A Map of the World by Jane Hamilton

Once in a while when I'm browsing the library I check out the book that the book club is reading for the month and this is one of them.  They are usually very well written and are usually bestsellers.  This particular book is also a member of Oprah's Book Club.

Alice Goodwin has a good life in Prairie Center, a small town in Wisconsin.  A handsome husband, two beautiful little girls, 400 acres of farm land with a springfed pond, a great old house, and a barn complete with milk cows.  She works as school nurse at the town's elementary school.  Her neighbor, Theresa, is her best friend and the two often swap babysitting duties. One day while Alice is babysitting her friends two girls, she decides to take the girls for a swim in the pond. She goes upstairs to change into her swimsuit, during which time Theresa's little 2 year old, Lizzie,  rushes out to the pond and drowns.  The community mourns, Alice is in shambles, the relationship between the two friends obviously dwindles. 

Meanwhile, another child, a six year old boy at the school with severe emotional problems, who Alice sees often as nurse, and has given her quite a hard time has told his mother as well as authorities that Alice has sexually molested him.  She is arrested and taken to jail where she spends three months.  Her bail is set at about $100,000.00 and her husband eventually sells the farm to get her out.  The family moves to the city to await trial.

The trial date arrives and still grieving over the drowned girl, hurt from a fight in jail, struggling with her relationship with her husband and her best friend, Alice must testify. 

An awesome page turner.  Powerful, unforgettable, daring, compelling, gripping, and exquisite.  When I first began reading the book, I didn't have a clue what it was going to be about because there wasn't a summary on the back or on the inside jacket cover.  Since it was a book club book I decided to give a try anyway and I'm glad that I did.  The first few pages are a little slow describing the family and the farm life and I thought it was going to be boring, but believe me, it definitely picked up very soon.  Bravo, Jane Hamilton!