Sea Glass is a historical fiction set during the periods of Great Depression of 1930s at the USA and it is effect on the villagers of Ely Falls. I finished the book only when I was travelling in train – so took not more than 6 hours. I no longer remember where I picked the book from even and was avoiding reading as the blurb was little “boring” *am hiding away*
The lives of Honora Willard, Sexton Beecher, Alphonse, McDermott, Vivian Burton and Alicia Williard are intertwined by circumstances and actions. The novel begins with Honora, who was a teller at a bank and Sexton settling into a new house they on their wedding day. Sexton a salesman of typewriter with strong career aspirations settles into married life without a problem. Honora learns to love him, her way into marriage and making ends meet with help of her mother Alicia Williard through her letters. Vivian a rich and independent woman, buys a house in the neighborhood just to help her friend out during the Wall Street crash. McDermott, 21 and Alphonse, 11 are loom workers where the working conditions and pay are poor leading to unsatisfactory labourers and McDermott takes Alphonse under his wings as one would do with a younger brother. Honora slowly comes to know about her husband’s habit of lying for the business and hiding things from her as a general and Sexton eventually joins the loom industry as he is thrown out of his job due to his dishonest loan appropriation.
The impending strike makes the central characters get close to each other as they troop plan the strike strategy from Sexton’s house and using his typewriter, under the leadership of Louis – a communist and monetary and mental strength from Vivian. Alphonse quits his work and joins as a page boy and he gets attached to Honora as well, while McDermott and Honora fall for each other. The team works well together and in spite of the bleak future they have fun together. Sexton starts getting restless being at the back end away from action and proposes the group to use guns which gets instantly dismissed with his wife voting against it as well. The same day she finds out her husband has been cheating her. At the end Sexton shoots at a cop and then gets shot. The group assemble at Alphonse’s house trying to save dying Sexton instead everyone gets shot by gunmen except the ladies and Alphonse.