Fans of southern novels that explore the complex relationships between white families and their black hired help will find a compelling story about race relations in Praise Jerusalem.

Amelia, an aging Georgia matron forced by money woes to move in with two other women - outlandishly preachy Maybelline and take-no-nonsense Mamie, who is black - begins to confront her childhood memories of the black women who worked for her family.

Their lives, both tragic and yet sublimely proud, haunt Amelia even now, as she searches for a way to make peace with the sorrows she innocently observed.

Praise Jerusalem is a rare mix of poignant drama but also wry humor. Both the elder Amelia and her childhood self are primly rebellious and irrepressible; Amelia's sharp eye for petty human foibles never fails her.