The Summer's End (49 page)

Lifting her face to the sunset, Mamaw said a prayer of thanks as the earth hushed around her at this twilight benediction.

“Thank you, Lord, for allowing me to live another day.” Then she smiled with introspection. “Another summer.”

For indeed, this summer had ended. But there was no sadness here. It was the beginning of a new era. Mamaw clasped her hands together before her. There would be joy in this house again. Weddings and baptisms. Birthdays and anniversaries. And, she knew, too, funerals. She took comfort in knowing that her memory would live long and as teeming with life as these winding creeks in the minds and hearts of Dora, Carson, and Harper. Her family, she knew, was the greatest treasure she could leave behind.

But today was for the living!

Loud laughter and squeals brought her attention back to the dock. She squinted in the dimming light. The three women were scuttling down to the lower dock, laughing. Eudora, Carson, and Harper. For all his capricious ideas, Parker had been wise to name his daughters after great literary figures. It gave them each something to live up to. And in her book, her
granddaughters were her heroines. She'd never known women with more heart. Or who understood more fully where their home was.

She watched as they stood together at the edge of the dock, holding hands, a lowcountry sunset before them. Mamaw's breath held, knowing she'd keep this image in her heart forever. Then, with a joyous shout, the girls leaped together into the Cove.

Mama's laughter joined theirs to be carried off on a breeze and join the universe.

“We did it, Lucille. Our summer's work is done.”

Suddenly she felt young again, free of her burdens. Like the young girl she once was who had run down this same slope to leap into the Cove. Kicking off her shoes, she hiked up her skirt and hurried down the slope to join her granddaughters.

“Wait for me, my dears! I'm coming!”

A
t the close of the Lowcountry Summer trilogy, I thank again Dr. Pat Fair at NOAA for her continued mentorship on all things related to the Atlantic bottlenose dolphin. Thanks, too, for reading the manuscript for accuracy, for brainstorming possibilities, and especially for the incredible experience of monitoring the health of the Charleston resident dolphins. That final scene with Delphine was inspired by that glorious release into the Charleston estuarine waters.

Heartfelt thanks to my wonderful home team: Angela May, Kathie Bennett, Buzzy Porter, and Lisa Minnick for your unflagging support. And to my sisters: Marguerite Martino for talking through characters, James Cryns and Marjory Wentworth for guiding the poem, and Ruth Cryns for being the Thelma to my Louise. Love and thanks to the Gems for their inspiration: Leah Greenberg, Linda Plunkett, Emily Abedon, and Susan Romaine.

A special thanks to everyone at the South Carolina Aquarium. Your staunch support is always deeply appreciated. And especially for the glorious launch party for this book. I can't thank you enough.

Thanks as well as to all my friends and to the beloved dolphins
at the Dolphin Research Center, Florida—especially Tursi, Jax, and Rainbow, my inspirations. I'm proud to be associated with you.

I'm fortunate to have the brilliant support of the fabulous team at Gallery Books: Lauren McKenna, Louise Burke, Jennifer Bergstrom, Jen Long, Liz Psaltis, Jean Anne Rose, Elana Cohen, Diana Velazquez, and everyone who supported this trilogy. A special thanks to my agents at Trident Media Group: the incomparable Kimberly Whalen and Robert Gottlieb, Sylvie Rosokoff, Adrienne Lombardo, Laura Paverman, and Tara Carberry. And to Joseph Veltre at Gersh.

A special nod of thanks to Judy Fairchild at Dewees Island, Shane and Morgan Ziegler at Barrier Island Eco Tours, and Amy Sottile at Wild Dunes.

As always, I close with thanks to Markus. Keep the light on.

GALLERY READERS GROUP GUIDE

The Summer's End

Mary Alice Monroe

I
n
The Summer's End
, the third installment in Mary Alice Monroe's Lowcountry Summer trilogy, a remarkable summer is coming to an end and the women of Sea Breeze struggle with impending decisions. Harper blossoms over the summer in the natural rhythms of the island, quietly exploring secret ambitions. When an unlikely stranger knocks on her door, she opens to the possibility of love and searches deep to find the strength to decide her own life's course. Dora struggles to find the balance between her newfound independence, her son's needs, and the attentions of one very dedicated suitor; and Carson is faced with a tragedy that threatens to upend everything she's worked hard to achieve. The summer girls are adrift but Mamaw, usually their guiding force, mourns the loss of her dear, longtime friend Lucille.

Looming over them is the impending sale of the beloved Muir family home. The “Summer Girls” are poised for leaving. As the season changes, the sisters draw on the wisdom of their grandmothers, their abiding love for one another—and some much-needed inspiration from a beguiling dolphin—to weather the shifting tides. Together they embrace how lives can change over one magical summer.

1. The book opens with the ladies of Sea Breeze mourning the loss of Lucille, whose presence is felt throughout the book despite her literal absence. How does the loss of Lucille lead the ladies to the next step in their lives?

2. Harper's core issue is her relationship with her mother, Georgiana James. Her mother is controlling over Harper's career and her personal life. Harper questions the existence of a mother's “unconditional love.” What are your thoughts about Georgiana's mothering? Is there any justification for her behavior? Do you believe in unconditional love?

3. While in the attic, Harper finds the trunk Mamaw gave to her and her sisters to store their treasures at the end of their childhood summers. Do you think the girls have changed much over the years? If you were to go through a box of treasures from your past, what might you find?

4. 
“What a wonderful book!”
is how Mamaw responded when young Harper presented her with a story she'd written and illustrated herself. Why do you think that
positive reinforcement was not enough for Harper to overcome Georgiana's criticism of her daughter's writing?

5. Harper claims that Carson is jealous of her family wealth. Do you think that is all there is to it? Does Harper do anything to invite Carson's jealousy? There is often wealth disparity in families. Discuss possible ways for families to adjust.

6. Harper and Taylor decide to get engaged after only a few weeks together. Are you surprised at the speed of this decision? Do you know of anyone who married quickly? What do you think it is about Harper and Taylor that instantly drew them together? Do you believe in love at first sight?

7. Carson agrees to take the film job in California at Blake's urging, and promises to return. Theirs has been a turbulent relationship. Do you agree with that decision? Do you think Carson is equipped for this new phase of her life? Are you optimistic about her future well-being or their relationship?

8. Compare and contrast Mamaw, from the South, and Granny James, from England, and their reactions to Harper's engagement. Do you agree with their responses? Why or why not? Finally, at the book's end was there a “winner” to the tally of arguments, as Carson quipped?

9. Mamaw tells Carson, “The secret to happiness is to embrace the humility to accept what comes and the courage to continue on your life's path with an open heart.” Compare this with what Carson told Blake, “. . . when Delphine looked at me, I didn't see forgiveness. For her, the past was already forgotten.
Delphine lives in the moment. All I saw in her eyes was love. Acceptance. And joy. She was so happy to be back home. She showed me what release meant.”

10. Discuss who changes the most from the beginning to the end of the trilogy—
The Summer Girls
,
The Summer Wind
, and
The Summer's End
. Who has made the toughest decisions? Which character did you relate to the most and why? Where do you see these characters in a few years?

11. Throughout the trilogy the reader has journeyed with the dolphin Delphine, through connection, injury and healing, and finally release. Discuss how the story of the dolphin parallels the three novels in the trilogy.

12. While cleaning Lucille's cottage, medicine bottles were collected in a box to take to the pharmacy for disposal. Blake had told Carson how damaging it was to the local water quality for people to toss their unused medicines into the toilet. The medicine is not completely filtered out in the water filtration plant. This pollution is one of the reasons dolphins are getting sick in the wild. Discuss where you can safely take unused medicine in your community.

13. Discuss how dolphins are a sentinel species. As mammals, they are our siblings in the sea. What does it mean to the human population if dolphins are getting sick?

1. Have a Lowcountry-themed book club meeting. Serve sweet tea or rum and/or bourbon drinks, and good lowcountry food: shrimp and grits, ham and biscuits, barbecue! Volunteers can present biographies of the three revered Southern authors the sisters were named after: Eudora Welty, Carson McCullers, and Harper Lee. Wear hats!

2. Visit the website
www.autismspeaks.org
to learn more about the autism spectrum and different fundraising or awareness-raising events your book club can participate in.

3. Taylor takes Harper to Charleston for a poetry reading. Consider local spoken word/poetry readings as a book club outing.

4. Taylor is a participant in the Wounded Warrior program—a program for which the real-life Joan Mehew won the Carry Forward award in 2013. To learn more about the vision
and purpose of the Wounded Warrior project, visit
www.woundedwarriorproject.org
.

5. To discover more about Mary Alice Monroe and her books, read her blog, view a list of her upcoming author appearances, and more, visit
www.maryalicemonroe.com
.