They were born on the same day, in the same small New Hampshire hospital—but Ruth Plank and Dana Dickerson are different in nearly every way.
Ruth is an artist, a romantic with a rich, passionate, imaginative life—the fifth daughter born to a gentle, caring farmer and his stolid wife. Raised by a pair of capricious drifters, Dana is a scientist and realist whose faith is firmly planted in the natural world. From the 1950s to the present, the lives of the "birthday sisters" parallel and oddly intersect, as each struggles to find her place in a world in which she has never truly felt she belonged. Sharing little except a birth date—and a love for Dana's wild and beautiful older brother, Ray—two virtual strangers will travel alternate paths winding through first love, first sex, marriage, parenthood, divorce, and tragic loss...until both are forced to reevaluate themselves and each other when past secrets and forgotten memories unexpectedly come to light.
Industry Reviews
"The Good Daughters shows Maynard's strengths once again--particularly in vivid descriptions of farm life, geographies, and relationships of all kinds. Passions and psychological changes in a character over time ring most true."--Providence Journal
"A sometimes painful tale, but captivating and surprisingly moving."--Publishers Weekly
"It is a testament to Maynard's skill that she makes this ominous setup into a convincing and poignant coming-of-age tale."--Washington Post
"Maynard deftly pulls the reader into the fragile lives of these three vulnerable characters and their preordained march toward the novel's denouement. A marvelous read--perfect for one long sitting--this novel leaves the reader wishing it didn't ever have to end."--BookPage
"Maynard expertly tugs heartstrings in a tidy tale. "--Kirkus Reviews
"Maynard offers fresh insight into what constitutes family."--USA Today
"Maynard's inventive coming-of-age tale indelibly captures the anxiety and confusion inherent in adolescence, while the addition of a menacing element of suspense makes this emotionally fraught journey that much more harrowing."--Booklist
"Rich and realistic . . . touching."--Library Journal
"Maynard is in top form in this tale of love, betrayal, and forgiveness."--Lisa Ko, author of The Leavers
" THE GOOD DAUGHTERS, weaves a story of choices and events so intimate I felt I was part of it. The novel is wrenching, the emotions radiant, and will leave readers transformed."--Luanne Rice, New York Times bestselling author of The Deep Blue Sea for Beginners
"Labor Day is suffused with tenderness, dreaminess and love . . . first and foremost a page-turner . . . [it] puts back together the world that it destroys . . . .you definitely need to get a box of tissues."--Newsday
"I am hard pressed to think of anything I've read that more honestly and eloquently expresses both the perils and the pleasures of love. Joyce Maynard has outdone herself in this beautifully written story you'll find hard to put down, and impossible to forget."--Elizabeth Berg, author of The Last Time I Saw You
"Joyce Maynard is in top-notch form with Labor Day. From the perfect pitch of a teenaged boy narrator to the eloquent message of how loneliness can bind people together, this is simply a novel you cannot miss."--Jodi Picoult, New York Times bestselling author of My Sister's Keeper and Handle With Care
"Riveting and disturbing."--Katha Pollitt, New York Times Book Review on At Home in the World
