The View from Delphi

Set in pre-civil rights era in Mississippi, The View From Delphi is the story of two young mothers, Hazel and Vida -- one white and the other black. Having only two things in common -- the devastating loss of their sons, and a deep and abiding loathing for one another -- the novel focuses on both of their lives: their drastically differing stories and their drastically differing lives.When Vida is hired as a maid by Hazel's husband to keep tabs on his unpredictable wife, they reluctantly start to see the other as her last chance at personal redemption. Together, the form an unholy alliance to turn the town of Delphi on its head.With an irreverent vein of dark humor, Jonathan Odell has created an absorbing novel, exploring the sometimes contradictory sentiments around race, family and home.