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Full of Grace

Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available

The rich atmosphere of South Carolina, both Hilton Head and Charleston, is brought vividly to life by Dorothea Benton Frank, a South Carolina native who, with her exquisitely evocative prose, makes you smell the sea air, see the palmettos, and savor the sweet tea, but this time it comes with a side of antipasti.

Hilton Head, South Carolina. Retirement heaven — at least it's supposed to be, but for Big Al and Connie, the move from New Jersey to this southern paradise has been fraught with just a few complications. Especially for their daughter, Grace.

Well, that's what she likes to be called. Her family insists on Maria Graziella. Seriously, enough with the Neopolitan. That might have been okay in New Jersey but now it's just plain silly and Grace at thirty-one is, horror of horrors, still unmarried. No wonder her family drives her crazy. Well, that and the fact that she's living with the man she would marry if they both weren't so commitment phobic. Michael is a doctor and a scientist and Grace has a good idea that he's also an atheist. Over the years, Grace has become a bit ambivalent about her faith but her family is as old-fashioned Italian as they get. The stage is set for a major showdown that might just change Grace's outlook on life, family, and the new South.

Performed by Susan Bennett

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    • AudioFile Magazine
      Charleston resident Marcia Graziella, or Grace, is anything but a Southern belle. Transplanted to the South from an Italian New Jersey neighborhood, Grace is full of spunk and irreverence, which tax her family. Susan Bennett reads with the same cheekiness and boldness demonstrated by Grace's rejection of her family's Catholic values. Bennett does equally well narrating the character of Michael, Grace's live-in Southern partner, as he fights a brain tumor. Full of traditional family dynamics, as well as a dose of miracles, Frank's novel is deeply spiritual. Bennett's adept handling of the aspects of faith and humor produces an entertaining and thought-provoking listening experience. H.L.S. (c) AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine
    • AudioFile Magazine
      In the tones of a brash Jersey girl whose voice has been tempered with an acquired Southern drawl, Susan Bennett portrays this novel's title character, Grace. Now retired in Hilton Head, South Carolina, she's the daughter of a traditional Italian family who can't forgive her for living with and not marrying her longtime love. While caring for him during his treatment for a brain tumor and defending herself against her loud, self-absorbed father, her devoutly Catholic and put-upon mother, and her old-world grandmother, Grace discovers her own spirituality. Despite the drama inherent in the struggles between mother and daughter, Bennett often speaks in a quiet and reflective tone. The technique works and is mesmerizing when Grace consults the parish priest about her troubles. E.V.B. (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine

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  • English

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