Louisiana Lucky (2020) by Julie Pennell

 1,001 Novels: A Library of America

Louisiana Lucky (2020)

by Julie Pennell

445 East Main Street, New Iberia, Louisiana

Louisiana: 5/28

  A definite low point in my recent 1,001 Novels: A Library of America, I checked out the E-book from the library on vacation because it seemed like an easy job and indeed, I finished Louisiana Lucky in about an hour, mostly because I didn't read it very closely.  I try not to be a snob about my reading habits- this entire project is testament to my good intentions, but there is no denying that the three lottery winning sisters from this novel are some of the least interesting American's I've come across, and Julie Pennell is writing for an audience of suburban housewives- and not the interesting kind.

 The three sisters win a substantial lottery jackpot, rescuing them from lives among the lower bourgeois of this part of the world.  One sister spends the entire book upgrading her wedding from a ramshackle DIY affair to something worthy of a bridezilla episode.  Another sends her two kids to a snooty private school and suffers from a cold welcome.  The third- a respected local print (lol) journalist, takes advantage of her found fame to move to television journalism, which is a hard transition.   Louisiana Lucky is certain to be a bottom three title in this chapter of the 1,001 Novels: A Library of America project.