Big Stone Gap by Adriana Trigiani

I thought I got referred to this book when looking for author-read-alike links for Alexander McCall-Smith on the NoveList Plus database at butI can't recreate the search. Anyway this novel and Alexander McCall-Smith's Scotland Street and No.1 Detective Ladies Agency series do all share a great sense of place. However rather than Scotland or Botswana this novel is set in "Big Stone Gap, a sleepy hamlet in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia". The author, Adriana Trigiani grew up in the town. Unlike McCall-Smith's characters though the main character, Ava Maria Mulligan is still somewhat of an outsider rather than a true local in her environment. Mulligan's mother was Italian so there is an undercurrent of difference.

Ava Maria is the local pharmacist, co-captain of the Rescue Squad and director of the local outdoor drama. While mostly fictitious the book does touch on a real life event when Elizabeth Taylor visited Big Stone Gap in 1978 and choked on a chicken bone.

Intriguing and ultimately satisfying Big Stone Gap is a recommended read. I have just found out it is part of a series so I look forward to reading further installments.

Big Stone Gap by Adriana Trigiani