Shem Creek

Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

Meet Linda Breland, single parent of two teenage daughters—one of whom is headed off to college. Between that and the married men, the cold New Jersey winters, her pinched wallet, and her ex-husband who marries a beautiful, successful woman ten years younger than she is—let’s just say, Linda has seen enough to fill a thousand pages. Now, she’s bound for Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, the magical landscape of her ancestors. Welcomed by the help of her advice-dispensing sister and an intriguing ex–investment banker turned restaurant owner, Linda slowly begins to find her way and realize that she too is entitled to a second chance . . .

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Frank’s warm, lively writing style, fine handle on pacing, and truthful insights about mother-daughter relationships are the highlights of this book.”

 

“[Frank] combines evocative descriptions of the place and its culture with rollicking tales of middle-age women making a fresh start in work and love.”

 

“Having
Shem Creek
in your possession will be a great excuse to get in one more weekend at the beach.”

 

“Fans no doubt will love it . . . few can capture an over-the-top colorful voice better than Frank.”

 

“This delightful book embraces characters that will not soon be forgotten . . . You’ll enjoy your visit to Shem Creek.”

 

 

 

“
Isle of Palms
is as light and gratifying as a sand dollar just washed to shore . . . The author and Anna like to remind folks of the things that matter most: finding inner peace, learning to forgive and cherishing friends who become family.”

 

“A fun beach read.”

 

“[A] page-turner.”

 

“Dorothea Benton Frank is the bad girl of southern fiction—the bad, bad girl. Her books are funny, sexy, and usually damp with seawater.”

—Pat Conroy

 

“Entertaining.”

 

“[Frank] defies convention and weaves comically twisted plot lines for each of her characters . . . Fans of
Sullivan’s Island
and
Plantation
will not be disappointed . . . Anna’s narration makes
Isle of Palms
stand out.”

 

 

SULLIVAN’S ISLAND

 

“Blazingly authentic . . . A rich read.”

—Publishers Weekly
(starred review)

 

“Hilarious and wise, an up-to-the-minute report on what it is like to be alive and female in the South Carolina Lowcountry today. It contains the funniest sex scene I have ever encountered.”

—Pat Conroy

 

“Dottie Frank’s take on the South Carolina Lowcountry is tough, tender, achingly real, and very, very funny.
Sullivan’s Island
roars with life.”

—Anne Rivers Siddons

 

“In
Sullivan’s Island,
southern womanhood has found a new voice, and it is outrageous, hilarious, relentless, and impossible to ignore.”

—John Berendt

 

“One heck of a beach book . . . Frank keeps you reading compulsively.”

 

 

 

“Effortlessly evokes the lush beauty of the South Carolina Lowcountry while exploring the complexities of family relationships . . . Readers will enjoy immersing themselves in the lives of these deftly drawn, heartfelt characters.”

—Publishers Weekly
(starred review)

 

“Think Terry McMillan meets Rebecca Wells by way of the Deep South and you’ll be barking up the right bayou.”

—The Mirror
(London)

PAWLEYS ISLAND
SHEM CREEK
ISLE OF PALMS
PLANTATION
SULLIVAN’S ISLAND

Penguin Group (Canada), 10 Alcorn Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M4V 3B2, Canada
(a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Group Ireland, 25 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.)
Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia
(a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.)
Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi—110 017, India
Penguin Group (NZ), Cnr. Airborne and Rosedale Roads, Albany, Auckland 1310, New Zealand
(a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.)
Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196,
South Africa

 

Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

 

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

 

SHEM CREEK

 

A Berkley Book / published by arrangement with the author

 

Copyright © 2004 by Dorothea Benton Frank.

 

All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form
without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in
violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
For information, address: The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.

 

eISBN : 978-1-101-53323-9

 

BERKLEY
^®
Berkley Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
BERKLEY is a registered trademark of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
The “B” design is a trademark belonging to Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

 

 

 

The ripe earth swells,
splitting its skin
into waterways
scattered and winding
in every direction,
releasing winds
that carve the land
to shreds. Where
sun-filled clumps
of spartina, smoothed
into supplicating rows
of bent heads crowd
the edges of Shem Creek,
marsh wrens build
their tiny nests.
As if they are playing
hide and go seek,
porpoises appear
then disappear
below the water.
Fish birds are everywhere
littering the sky:
egrets, herons, and terns,
oyster catchers, pelicans,
gulls diving and turning
through the thick air.

As the creek weaves
through treeless subdivisions,
strip malls, and concrete,
it gathers everything
from oil, soap, and gasoline
to tires and old refrigerators.
Run-off fills the oyster beds
with unpronounceable toxins.

Arsenic and mercury
drift through the water
in invisible clouds,
as if no one will notice.

Beyond the clutter of traffic
seafood restaurants,
hotels, bars, and parking lots,
docked shrimp boats,
bobbing up and down
beside the docks,
wait where the creek
divides oil from water
and opens into the endless sea.

 

 

—MARJORY HEATH WENTWORTH
South Carolina Poet Laureate

In the making of a book there are many hands besides those of the author. I would like to thank the following people who gladly picked up the phone, sent information and answered my questions and gave me their support: Tim Mink of Poe’s Tavern on Sullivan’s Island; Dana Beach, Nancy Vinson, and Jane Lareau of the South Carolina Coastal Conservation League; Fred Holland, Ph.D.; Nancy Rhyne of Pawleys Island; Vickie Crafton and Tom Warner of Litchfield Books; Tom Schaefer of Atlanta; Michael F. Nickell and Trisha Boorman of Cypress restaurant in Charleston; Dr. Ian Smith of New York; Nathalie Dupree of Charleston, South Carolina; and Mark Hiebel of the Renaissance Grand Beach Hotel in St. Thomas. Huge thanks to Diane Razzano and Bella Kovtun of Atlantic Express, Staten Island, New York, especially for the cookies!

Special thanks to Mary Allen of Montclair, New Jersey, for resurrecting my computer from its many crashes and to George Zur for his technical expertise on numerous occasions in all areas pertaining to my Web site.

To Marjory Wentworth, South Carolina Poet Laureate, for the creation and use of her exquisite poem “Shem Creek,” I am always and forever in awe of your enormous talent and grateful to the skies for your friendship.