A Southern Exposure

Alice Adams was a celebrated American short story writer, and A Southern Exposure shows why: the ensemble of characters in 1939 Pinehill, North Carolina is richly observed, the period atmosphere is precise, and the social commentary on race, gender, and class carries genuine weight. The Baird family's arrival in a small Southern town becomes a lens for examining the hypocrisies beneath polite surfaces. Annie Lamott called it terrific, and the praise is warranted for readers who enjoy literary comedy-of-manners fiction. The content is firmly adult, though — multiple extramarital affairs and a frank look at racial prejudice in the pre-civil-rights South mean this is an 18-and-up read. Not a family pick, but a rewarding one for the right adult reader.