THE BEACH TREES

THE BEACH TREES by Karen White was read for the Southern Literature Challenge 2012.

From the back of the book:

In the aftermath of tragedy, life goes on - painful and forever altered, but ripe with new beginnings.  For Julie Holt, traveling to the beautiful but ravaged coast of Biloxi, Mississippi, is a journey into a secret past and a life she never expected...

Julie first knew loss at the age of twelve, when her younger sister disappeared from their backyard - never to be found.  As her once close-knit family grew apart, Julie's mother obsessively searched for the girl, and when her mother died, Julie took up the search.  Even as she went on with life, discovering a love for art that she attributed to her painter great-grandfather, she never let go of the hope that she might find her sister.

Then, while working at an auction house in New York, Julie meets Monica Guidry - a struggling artist and single mother who reminds Julie so much of her sister that she can't help feeling drawn to her and even a bit protective.  Monica paints a vivid picture of her Southern family through stories, but never says why or how she lost contact with them.  And she has another secret:  a heart condition that will soon take her life.

Feeling as if she's lost her sister a second time, Julie inherits from Monica a valuable portrait - as well as custody of her young son.  Taking him to Biloxi, Mississippi, to meet the family he's never known, Julie discovers a connection of her own.  The portrait, which depicts a prominent Guidry family member, was done by her great-grandfather - and unlocks a surprising family history...

I wasn't thrilled with this book.  I never formed a connection with the characters, and I couldn't understand Julie's connection to the Guidry family.  Narrated by Julie and Miss Aimee Guidry, Monica's grandmother who told her ages-old history to Julie, I kept confusing their stories.

Ms. White resides in Atlanta and the book is centered around New Orleans and Biloxi, so it qualifies for this challenge.  Completing it for the challenge is really the only reason I finished the book.  It just didn't hold much interest for me.