It has been a long time since I’ve read a book of this size in less than 24 hours. However, that is what happened when I received Beth Pattillo’s The Sweetgum Knit Lit Society in the mail. Pattillo is a talented author who can sweep her readers into the story rapidly, and keep them engrossed until the end. I was looking forward to receiving this tale of a group of women who integrate their knitting, reading interests, personal lives, and faith. The story, compellingly written, succeeds with the first three, but comes short on the fourth.

We are introduced to a cast of six main female characters and the complexities of their personal lives and struggles. I doubted that I would be able to follow each character and come to know her personally; Patillo’s strong characterizations put these doubts to rest. I came to know each of the five adult females and the single teenager as they came together on a monthly basis to share their thoughts on the group knitting project and reading assignment of the Sweetgum Knit Lit Society. In the beginning, none of these characters know each other well, or care for the emotional needs of others. They know each other only superficially; it is heartwarming to watch them come to care for each other, reaching out in love and support as they are drawn closer by the introduction of troubled teenager Hannah into their midst.

For those who prefer a strong faith element in their fiction reading, they will not find it here. Though some of the characters profess faith in God and are involved in church activities, we rarely see this faith played out or expressed in their lives. Each character experiences dramatic personal difficulties in their lives over the course of the book, but none lean upon Jesus, or turn to the Bible for advice, guidance or support during these trials. Rather they muddle through under their own power, barely managing to pull themselves out of blatantly sinful situations, somehow avoiding endings that are displeasing to the Lord. No doubt God manages all this in His sovereignty, but it takes place behind the scenes. We are unable to see His work in the lives of His children throughout the novel.