This was such an odd little book. It reminded me of a much older book - in fact, let's call this Up a Road Slowly: The Good Version. That's probably stretching it quite a lot but there you have it. This book reads as being written much earlier than it really was, which is appropriate since it is set in the 30's.
A Year Down Yonder returns the protagonist Mary Alice to her grandmother's small community... Returns? Wait a moment....
I have once again failed to read all books leading up to the winner. I can say that it doesn't affect the reading of this book in any way. The characters and setting were totally fleshed out and the only hint that I missed a book was a quick sentence Mary Alice said referring to time she had spent with her grandmother and her older brother. It wasn't said in a manner that was just background, I was expected to reflect and say, "Ah, good times."
Still the characters in this story rang true to their time. Grandma Dowdel was hilarious and slightly rebellious in a way only the elderly can be; she reminded me of the elderly Miss Volker (Dead End in Norvelt). Mary Alice is a girl that perhaps another author would have wanted to make a tomboy. She isn't overtly 'feminine' but she is also an ordinary girl - not forced into any trope one way or the other.
This book isn't very plot-driven, rather it is a series of vignettes. Another way it harkens back - I often find older books to be less plot heavy than modern literature. It was really relaxing and enjoyable because of this - sometimes all you need is a series of events loosely tied together by enjoyable characters.
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