Big Lies in a Small Town by Diane Chamberlain

Big Lies in a Small Town was the May Book Club selection for the Kewaunee Library Book Club.  I didn’t know what to expect when I started reading this novel, but I quickly was absorbed into the story and couldn’t put it down!

2018

Morgan Christopher’s dream of becoming an artist is derailed when she is jailed for a drunk driving accident.  She is released from jail under special circumstances that include that she must restore an old post office mural from the 1930s.  An artist that she had idolized has somehow selected her for this project to rehabilitate herself.  He left very specific instructions in his will.  Why was she selected for this project?  As she works on the mural, she uncovers all sorts of mysteries painted into the mural.  What happened to the original artist?

1940 

Anna Dale is an artist from new Jersey.  She is very excited to win a national contest to paint a mural for the post office in Denton, North Carolina.  Anna’s mother has recently died, and she needs to make her way alone in the world.  As she gets to know people in Denton and begins on her project, she discovers prejudices and secrets hidden in the town.  Why does her work get erratic?  What happened to her after she finished?  Why was her work never displayed in the post office?

This book was fascinating!  I didn’t really know much about the painting of post office murals and I enjoyed the history of it.  We have a mural here in the City of Kewaunee that I enjoy looking at in the post office.  I really enjoyed the mystery.  Both timelines were equally engaging.  My other book club members enjoyed this book as well.

I also liked the look into racial issues of the time.  In particular there is a great scene where Anna visits an African American student, Jesse, who is helping her with the mural.  “As soon as she pulled into the long driveway of the white, two-story farmhouse, she knew her expectations had been wrong.”  I like how she got to know people and learned not to make assumptions based on race.

Favorite Quotes:

“The children knew it was finally spring, so although the air still held the nip of winter and the grass and weeds crunched beneath their feet, they ran through the field and woods, yipping with the anticipation of warmer weather.”  Great first line and it gets even better!

“You have to make peace with the past or you can never move into the future.”

Overall, Big Lies in a Small Town is an engaging novel with a great dual time narrative.

Book Source:  Kewaunee Public Library.  Thank-you!