A family's affairs

This rich, leisurely tale chronicles the lives of three generations in the family of Kate Anderson, a young, genteel southern widow residing in the small Mississippi town of Homochitto. An intimate examination of the significance of family, this novel, Douglas' first, is a statement of how people survive crises not only through their own courage but also through the support of those who cannot turn away from them. The layers of birth, childhood, courtship, marriage, illness, and death - seen through the gradually maturing eyes of Anna, Kate's granddaughter - reveal the tapestry of shared experiences, joys, and sorrows that bond a family and build its history.