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Show HBlaOBTalaOmN weaves a provocative tale that inter-twines the lives of her numerous characters, each struggling toward some meaBefore sure of peace and Hezekiah ev en sets out for Chalktow n. we are introduced to Susan Blair, his abusive mother, who fills their shabby clothhome with other peoples cast-of- f ing to sell on consignment, and Manon Calhoun, the Sheehand's black neighbor who is treated with derision by his white neighbors. As Hezekiah makes his way to Chalktow n, the plot and list of charac- ters expands like ripples from a stone throw n in a lake, but Haynes masterfully reins the ripples in, tying diverse elements like love and murder, racism and romance, kindness and cruelty into a cohesive, fasci- nating tale of hope and CHALKTOWN By Melinda Haynes REVIEW BY LINDA STAN KARO Imagine if you and jour nearest neighbors had chalkboards hanging outside your homes and rather than communicating by talking, you wrote messages to each other on these boards. While the medium might be so mew hat limiting, curtailing "dialogue to brief missives, it might prose liberating in other ways. Without having conto risk a frontation, or the entanglement of a protracted conversation, people might feel free to speak their minds, airing issues perhaps as openly as in the traditional chat over a cup of coffee or as curtly as the rigid warning sign, Beware of Dog. Melinda Haynes uses this face-to-fa- peculiar, yet intriguing premise to create an isolated and bizarre setting for her riveting new novel, Chalktown. The mysterious aura of Chalktown beckons Hezekiah Sheehand, a 16- -j ear-ol-d boy who literal- and has the figuratively ly weight of the world on his shoulders. One day he cuts school, bundles his mentally and physically disabled little brother, Yellababy, on his back, and heads out to visit this curious, small village. From this simple beginning, Haynes MaEaMao 3tlrt 1 COUNTRY MATTERS s j Liiula Stankard Tennessee. m ; i aeCs mistress Davitch of The Open Arms, a crumbling 19th century row house in Baltimore where giving parties is the family business suddenly asks herself whether she has turned into the wrong person. Is she really this natural-bor- n celebrator, joyous and out-givin- j ; i i g? Or cag Rebecca recover the person she has left behind? It is a question that touches us all and one that Anne Tyler explores with characteristic humor and wisdom in BACK WHEN WE WERE GROWNUPS. GmmraecnD (2Sn?D (SwqpP AlfredA Knopf v rites from Cookeville, miles north of New York City. Up to that at Simon & point, Korda, Schuster and a author, had been accustomed to living a cosmopolitan life, having been bom in England and spending time in Europe and Beverly Hills before finally settling in New York City. He met his wife Margaret, who had been bom into a farming family in England, while riding a horse through Central Park. Within a short time the two were married and searching for a place in the country where they could put down roots. Eventually, they found the house of their dreams and increasingly came to think of their country farmhouse as their home. On one level, Kordas book is a humorous look at what it takes to restore, repair and maintain an old house. The narratives real charm, however, lies in its depiction of the clash between Kordas original notions of genteel country living and the realities of modem rural life. Dutchess County, the Kordas find, is no rural idyll. Yet, despite all of the differences between these urbanites and the rural culture that surrounds them, they gradually come to feel at home, and it is their transformation from outsiders to community members that lies at the story's heart ef best-selli- By Michael Koala HarperCoKns, $26 IS8N 0060197722 REVIEW BY VIVIAN A. WAGNER Michael Korda's Country Matters belongs to a genre of books chronicling the lives of urbanites who forsake the luxuries of the city for the unpredictable joys and frustrations of rural life. Some of these books, such as Frances Mayes' Under the Tuscan Sun and Peter A Year in , redemption. Readers w ho reveled in the artistry of Haynes debut novel. Mother of Pearl (a highly acclaimed. New York Tunes bestseller and Oprah book club selec- lion) will be no less impressed with Chalktown. a stunning second book which reaffirms Haynes stature as a gifted writer and incredible storyteller. If I had a chalkboard outside my home and my neighbors were anxiously awaiting my words of wisdom regarding Haynes' latest book, 1 would simply go outside, pick up my chalk and write, Wow!" editor-in-chi- The Pleasures and Tribulations of Moving from a Big City to an Old Counby Farmhouse Mayles At 53, Rebecca self-respe- Hyperion, $23.95 ISBN 078686656X $26, ISSN 0743504559 f 5 . Provence, have an international flair. Others, such as Frank Levering and Wanda Urbanskas Simple Living: One Couple 's Search for a Better Life, bring the tale a bit closer to home. Wherever theyre set, such books are appealing most obviously, perhaps, to those who have made the plunge into country life and those who dream of doing so, but also, truth be told, to just about anyone anywhere who has ever owned and maintained a home. Kordas manifestation of this tale begins with the day over 20 years ago when he and his wife bought an 18th century farmhouse in Dutchess County, 90 . Vivian A. Wagner, Ph.D., writes from New Concord, Ohio. MAY2001 J?l: jwjWrtliM CMMfWl iwaT .fOOKSEULERS 5 iMlJUwt Riley's Daughter rnr ; nflwstppealngs ufci |