The Novel
About the Novel
The Grove is a coming-of-age historical novel set in rural Central Florida in the early 1960s. It follows sisters Pip and Sissy as they navigate poverty, family hardship, first love, betrayal, race and class tensions, and the search for a better future amid the fading orange groves of Old Florida.
A traveling carnival arrives in town and changes the family's life forever.
Although categorized as YA, author Brooks Whitney Phillips has stated she did not intentionally write for a YA audience. She wrote the story she wanted to tell. The themes are universal and appeal equally to adult and young adult readers.
A Book for Every Reader
The Grove carries a Young Adult designation because of its protagonist's age—but its emotional world belongs to anyone who has ever loved a sister, lost a place, or known the particular weight of a life lived close to the land.
The novel's themes—race, class, gender, resilience, the loss of a way of life—are as urgent for adult readers as they are essential for young ones.
Themes