Swan Place

The author of Sophie and the Rising Sun "streamlines her rich Southern style and creates a narrative as delicate as a line drawing" ( USA Today ) A series of family tragedies leaves fourteen-year-old Dove, her younger sister, Molly, and their baby brother, Little Ellis, in the care of their stepmother, seventeen-year-old Crystal. Born into a hardscrabble world of poverty and abandonment, Dove must take on much of the responsibility for her siblings after Crystal turns to their Bible-thumping Aunt Bett for help. When Molly's deadbeat blood father threatens to bring a custody suit, Crystal and Dove flee with the children to a secret refuge called Swan Place, where they meet a group of devout Black women who transform their lives in unusual and profound ways. "Fourteen-year-old Dove, born into a hardscrabble world of poverty and abandonment, forced to become wise beyond her years by life's tough breaks. A series of family tragedies leaves Dove, her younger sister, Molly, and their baby brother, Little Ellis, in the care of their stepmother, seventeen-year-old Crystal. Overwhelmed by raising three orphaned children on her own, Crystal turns to their Bible-thumping Aunt Bett, and Dove herself takes on much of the responsibility for looking after her siblings. But the fragile new household is disrupted when Molly's deadbeat blood father threatens to bring a custody suit. Determined to keep the family together, Crystal and Dove flee with the children to a secret refuge called Swan Place. It is here that the emerging woman Dove meets a group of devout Black women who transform her life - and the lives of her family - in unusual and profound ways."--BOOK JACKET. "[Augusta Trobaugh] streamlines her rich Southern style and creates a narrative as delicate as a line drawing" - USA Today

Dove, Molly, Little Ellis and Crystal are runaways with nowhere to turn and no one they can trust until they arrive at a secret sanctuary called Swan Place, where they are taken under wing by a remarkable group of women.

"Both inspirational and down-to-earth." - Publishers Weekly

"The powers of religion, family, and love work together to combat racism while offering hope." ~ Library Journal

"A touching story of people finding sanctuary and kindness in unlikely places when they need it most." - Booklist

Augusta Trobaugh is the author of acclaimed southern novels including Music From Beyond the Moon, The Tea-Olive Bird Watching Society, Sophie and the Rising Sun, Resting in the Bosom of the Lamb, and Praise Jerusalem!

"Dove, Molly, Little Ellis and Crystal are runaways with nowhere to turn and no one they can trust until they arrive at a secret sanctuary called Swan Place, where they are taken under wing by a remarkable group of women."--P. [4] of cover