Southern Living (Paperback)

At first glance, "Living" holds promise. Set in contemporary Selby, Georgia, the novel examines the impact of late twentieth-century social change on a community seemingly frozen somewhere in the post-Civil War era. Equally intriguing is the confluence of the novel's three central characters, each a woman with a compelling story and internal conflicts. The author effectively uses dialogue to advance the narrative, and his cross-cutting chapters gracefully bridge time.

Yet, the novel sadly betrays its promise and its premises. Instead of complexity and texture, "Living" relies on stereotype and philosophic bromides. Selby seemingly has every new-fangled social circumstance hit it all at once; from Japanese executives at the recently-opened Toyota plant to a Yankee editor of the local newspaper, Selbyites are yanked unwillingly into a multicultural world. Rather than examine the implications of this new world on the community, the author unwittingly places people of color where they always have been, in the background or on the periphery.

Each protagonist begs to have her story told with more compassion than the author could muster. The most cliched of the three is Suzanne Parley, who has transcended her white-trash childhood and married the town patriarch. Restless, bored and frightened by the clear sterility of her life, Suzanne spends money recklessly ($1500 on a see-through raincoat!) and invents a pregnancy to add spice to her life. It doesn't take a genius to see that she will receive a comeuppance.

Yankee transplant Margaret Pinaldi, the daughter of a firebrand abortion rights activist, inherits a Selby home upon the death of her mother. Quiet, almost diffident, Margaret undergoes a personality transformation once she discovers life south of the Mason-Dixon line. She casts off her prejudicial attitudes towards Southerners, is caught in a romantic triangle and somehow manages to intersect her job as a journalist with both Suzanne and the novel's most compelling character, Donna Kabel.

Facially scarred by an automobile accident, Donna must recreate her life. After losing her job as a cosmetics saleswoman/advisor, she finds employment in the produce section of a local Kroger's supermarket. Rejecting the iron-fisted religiosity of her father, Donna discovers purpose in fruits and vegetables, and, in so doing, sets out to change the dietary habits of her community. Unfortunately, she receives the least amount of space in the novel, and her challenges -- spiritually, physically, emotionally -- are undernourished and scantily discussed. Hudler conveys great sensitivity in places for Donna; in a moving epiphany, she "learned that the most delicious and beautiful of God's creations often hid behind an imperfect epidermis."

Perhaps the greatest strength of "Southern Living" is also its greatest weakness. Ad Hudler doesn't want us to think too much while reading his gentle, kind novel. He would prefer us to salivate at the non-stop references to food and laugh at the foibles of the pretentious Suzanne. He wants us to root for Margaret and feel sympathy for the beleaguered Donna. But he doesn't want us to lose any sleep over any of his characters. He needn't worry. "Southern Living" satisfies the appetite but not the soul.