I had to read Bastard Out of Carolina for my "Gender and Sexuality in Literature and Film" course. After that statement I will add that Bastard Out of Carolina is not a book that will preach "Woman power!". In fact, Bastard Out of Carolina explores the family unit in the south. I will guess the time period would be in the 1980's or 1990's.
Bastard Out of Carolina is about a young mother who is so in love with the idea of the perfect family that in the end her dream destroys what she actually has. The mother, Annie, has her daughter Ruth Anne when she is only 16. The father runs away to God knows where (typical movie/book detail) leaving Annie all sorts of screwed up in the mind. Annie becomes obsessed with having the typical family unit so much that she can't see that what she is doing (or not doing) is really hurting her daughter Ruth Anne.
The book is sad/liberating. From what I read, the basic message seems to be that families go through a sort of "cycle", but you can allow yourself to break that cycle if you really want too. You can't let who your family "is" determine your future.
Overall I give Bastard Out of Carolina 3 out of 5 stars. It was easy to read; I read it in 2 days. The story line was good, but something we have all seen/heard hundreds of times through lifetime movies. Wait, what? Oh this book was made into a lifetime movie? Ok. If you enjoy lifetime movies, you will probably LOVE Bastard Out of Carolina.
That was a sad story... hard to read at times due to certain situations...
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