What did you think of the path each sibling's life took in the Epilogue? How do you see their lives proceeding? Which do you feel will fare well?

What did you think of the path each sibling's life took in the Epilogue? How do you see their lives proceeding? Which do you feel will fare well?

It seems as if each of them has found some measure of peace. Junior will now be who he is - even if Simon doesn't take him back. Losing his job helped him return to his roots and he's finding he's good at carpentry after all.

Mance - after many false steps - has benefited sufficiently from the shady dealings with Shad to afford to pay for his deaf son's implants and to marry and support Lisha. He no longer fears for his son's future.

CeCe realizes that her drive for money which she thought meant she had to leave Diggs, has only brought her heartache - not to mention jail time and that Ellis is what she really needs and wants.

Tokey seems to have decided to take control of her life and has a new relationship with her siblings. (However, I am still not sure she was actually King's daughter. Hazel's letter said otherwise and Miss Jessie's reassurances didn't seem convincing to me.)
unite
The razing of the house seemed cathartic for all of them and definitely united them as a family and seemed to heal past wounds.

I think they were all able to move forward with their lives. I agree with Lyris that the razing of the house was cathartic for them.

With understanding themselves better and with understanding one another better, I think each of the children will feel they can move forward in their lives and find happiness and acceptance with each other. The razing of the house would be a new beginning for all of them.

I was so thankful the author gave an update about each family member at the end of the novel. I think that Tokey will fare the best of the siblings because her problem was not a big obstacle. I think Mance will have the most difficult time in the future because of his hot temper. Having a child with a disability will not suit him well. Junior will have trouble finding another job in the field of Education.

Not perfect, but it should not be. All four siblings have made mistakes they cannot "undo." They seem to be headed toward decent futures. Satisfactory ending.

The raising of the house was a dramatic point for the siblings. It seemed taken from the scene in Forrest Gump, when Forrest tears down Jenny's house for her. But it did not make them a family unit. They each have could a good future ahead, but nothing indicated they would be family to each other.

I was proudest of Tokey. She may have still been alone, but she started getting out there. I feel like she transformed from someone looking for something outside herself so a person who started being happy with who she was on her own. I think she realized happiness has to come from within; you can't rely on others for it.

I think they will each move on with their lives. They seem to have gotten closer and found a way forward. They have become a family.

They have each come to a place of honesty with themselves and their siblings. Finding out about their mother was healing for all of them and to be able to talk to each other about it seemed to give them all a fresh start. They will each grow from everything that happened and hopefully they will be a less dysfunctional family!

They will all come to terms with their pasts, and pay their dues, especially CeCe, and then move forward. I think they will move on in different directions but return to their land as some families return to the family home. They will be there for one another, but their lives will not be meshed. They have lifted the burden their father laid on their shoulders and come to terms with whatever guilt they feel about it.