Kaye Gibbons

Having suffered abuse and misfortune for much of her life, a young child searches for a better life and finally gets a break in the home of a loving woman with several foster children.

Like her first two award-winning novels (Ellen Foster and A Virtuous Woman), A Cure for Dreams is set in the rural and small-town South and draws richly upon the author's ear for comic turns of phrase and her sure grasp of the humor, pathos, and dignity of supposedly "ordinary" people. The determination of the women of the story to assert themselves in confining, dependent situations makes for uplifting, enjoyable reading.

Having suffered abuse and misfortune for most of her life, a young girl searches for a better life and finally finds it in the home of a loving woman with several foster children.