The Wednesday Sisters

While recently traveling to and from Scottsdale for a girls’ weekend, I couldn’t have selected a more appropriate book for the journey.  The Wednesday Sisters, Meg Waite Clayton’s second novel, is a captivating tale about the special bond of friendship. The book begins in September 1967 when five very different young women meet in a neighborhood park and discuss their families, dreams and literary aspirations. As the novel progresses, we see these weekly meetings evolve into a writing group where each character — Frankie, Brett, Kath, Linda and Ally — eventually shares passages from stories they’ve written. It is through their writing — and what they discover about themselves along the way — that a beautiful friendship begins to blossom.

Although most of the novel takes place before I was born, Clayton does an excellent job providing the reader with a historical overview that really evokes the flavor of the times. The relatable, endearing characters together experience events that shaped the decade — the assassination of Bobby Kennedy, Apollo 11’s moon landing, the Vietnam War — not to mention countless Miss America pageants. As these events were recounted, I couldn’t help but think about some of the events that have had a profound effect on my own life, and those of my friends.

It’s easy to fall in love with the characters Clayton has so deftly created. Their friendship is certainly to be envied and leaves you longing to spend the afternoon sharing hot cocoa with the cast of kindred spirits in your own life. A true gem!