Editor's Pick: The Unabridged Life of Missy Kinkaid by Kirsten Pursell
As its title suggests, Pursell’s novel follows Missy Kinkaid, a daughter, wife, divorcée, mother, and friend who’s lived in Sullivan’s Island, South Carolina most of her life. When Missy’s mother passes away, the spirited redhead is surprised to find herself falling to pieces in the cereal aisle. Her mother’s death forces her to revisit childhood trauma as well as past heartbreaks, tumultuous friendships, and everything that has worked to smother Missy’s free spirit, reminding her that “memories are not always so kind, actually more tortured than anything.” Through Missy’s complex journey of self-discovery, readers glimpse a poignant tale of coming to terms with the past, accepting the present, and daring to hope for a brighter future.
Though sprinkled with somber moments, Pursell’s writing also teems with passion and humor, transforming heartbreak into a study on how love can wrangle one’s soul into strange shapes. Friendships form the narrative’s beating heart, but these aren’t neat, perfect friendships: they’re messy, hurtful, and sometimes downright spiteful. Still, at the end of the day, those friendships serve as the scaffolding in Missy’s life, allowing her to rebuild and embrace new beginnings. As readers learn that Missy’s mother spent her later years in a psychiatric institute, they also grasp the push-and-pull of those early experiences, as Missy probes the memories of her mother’s hate, her father’s unwavering love, and her own self-perceived failures as an adult woman.
At times, Pursell (Finding Scarlet) veers into a kind of simplistic sentimentality, and in moments of dramatic exposition, the writing can feel slightly stilted. But that doesn’t detract from the narrative’s pull, particularly for readers who are learning what it means to grow up, fall out of love, and understand who they truly are. Missy is the quintessence of how age often softens edges, a reminder that life’s small moments of joy and connection can, with time, eclipse the pain and regret.