THE WIDOWS

Two widows in an Appalachian mining town in 1924 have nothing in common--until they discover a shared love for the same man and a remarkable courage to stand up for social justice. Narrator Susan Bennett portrays the resolve of well-bred Lily Ross, who is determined to discover who killed her husband, the sheriff. Bennett provides a less-mannered, slightly accented voice for Marvena Whitcomb, the illiterate widow of a miner who was killed in a mine collapse. Lily and Marvena reluctantly join forces to bravely support unionization, and Bennett isn't perfectly consistent in differentiating their voices in lengthy dialogues. But she believably portrays the male characters, especially the coldhearted Luther, who controls the mine and the financial survival of everyone in the town. N.M.C. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2019]