South of Broad by Pat Conroy

Was there ever a more troubled soul than Pat Conroy? I have no idea how much of what he writes is autobiographical but judging by the frequency of pain, heartbreak and despair - all stemming from his life in the south - I can only think that this man can only survive by telling his stories to the masses.

All that said, I absolutely love Pat Conroy - his clever wit, the level of environmental description, his innate romanticism - all are found throughout his books and really suck a reader in until you actually feel the sweet smell of jasmine around you and the overwhelming expectations that a whole society can put on a set of small shoulders.

I've only just started South of Broad I just can't put it down! Part One centers around Leo King, a troubled teen who had his world rocked at the age of 9 when he found his older brother in the bathtub with his wrists cut. From then on, Leo had a downward spiral and the book starts only as he is starting to feel he can wrap up the last 9 years of pain and frustrations. Part One mainly acts as a platform to give Leo's background (with several clever points that I'm sure are being left as cliffhangers) and assemble the cast of characters that will mold the rest of the book.

As I've been reading, I was frustrated at first because so many of the characters are replicas of those from other Conroy books - Leo is Jack McCall to a flying T (Beach Music). At first I though ole Pat had gotten lazy but then as I continued reading, I was mystified because I felt that rather than a recycling of characters, it was a new look at them. It was taking this archetype and putting him/her in new situations to see what happens - once I had that thought, I loved the book all the more. I suppose pampered, aristocratic southern girls will always be just that but how interesting to see if they will break out of their molds depending on what is thrown at them - love it.