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Peachtree Road Paperback – March 18, 2008
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“A blockbuster of a novel. . . . Peachtree Road is the meaty and absorbing story of a city turned on to power and of the privileged inhabitants who led it to its current station as a mecca of business, culture, and progress. . . . To say this book is potent does not come close to doing it justice. More than merely powerful, it is mesmerizing, enthralling, and totally unforgettable.” — Chattanooga Free Press
A masterful tale of love, hate, and rebellion set in an elite world of class and wealth, New York Times bestselling author Anne Rivers Siddons's Peachtree Road is the unforgettable story of the turbulent growth of a great Southern city and of two people cursed by blood and birth.
Headstrong, independent, and devastatingly beautiful Lucy Bondurant Chastain Venable will never become the demure Southern lady her family requires—while her older cousin, Sheppard Gibbs Bondurant III, is too shy and bookish, a far cry from the suave, gregarious Southern gentleman he's expected to be. In the Bondurants' sprawling home on Atlanta's Peachtree Road, these two will be united by a fierce tainted love—and torn apart by a smoldering rage fanned by the cruelty of years and the unbending demands of privilege.
- Print length816 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherHarper Perennial
- Publication dateMarch 18, 2008
- Dimensions5.31 x 1.3 x 8 inches
- ISBN-100061256242
- ISBN-13978-0061256240
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From the Back Cover
Headstrong, independent, and devastatingly beautiful Lucy Bondurant Chastain Venable will never become the demure Southern lady her family requires—while her older cousin, Sheppard Gibbs Bondurant III, is too shy and bookish, a far cry from the suave, gregarious Southern gentleman he's expected to be. In the Bondurants' sprawling home on Atlanta's Peachtree Road, these two will be united by a fierce tainted love—and torn apart by a smoldering rage fanned by the cruelty of years and the unbending demands of privilege.
A masterful tale of love, hate, and rebellion set in an elite world of class and wealth, New York Times bestselling author Anne Rivers Siddons's Peachtree Road is the unforgettable story of the turbulent growth of a great Southern city and of two people cursed by blood and birth.
About the Author
Anne Rivers Siddons is the New York Times bestselling author of 19 novels that include Nora, Nora, Sweetwater Creek, Islands, Peachtree Road, and Outer Banks. She is also the author of the nonfiction work John Chancellor Makes Me Cry.
Product details
- Publisher : Harper Perennial; Reprint edition (March 18, 2008)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 816 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0061256242
- ISBN-13 : 978-0061256240
- Item Weight : 1.42 pounds
- Dimensions : 5.31 x 1.3 x 8 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #825,755 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #11,640 in Family Life Fiction (Books)
- #40,087 in Literary Fiction (Books)
- #85,164 in Contemporary Romance (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
Anne Rivers Siddons (born January 9, 1936) is an American novelist who writes stories set in the southern United States.
Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
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Customers find the book engaging and enjoyable. They praise the riveting story with superb plot, describing it as an epic Southern saga for the ages. The characters are believable and the coming-of-age of the main characters is depicted well. However, some readers feel the story is too long and boring, while others find the writing style great and vivid. There are mixed opinions on the writing style - some find it great and vivid, while others find it wordy or poorly written.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers enjoy the book. They find it engaging and enjoyable, though some feel it's too long. The book covers topics like Charleston and the era, and readers appreciate learning about things they recognize and don't know about old times. Overall, they consider it worth reading for Southern writers.
"...; is the written word at its finest; 797 pages of evocative, soul-stirring wonder written in a first person voice that laughs in the face of lesser..." Read more
"...My review on the book: good, but way, way, way too long. I think this book could easily have been cut down to 400 to 500 pages...." Read more
"...But it’s really a captivating saga of a family and coming of age of the main characters during these years." Read more
"...This one? perfect and arrived quickly. I am so appreciative" Read more
Customers enjoy the engaging story and superb plot. They find the book an epic Southern saga for the ages. The ending is interesting and provides a good history lesson about Atlanta.
"...It is a human drama uninfluenced by privilege, the kind that reminds us all that there is no escaping life's disillusioning, difining sorrows, nor..." Read more
"...Colorful language and vivid descriptions coupled with powerful drama makes for an American classic. The ending was very abrupt...." Read more
"...But I struggled on. And mostly because it also gives a good history lesson, not only about Buckhead, but about Atlanta in general..." Read more
"...It was 800 pages of too much drama! However, the ending is interesting. Our book club was divided about what actually happened...." Read more
Customers find the characters believable. They also appreciate the main characters' coming-of-age story.
"...It is populated by emblematic, supportive characters, and weaves and dodges as it finds its footing in an arc spanning fifty years in the turbulent,..." Read more
"My favorite author never fails to amaze. Her character development is beyond description; her vocabulary is extensive; and her storytelling is..." Read more
"...But it’s really a captivating saga of a family and coming of age of the main characters during these years." Read more
"...The characters were well portrayed, but often were nearly unbelievable, over-the-top...." Read more
Customers have different views on the writing style. Some find it great and descriptive, with a riveting story. Others find it too wordy and poorly written, with an emphasis on flowery prose instead of just saying what she meant.
"...It is populated by emblematic, supportive characters, and weaves and dodges as it finds its footing in an arc spanning fifty years in the turbulent,..." Read more
"...Colorful language and vivid descriptions coupled with powerful drama makes for an American classic. The ending was very abrupt...." Read more
"...Then I started Peachtree Road. I found it way too wordy and just couldn't imagine getting through the 600+ pages, so I put it down...." Read more
"...Her character development is beyond description; her vocabulary is extensive; and her storytelling is beautiful artistry." Read more
Customers dislike the length of the book. They find it boring and too long, mentioning the story spans over a period with several main characters.
"...The story was long, but it was vivid. Shep's entire life was overwhelmed by his cousin Lucy's eccentricities...." Read more
"...this book and I'm glad I finally finished it, but be prepared, it's long, long, long. Too long. Hence, I can only give it 4 stars...." Read more
"...it,"Peachtree Road" is the written word at its finest; 797 pages of evocative, soul-stirring wonder written in a first person voice that..." Read more
"...Story was very long and spanned over a period of several main characters lifetime...." Read more
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on June 20, 2015There's no other way to say it,"Peachtree Road" is the written word at its finest; 797 pages of evocative, soul-stirring wonder written in a first person voice that laughs in the face of lesser writers adhering to the widely, overemphasized and uninspired writing rule of "show, don't tell." This book tells, and it does so fearlessly in a voice that could only come from a blue-blooded insider coming of age in 1960's Atlanta. Without judgment or condescension, and more in the vein of an objective matter of course, the reader is gifted with the voice of Shep Bondurant as he lays the backdrop of his riveting life shaping story, a story so scathingly unusual as to psychologically scar, yet somehow the reader understands the crumbs offered along the way of this cause and effect, sins of the father story.
In the opulence of aristocratic, pre-civil rights Atlanta, when the city was but a Southern town divided by race and class, partitioned into those who live in mansions and those who serve within, Shep Bondurant is an only child rattling around his family mansion on Peachtree Road. An unexpected knock on the front door sets the course of his life in motion, when his parents unwittingly take in a poor relation and her two small children on sufferance. Thus the stage is set when Shep, a sensitive, lonely boy, has his cloistered life blown open up by the entrance of his cousin, Lucy Bondurant, who is damaged and captivatingly feral as an alley cat. The two form an immediate bond that deepens as the pair mature, but it is its repercussions that play throughout this episodic story, wreaking havoc beneath the surface of a setting where all that glitters is not gold. "Peachtree Road" unapologetically captures a way of life in an era long gone by. It is populated by emblematic, supportive characters, and weaves and dodges as it finds its footing in an arc spanning fifty years in the turbulent, most pivotal times of the American South. It is a human drama uninfluenced by privilege, the kind that reminds us all that there is no escaping life's disillusioning, difining sorrows, nor their lasting effects. Authentically and accurately told, "Peachtree Road" reaches into the bone marrow and leaves its handprint; it is an epic Southern saga for the ages and one not to be missed.
- Reviewed in the United States on November 2, 2012The old gentile Atlanta of Peachtree Road, a culture that brought the vibrant Hotlanta of today has been buried, faded away like an old watercolor. It killed Lucy Bondurant, stifled her uniqueness and drove her into an luridly degraded ending--and made Shep Bondurant, her cousin, a shadow of a man, unable to break away from his unhealthy addiction to Lucy-ness.
The story was long, but it was vivid. Shep's entire life was overwhelmed by his cousin Lucy's eccentricities. He dragged into a codependent relationship, always protecting, excusing, and picking Lucy up whenever she failed. The problem was her failures grew deeper and darker until the shocking end.
The story starts with Lucy's funeral, but it goes back to the beginning when Shep first meets her as a child. This book almost begs to be read twice, because only then can you understand, knowing the ending, all of the pitfalls that led to her sad demise. Colorful language and vivid descriptions coupled with powerful drama makes for an American classic.
The ending was very abrupt. But perhaps it is for the better. Sarah Cameron Gentry, a slice of normality, is there to mark his trail and offer Shep a chance to actually live a real life free from the Lucy-ness that enslaved him.
- Reviewed in the United States on March 11, 2015I got this book, because I had just moved to Atlanta in the Fall of 2014 and while at a Christmas party I was talking to a local Atlantan who had just started a part-time job at a country club in Buckhead (she was a retired senior that just wanted a part-time job to keep busy and bring in a little extra money). Well, we got to talking about her job and she said that the Buckhead female club members didn't really treat her that well, even though she was working for the club's manager. I'd kept hearing about Buckhead while in Atlanta, and although there are definitely some nice neighborhoods there, it seems to me to be just a spot to go shopping and get tangled in horrendous traffic. Hence, I avoid going to Buckhead at all costs. But still, it comes up in Atlanta life and I didn't know why. I asked the lady what's up with Buckhead? And why is it a 'thing.'? She said, read Anne Rivers Siddons "Peachtree Road" and it'll explain everything. So I went out and bought the book the next day. And now, after finally finishing the book, it took me two months, I get the Buckhead thing. It's not what it used to be, apparently.
My review on the book: good, but way, way, way too long. I think this book could easily have been cut down to 400 to 500 pages. For the first 300 or so pages I was tempted at many times to abandon ship. Where the heck is this thing going? Why am I reading this? But I struggled on. And mostly because it also gives a good history lesson, not only about Buckhead, but about Atlanta in general (spanning from the 1940's to about the 70's or 80's - it's tough to tell what year the book finally ends). And since I was a new local, I was interested in Atlanta's history. But I'm glad I did struggle on, because a story is there, it just takes a long time for it to reveal itself. And by about midway through, you do start getting into the characters. Then by the end you're really into them. Anne Siddons does a great job at wrapping up the tale. The last Lucy scene is excellent. You think you know what happens to her from the first chapter of the book, but you don't really find out what happened until the end, and Mrs. Siddons does a great job ending her presence in the story. What Gibby says to her at the final scene is perfect. It brings earlier parts of the story full circle.
I do like this book and I'm glad I finally finished it, but be prepared, it's long, long, long. Too long. Hence, I can only give it 4 stars. If it were 300 or so pages less, I'd probably give it five.
- Reviewed in the United States on November 6, 2024My favorite author never fails to amaze. Her character development is beyond description; her vocabulary is extensive; and her storytelling is beautiful artistry.
- Reviewed in the United States on October 9, 2022Bought 6 copies for holiday gifts to local friends. Great escape. If you have spent any time in Atlanta this book will keep your attention with a look at the transformation the city went through in the 60’s and early 70s. But it’s really a captivating saga of a family and coming of age of the main characters during these years.
Top reviews from other countries
- JacksonReviewed in the United Kingdom on September 6, 2015
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
a wonderful book...full of surprises
- A CustomerReviewed in Canada on November 14, 2014
3.0 out of 5 stars Not bad
This was an okay read. I never fully liked Lucy or understood why she was so special. She was selfish and often mean. At times the story was downright boring, but it picked up nicely in Part 2 of the book.