Sweet Jiminy by Kristin Gore

photo courtesy of Amazon.com

Released: April 2011

Sweet Jiminy is the 3rd novel by Kristin Gore. This novel is completely different from Gore's humorous Capitol Hill novels, as it addresses civil rights issues in rural Mississippi.

Here's the synopsis.

Jiminy Davis is 25 years old and already starting to feel the strain of law school. Eager for a break and change of pace, Jiminy decides to visit her grandmother in Mississippi for the summer. Shortly after her arrival, she starts poking around in old family journals and reads about another Jiminy in her family's history. Her family's tight-lipped behavior when the late Jiminy is mentioned stirs the curiosity of present-day Jiminy, who embarks on a journey to learn all about the past Jiminy and why her family has kept her a secret.

Kristin Gore is such an amazing novelist. It's exciting to discover that her writing versatility extends to emotional, serious novels in addition to comedy. Sweet Jiminy falls fairly short at under 250 pages, but is well-crafted and beautiful. The novel is easy to read in one sitting, has no dull lags, and is surprisingly suspenseful given the subject matter. Sweet Jiminy brings to light how civil rights continues to evolve in certain areas of the country. Jiminy brings her urban, big-city mentality to a small Mississippi town and sets out to make things right.

If you liked Sweet Jiminy, I highly recommend Catfish Alley by Lynne Bryant, which has a similar plot. Both novels are very well written and worth the read. Kristin Gore's other novels are also extremely entertaining and hilarious though quite different from Sweet Jiminy.

Here's my review of Catfish Alley: Dreamworld Book Reviews -- Catfish Alley

Other novels written by Kristin Gore are:

1. Sammy's Hill (2004)
2. Sammy's House (2007)

Did you read Sweet Jiminy, and if so, what did you think? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!