Once a Camellia, always a Camellia. That’s what Charleston, South Carolina, native Sarah Walters learns after she experiences the Charleston Camellia Society, as her mother and grandmother did. She is taught how to stand up straight in cotillion class and must attend mandatory lectures about everything that Camellias don't do.
A reluctant debutante, she tolerates the required lectures and lunches, commiserating with her co-deb friends Charlotte, Bitsy and Annie. She never quite feels like she fits in or belongs, even at home – her brilliant and popular older sister Eloise constantly overshadows and overachieves Sarah.
Leaving Home
After college, she leaves home for New York City with Charlotte, where she tries lands an editorial assistant position and tries to make sense of big city life and find a place for herself. Instead, she indulges in all the Camellia don’ts: she parties too much (and with the wrong crowd), gets into several bad relationships, falls into drug abuse and deals with low self esteem, until a tragic situation back in Charleston calls her home.
Below the Surface
Sarah learns that things are not as they seem at home – her mother, who drinks too much, has been hiding a number of secrets from her and the other Camellia’s. She learns that being one of the Camellia’s isn’t as pretty or safe as it always looked from the outside; however it does offer a sisterhood of protection and support not available anywhere else. While she has spent most of her life trying to distance herself from the Camellia Society, she now is able to clearly see where she came from, and must now consider if it is where she indeed belongs.
On the Surface
Sarah narrates the story about her girlhood through to her thirties, which involves a great deal of substance abuse and a number of bad relationships. She seems almost determined to do the things that she’s been brought up to believe that Camellia’s don’t do. While the contrast between this and her proper Southern upbringing is telling, the book doesn’t go into much detail on how she feels about anything. The story remains at the surface, where emotions are nonexistent and characters remain undeveloped.
About the Author
Thirty four year old Katie Crouch grew up in Charleston, South Carolina, and studied writing at Brown University. She received her MFA at Columbia University. She currently resides in San Francisco.
Crouch, Katie
Girls in Trucks
Hachette Book Group USA, April 7, 2008
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