LUM

Narrator Janet Metzger's soft Southern drawl and subtle characterizations evoke the Shenandoah Valley of 1933 and its residents. For 33-year-old Columbia "Lum," home shifts with the seasons and whichever family member demands her labor. Amiably characterized, Lum learns she is intersex at a young age; her identity sends her on a lifelong search for affirmation. As farmers, townsfolk, and an insular mountain community face a proposal for the development of a scenic highway, Metzger uses charged tones to convey their roiling emotions. The narrative alternates between past and present, illuminating Lum's developing identity and the unfolding events. She soon finds herself caught between family obligation and her desire for personal fulfillment. Her optimism and tenacity, wonderfully conveyed in this performance, deliver rays of hope in a shifting, uncertain landscape. J.R.T. © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine [Published: FEBRUARY 2018]