it will make great discussions at book clubs, but there were so many themes here that it felt forced at times.

Again, your mileage may very. I enjoyed Z, and can see how this book might work really well for some readers, but it didn't strike the right chord with me.

Thank you to NetGalley, who offered me an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

A tremendous, innovative, gorgeous novel about, race, class, environment and oh yeah, young love, complete with a Greek chorus of neighbors. Fowler is a master.

A good neighborhood can be found anywhere, but by locating it in North Carolina in an established area in a somewhat liberal atmosphere (I'm thinking Chapel Hill since a university comes into play), Fowler has introduced southern sensibility. There have been other novels using the second person omniscient "Greek chorus" method of narration, but here it's done extremely effectively particularly since the story holds Greek tragedy mythos. Enough has been said about content in previous reviews, but Fowler has incorporated heroic themes treated in contemporary terms and made them relatable. I wasn't completely happy with the resolution, but the writing was fine and the execution exceptional.

Valerie, an African American widow and college professor lives with her biracial son Xavier in a small town in North Carolina. Xavier is a classical guitar player with a scholarship to a prestigious college in San Francisco. When a new family guts the house next door and destroys the underlying ecology, Valerie reacts while the son forges a relationship with the new family's daughter.
The story is told by unknown neighbor narrators with their own views. While the narration adds to the suspense, it's distracting and makes the story almost too intense, which is why I rated the book as a 4 instead of a 5. Otherwise, the story does a good job of describing current problems in today's society involving income disparities, stepchildren, sudden wealth, biracial families, and problems peculiar to the south.
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This story was not what I was expecting! Enjoyed reading it and I enjoyed the author’s style.
There were a few typos but I realize I was reading an uncorrected digital copy.

Absolutely stunning. Emotional. Thought provoking. 5 stars.
A good neighborhood took me on a true emotional roller coaster. White privilege, meets racial profiling in a idyllic North Carolina town. This book made my blood boil and my heart weep chapter after chapter. I had to physically put the book down repeatedly, take a breather and regroup from what I was reading. The abrupt and horrifying ending was not what I expected and I am crushed for what could have been.

A new family moves to town and a disagreement over a tree yields tragic results.

Compelling storytelling combined with contemporary topics of class, race, and environmental concerns make this story a sure bet. It's told from the point of view of the combined group of neighbors which adds a gossipy tone and invites readers into the chatter even as it turns more and more tragic. This will be on our suggestions for book clubs for sure! Lots to talk about.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a ARC of this book, this story focuses on a lot of strong topics and family dynamics I did enjoy the parts that I understand. The writing style was a little different for me but the ending and the characters were really good to me.

Well written story that was definitely written for these sad times. Ms Fowler's book always are contemporary no matter what.

This book broke my heart. The reader can tell within the first few pages that something terrible is going to happen and Fowler unwinds the story with enormous skill and compassion for all of the characters involved. Her characters are so true to life that I felt that I knew them. And she deftly handles the intersection of race, privilege and community to show us truths and that we all should know, but frequently do not recognize because we are all stuck in our own experiences and points of view. I am so glad she wrote A GOOD NEIGHBORHOOD. It filled me with so much emotion that I had to set it aside from time to time so I wouldn't be overwhelmed. Masterful.

Oak Knoll is a neighborhood beginning to gentrify when the Whitmans buy a property, tear down the existing house and have an enormous house and pool built. Still, the neighborhood welcomes them warily, even when Brad Whitman assumes a neighbor is the lawn boy, up until it becomes clear that a neighbor's beloved oak has been fatally injured by the construction work and a neighborhood boy becomes involved with the oldest Whitman girl.

This is a novel with a lot going on. The Whitmans are a blended family, with Brad being a stepfather to Juniper and a father to Lily, the younger daughter. In an effort to provide stability, they attended a church that was fairly fundamentalist in it's teachings about a woman's role and as a result, Juniper and Brad went through a "purity ceremony" where she pledged to remain chaste and to not date. There's also the assumption that she won't need a university education. While they have more than enough money to pay for her to go to college anywhere, she's expected to live at home until she marries, after which she won't need to work. Juniper mainly agrees to this, but when she meets a neighborhood boy, she begins to adjust her thinking, going so far as to want to go to university and at least move out of the family home once she graduates.

Meanwhile, ecology professor Valerie Alston-Holt, who teaches at the local university and is a prominent figure in the neighborhood, is heart-broken that her oak has been damaged by the builders illegally working too near the tree, and takes action, even as her college-bound son falls in love.

A Good Neighborhood is a fast-paced novel where a lot is happening. It's melodramatic and full of plot. It's also more than a little heavy-handed as the author makes sure that the reader understands each point she's making. Fowler uses the neighborhood as a greek chorus, writing in the first person plural to make the deeper issue clear to the reader. For the most part, it works, although since the plot makes these points on its own, it's often repetitious. And the story itself is so predictable, with each character doing exactly what they are supposed to do from their first introduction. This book would work well for a book club that enjoys discussing issues as so many different ones are raised by this book. But subtle it is not.

In a gentrifying North Carolina neighborhood, the clash between new and old has deadly consequences. Professor Valerie Alston-Holt has lived in Oak Knoll for decades. It's where she raised her son Xavier, who is off to college soon. But things go horribly wrong when her new neighbors, the Whitmans, move in. Brad Whitman's monstrosity of a house damages the root system of Valerie's precious oak tree, an unforgivable offense in Valerie's eyes. Yet despite the differences in race, class and lifestyles, Xavier falls in love with Whitman's stepdaughter.

I must say, Fowler is an excellent writer. For the most part, her characters shine through and she draws you in with the power of her storytelling. Normally, A Good Neighborhood would be a solid four stars for me, except two points keep nagging at me. First, Brad Whitman's character felt a bit contrived and too heavy-handed. Serving as the antagonist, he didn't have enough nuance and felt like a caricature. Secondly, the ending left me so downtrodden. After all that, what was the point? Usually I'm all about sad endings, but this one felt like too much, maybe because in all its hopelessness, it rang as too realistic. I can see why other people will give it 4 or 5 stars, but only 3.5 stars from me.

Huh. Strange writing style. I really enjoyed the parts that were written in the third person. But the constant strange Greek chorus? Not so much. Not at sure why anyone thought this was a good idea. It was a distraction and an interruption to an otherwise excellent story. Thumbs sideways?

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC. Opinions are honest and my own.

"Trees are life. Not just my life, … but life, period."

As this story begins, set in a neighborhood populated by modest homes built when the boys who fought in World War II returned home to a housing boon in the rapidly growing suburban developments. A neighborhood in North Carolina, these many years later, by now established. That is, until a new family, the Whitmans, build a new, far more upscale, sprawling house next door to Valerie Alston-Holt. Valerie is a black female professor of forestry and ecology, and her son, Xavier, is 18, bi-racial, and poised to head off to SF Conservatory of Music to study music – his passion.

The Whitman family, technically Mrs. Whitman, has a 17-year old daughter, Juniper. Brad Whitman is a narcissistic, self-made man who left college in his first year to build an HVAC company from the ground up at a propitious time and has built a certain reputation in the area, working closely with key local political figures. He knows how to schmooze, and is used to getting his way. Brad is white, as are his wife and family.

When a tree that borders both of their properties begins to show signs of dying, Valerie knows it is due to the process of building the Whitman’s house, and takes legal steps. Meanwhile, Juniper and Xavier are taking steps of their own, but in another direction.

This story unfolds slowly through the voice of the omniscient narrator, as though the town itself is telling this tale, which I loved. It covers multiple current, and some longstanding, topics. Racism, the division of people by “class,” love in all its varying forms, and privilege. Sex, as well as sexual violence, as well. Yet, it never felt as though it was a “statement,” more that it was a reflection of the times in which we live.

This is the first of Therese Anne Fowler’s books that I’ve read, so I can’t compare it to any others by her, but I loved her strong female characters, and the social issues that she examines in this one, subtly reminding us of the continuing problems, but it was how the story was shared that kept me completely under her spell.



Pub Date: 04 Feb 2020


Many thanks for the ARC provided by St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley

I love when a book is relevant, dealing with present day’s big issues. A Good Neighborhood, is exactly that! The author had me hooked; I didn’t put this book down until I was finished. I felt many emotions, enjoyed the characters, and felt like it was relatable to 2019.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the Kindle ARC of A Good Neighborhood by Therese Anne Fowler. What a timely book this is - interracial relationships, racism, step-families and potential child molestation. Two families, whose homes back up to each other, start their relationship on very tentative terms. Valerie, a middle-aged widow, is raising her mixed race son, Xavier, alone. The Whitmans move into a McMansion that was built directly behind Valerie. Brad Whitman is a successful local business owner, with his wife, Julie, her daughter Juniper, from a previous relationship, and Brad and Julia's younger daughter. Brad is a "family man" - churchgoer and a misogynist. He rescued Julia and Juniper several years ago from a life of poverty and rarely lets Julia forget it. Brad is a racist and bully, all under the guise of a happily married man. He lusts after Juniper and seething when she begins a friendship with Xavier. The tension continues until Valerie files a lawsuit against Brad and the builder for killing one of her large trees with the construction and Brad connives in order to find a way to take revenge, unfortunately, involving Xavier. A Good Neighborhood is a very compulsive read. The characters are real and the subject matter revolves around many current issues - racism, interracial dating, neighborhood tension and bad marriages. Ms. Fowler's story is sad and tense and her writing is a great example of some of the great fiction available right now.

My favorite thing about this novel is that it is told from the point of view of the people in the neighborhood. It reminds me of the short story A Rose for Emily in that sense.

A good neighborhood. The people are kind, and get along. The homes are nice, but modest, Xavier, a smart kid with a future ahead as a classical guitarist, lives there with his mother. Everything seems idyllic until the new family moves in. They use their money and clout to bypass some of the building rules and build the nicest home on the block. Their construction, however, damages the roots of the ancient and beloved tree of their next-door neighbor, Xavier and his mother. This begins a bit of a family feud that takes the form of a lawsuit.

Meanwhile, Xavier falls for the girl next door, the stepdaughter of the wealthy man who has destroyed the tree. When her stepfather finds out, he tries to use this to his advantage.

Here is what I like about this novel: the narrator, the storytelling, and the different points of view. It also raises some interesting discussions about interracial relationships, the power of money, and women's ownership of their bodies and sexuality.

Here is what I didn't love: the ending, but only because it is very sad. The book itself is great, just get the tissues out for the last few pages.