In Miller’s Valley, Mimi Miller lives on a farm near a small town where everyone knows that government wants to come in and flood the valley as part of a dam construction project. The book is told in Mimi’s homespun voice as she reflects on her life: during the years when the threat of having their physical home destroyed looms, the cohesion of Mimi’s family was also threatened by forces without and within. Mimi is the only girl and the youngest. Her oldest brother distances himself from the family as he tries for a different life away from their small town. Her fun-loving, irresponsible brother joins the armed forces to become more disciplined…but like so many, he had no idea how much the Vietnam War would affect him and he returns a damaged man.
With the years between them and their different personalities, the distance between Mimi and her brothers not surprising. Much more intriguing is the tension between Mimi’s mother and her mother’s sister, Ruth. Ruth lives on the farm with the Millers…but in a small house that she refuses to leave. Long before she is really old or incapacitated, Ruth shuts herself away from the world. The Millers drop off meals and groceries at the little house behind theirs. Mimi’s mother and aunt trade insults through other family members.
Mimi’s small town life is rounded out in childhood by her two closest friends—a serious boy whose mother has (mostly) abandoned him to his grandparents and the callous daughter of a wealthy family.
While I admit I’m not familiar with her Newsweek columns, I do remember the big splash Quindlen’s graduation speech-turned A Short Guide to a Happy Life made. Years later, I read (and was amazed by) Every Last One. I always meant to read more of her work but I didn’t until I saw her new novel Miller’s Valley available through NetGalley.
Mimi s not aching to free herself from small-town life but she has enough drive so that she is prepared when opportunity comes along. She is very studious. As a nurse, her mother is a rare woman with a professional career. Mimi will go even further and her bland brother Ed who had been the high school valedictorian is not unkind but feels pangs of jealousy when he sees how she prospers.
This is what people call a ‘quiet’ novel; plotlines that could lend themselves to intrigue simply don’t. When Mimi looks into the plans to flood the valley, she does not get all Nancy Drew about it. While I imagined I knew how the central family mystery would unfold, Mimi is content to let the past be and Quindlen only provides a sketch without filling everything in. The part of me that likes a little mystery and intrigue was disappointed but not ruffling feathers reflects Mimi’s character. The most surprising thing about Mimi is her sexual awakening–she is not the guilt-ridden good girl someone like her might have been.
This book is a quick read but not necessarily a compelling one. I will say that I probably don’t read enough books about people in small towns and this book was a reminder of the kinds of lives lead by the many people who don’t live in cities.
