The Member of the Wedding follows the story of Frankie Addams, a 12-year-old girl living in the South in the midst of WWII. She becomes obsessed with her brother Jarvis' impending marriage, so much so that she convinces herself that the pair will bring her on their honeymoon. Her summer of delusion runs parallel to a time of change for Frankie, as she makes the difficult transition from child to teenager. This poignant coming-of-age novel explores the loss of innocence and how people are confined by the rules of society.
The novel takes place over a few days in late August. It tells the story of 12-year-old tomboy Frankie Addams, who feels disconnected from the world; in her words, an "unjoined person." Frankie's mother died when she was born, and her father is a distant, uncomprehending figure. Her closest companions are the family's African American maid, Berenice Sadie Brown, and her six-year-old cousin, John Henry West. She has no friends in her small Southern town and dreams of going away with her brother and his bride-to-be on their honeymoon in the Alaskan wilderness.
The novel explores the psychology of the three main characters and is more concerned with evocative settings than with incident. Frankie does, however, have a brief and troubling encounter with a soldier. Her hopes of going away are disappointed and, her fantasy destroyed, a short coda reveals how her personality has changed. It also recounts the fate of John Henry West, and Berenice Sadie Brown's future plans.
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