News From the Author

Three of Orange’s most avid readers, including me, took a road trip to Richmond on Tuesday to hear Carrie Brown speak about her new book, The Rope Walk. Fun time at Richmond Convention Center right downtown, gave away some postcards with information about White Lies to other readers and sat at a table with very young women from Richmond, probably the backbone of the Jr. League volunteers. Also heard about the James River historian’s book and Patricia Bell, a chef who divides her time between Paris and Provence. And the author of ‘My Name is Iran’ who spoke eloquently about the Middle East, her family history, her grandfather who wrote some of the laws they discarded when they reinstalled the religious leaders as head of state in the last part of the twentieth century. A great night for books. Thanks to Kelly at Fountain Books in Shockoe Slip for handling the book sales. White Lies is being sold at Fountain Books too.

I finished reading “White Lies” a month ago, and it was a great experience. I pretty much read the last third non-stop, wanting to know what happened next.

Its a different kind of book than I normally read (my wife says that’s an improvement). While some of the publicity and the reviews may suggest its a story about the coverups surrounding children damaged by manditory immunization, it’s not the primary thrust of the narrative. This isn’t the “Pelican Brief.”

The book concerns itself with the mother of one such victim, and how her story impacts the life of her lawyer. “White Lies” traces the development of these two women, their relationship and how they change as the case moves its way through court.

Honenberger is an effective storyteller, writing with transparent prose. This keeps things moving along. The narrative efficiently says what it needs to, packing a great deal of information into very brief chapters.

The author draws on her experience as a practicing attorney to make the courtroom scenes realistic and believable. She also effectively explains in layman’s terms the problems and legal concepts behind the lawsuit that drives the story.

If I have one complaint, it’s that I felt the story ended about a chapter too soon. There’s a compelling subplot involving the lawyer’s son that gets resolved offstage in the epilogue. I really wanted to know more firsthand details about how he and his family resolved his conflict.

If you’re looking for a story that rips the lid off the immunization coverup, then you need to keep looking. But if you want an examination of the personal cost of this, and how it impacts the lives of a family and community, then I highly recommend “White Lies.”

And that’s the truth.    - Ralph

For more about Charlottesville artists and happenings, see Ralph’s blog at CE Conversations, or use link listed on right hand column below.

Big news about the book: Letter from Library of Virginia upon my return from book tour congratulating me for the novel’s nomination for the 2007 Library of Virginia Fiction award. Some tough competition, but it’s wonderful to be on the list.  Keep checking the website for new author events being added all the time. June 9 is the Fredericksburg Central Park Borders and June 5 is Prince Books in Norfolk, a very famous and long-standing independent bookseller. The latest review has been added as a link here by Ralph Graves on his CE Conversations blog.