by Gail Godwin
“Well, I’m probably not the most objective person to ask. I loved him to pieces. We all did. If you mean did he make a big splash in the world, his obituary ran almost an entire page in the Albany Times Union. He was the great benefactor, Grandpop. He was a huge supporter of the arts.”
“That sounds like him,” I said. “Well, I’m sorry I missed him, but it’s been nice talking to you.”
“Wait a minute!” she cried. “I think I know who you are, now. You’re that haunted little girl, aren’t you?”
“I’d never thought of it that way,” I told her, “but I suppose I am.”
Acknowledgements
Moses Cardona at John Hawkins & Associates for his astute first reading of Flora.
Nancy Miller and the house of Bloomsbury for reconnecting me with the passion of publishing.
Rob Neufeld, editor of The Making of a Writer and of our forthcoming volumes Working on the Ending, for his historical research on Asheville during World War II.
The late Gale D. Webbe for the invaluable chapter on his two summers spent working in construction at Oak Ridge in Sawdust and Incense:Worlds that Shape a Priest (St. Hilda’s Press, 1989).
A Note on the Author
GAIL GODWIN is a three-time National Book Award finalist and the bestselling author of thirteen critically acclaimed novels, including A Mother and Two Daughters, Violet Clay, The Finishing School, Father Melancholy’s Daughter, The Good Husband, and Evensong. She is also the author of The Making of a Writer: Journals, 1961–1963, and The Making of a Writer, Volume Two: Journals, 1963–1969, edited by Rob Neufeld. She has received a Guggenheim Fellowship, National Endowment for the Arts grants for both fiction and libretto writing, and the Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. With the composer Robert Starer, she has written ten musical works, including the chamber opera The Other Voice: A Portrait of St. Hilda of Whitby. Visit her website at www.gailgodwin.com.
By the Same Author
NOVELS
Unfinished Desires (2009)
Queen of the Underworld (2006)
Evenings at Five (2003)
Evensong (1999)
The Good Husband (1994)
Father Melancholy’s Daughter (1991)
A Southern Family (1987)
The Finishing School (1984)
A Mother and Two Daughters (1982)
Violet Clay (1978)
The Odd Woman (1974)
Glass People (1972)
The Perfectionists (1970)
STORY COLLECTIONS
Mr. Bedford and the Muses (1983)
Dream Children (1976)
NONFICTION
Heart: A Personal Journey Through Its Myths and Meanings (2001)
The Making of a Writer: Journals, 1961–1963 (2006)
The Making of a Writer, Volume Two: Journals, 1963–1969 (2011)
Copyright © 2013 by Gail Godwin
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. For information address Bloomsbury USA, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
Published by Bloomsbury USA, New York
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
library of congress cataloging- in- publication data
Godwin, Gail.
Flora : a novel / Gail Godwin.—1st U.S. ed.
p. cm.
eISBN: 978-1-62040-121-7
1. Girls—Fiction. 2. Guardian and ward—Fiction.
3. Bildungsromans. I. Title.
PS3557.O315F58 2013
813’.54—dc23
2012036741
First U.S. Edition 2013
This electronic edition published May 2013
www.bloomsbury.com
