The Wednesday Daughters

One of my favorite books from the past decade is The Wednesday Sisters by Meg Waite Clayton. The Wednesday Sisters is a "coming of age" novel, set against a backdrop of the late 1960s, Civil Rights, Women’s Movement, and Vietnam War protests, that chronicles the friendship of five women who live in California. Fast forward nearly thirty years and The Wednesday Daughters continues the story with the next generation of friends.

The first chapter of the book was like meeting an old friend and I remembered why I loved The Wednesday Sisters years ago:

"We Wednesday Daughters weren't born on Wednesdays, and we aren't blood relations. We don't gather to write at picnic tables like our mothers did.  We're just daughters of friends who've called themselves "Wednesday Sisters" since before I was born, daughters who became friends ourselves the way girls who grow up together sometimes do, whether they have much in common or not."

Set in the Lake District of the United Kingdom, Hope, Anna Page and Julie travel to the UK to retreat after the death of Hope's mother and other collective and individual sorrows.  The sisters have learned life is not easy and sometimes retreats and friendships are needed in order to face an uncertain future.  Meg Waite Clayton weaves a compelling story with solid characters, a strong sense of place, and a meandering storyline perfect for cold winter nights.  There is also a side story about the author Beatrix Potter I initially found distracting, but once I was immersed into the story, I enjoyed it.

As winter settles in, it is nice to settle into a good book and rekindle friendships with beloved characters from the past.