Bookworm Blurbs

Well, I love this book so far. I love Flagg’s voice and I’m just a sucker for books set in the South. I think I should’ve been born in the South, to be honest. I’m just in love with the idea of Southern culture, even though my personal experiences with it are extremely limited. 

 

I like the construction of the story. I think it’s really clever how Flagg intertwines Idgie and Ruth’s story with Ninny and Evelyn’s and I also like the little snippets from Weem’s Weekly. It’s just a neat way to tell a story. 

 

I have to say I was super confused for a second because I didn’t realized that Ruth and Idgie fell in love, haha. I thought they were best friends and then out of nowhere people start saying “Idgie has a crush on Ruth” and “Idgie loves Ruth” and then finally when Ruth herself realizes “I’m in love with Idgie,” I was like “OH. I guess they’re in love?” So I’m a bit slow on the uptake, I guess. But I really like that, actually. I love how Flagg doesn’t seem to make a big deal of it - like, yes, the two main characters are gay … so? It’s just how it is. And I hope that someday that’s how everyone will see things. The only complaint that I have with this is I think that in real life, in 1930s Alabama a relationship like Ruth and Idgie’s would NEVER have been tolerated, especially in a town with a strong Klan presence like Whistle Stop apparently has and especially when those two characters are accepting of the black members of the community. But maybe this will play out into a conflict later?