Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen by Susan Gregg Gilmore

Catherine Grace Cline wants to get the heck outta Dodge... or better said, the heck outta Ringgold, Georgia. There is just something about this town that just makes her restless - maybe it’s that it’s too quiet, or too small, or that it has a very small population - where everyone is your neighbor and they all know every little thing about your life. She and her sister spend every Saturday eating Dilly Bars at the Dairy Queen and plotting their big escape.

Catherine Grace lives with her father, the town’s Baptist Minister, as well as her younger sister. It’s been tough living without her momma, who accidentally drowned when she was young. And although she still misses her mother and has always been haunted by her passing, she has luckily found a mother figure in her mother’s best friend, Gloria Jean.

Gloria Jean is an inspiration to Catherine Grace. For no one in town looks, dresses or acts like Gloria Jean - with her pretty nails, always done-up hair and fancy clothes. So when the chance arrives for Catherine Grace to move out of town and live in the big city, Atlanta - working in a department store and leading the life she has always dreamed about, she has no qualms with saying good-bye to her family, friends and boyfriend.

But when tragedy strikes and Catherine Grace has to make her way back home - not just is she surprised when she realizes that nothing she believed was as she thought, but she will also question whether leaving her hometown was the best thing for her, or was she where she belonged from the start.

Catherine Grace's voice is so unique and innocent that you become immediately immersed in her life and that of the citizens of Ringgold from the first sentence. As you read, you almost feel as if you are reading with a Southern drawl... it was really very endearing. Her voice is that of anyone who grew up in a small town - with hopes of seeing the great big world. Although the decision to leave everything and everyone you've known your whole life is a tough one, it is one that must be made.

This was a very lovely story - with some fantastic characters and plenty of twists that will keep you interested and in the end leave you wanting more. This is a coming-of-age story that not only leaves you feeling hopeful but also with a big grin on your face. I loved it and can definitely recommend it.