Half Moon Lake

For the wealthy Davenport family, life in pre-WWI Louisiana is good. Summers at their holiday house at Half Moon Lake are languid, genteel affairs, with the children playing outdoors and Negro slaves serving drinks and elaborate meals when guests visit. But in the summer of 1913, life abruptly changes for John Henry and Mary Davenport. Their three sons go into the forest to practise their Scout manoeuvres and only two come home. Hundreds of men join the search for four-year-old Sonny to no avail.

Two years later, when life has resumed but can never return to normal, a boy who looks like Sonny is found travelling with a tramp. The Davenports say he is Sonny but Grace Mill, an unwed farm worker, says he is her son Ned. The tramp is charged with kidnapping and the stage is set for a sensational trial where two desperate mothers will fight to prove the boy is their son. Will the jury believe a young unwed mother’s word over that of a wealthy, respectable family?

Inspired by real life disappearance of Bobby Dunbar, this is a powerful novel that examines the nature of identity and family bonds. Life in the south is evocatively described, from the landscape to the social politics, the plight of black slaves and the fate of orphaned children who are auctioned off. Wealth, power and prejudice all play a role in dictating the outcome of the trial. Has the trauma of losing her son clouded Mary’s judgment? How far will John Henry go to keep his wife and marriage safe?

As a parent, I found it difficult to read about the disappearance of a child, but Alexander’s thoughtful novel kept me engrossed and raised plenty of questions that had me thinking about the book long after I finished.

Reviewed by Melinda Woledge