I liked this novel. However at times I thought it glossed overmany of the serious racial issues of the day. Breena Clarke has a niceeasy relaxed style which lends itself well to the subject matter. River Cross My Heart paints a graceful and profound portrait of life in an entire community in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington DC, 1925. I liked the portrayal of the closeness of the Afican-American family during this time and the sense of community which is efffectively described. The initial tragedy at the beginning of the novel does not diminish the affectionate eye that Clarke has for small town life. River Cross my Heart is a pleasant if not mediocre read. I feel though that it is certainly not one of the best Oprah Book Club books.

Imagine living in North Carolina noy many years after slavery was abolished. This African-American family wanted to get out of the south where oppression was at an all time high and move to the north to raise their family in a what they considered to be a better town . . Georgetown that is. Georgetown was thought to be a safe haven for "colored folks" back in that day. This town is too segregated this community holds it binds together to make through. This book centers around Johnnie Mae a young child who is forced to deal with why the world is the way it is. It centers around the community swimming pool, the water is beautiful, it is brand new, and it it for whites only. Johnnie Mae loved to swim and was an excellent swimmer by nature. She had the responsibility of watching after her younger sister, Clara. While Johnnie Mae is cooling off in the Potomac River, her younger sister Clara drowns, and Johnnie Mae feels responsible.

This story is about Johnnie Mae trying to find her place in the world, to figure out who she is. The only way to do it, is to swim. But Johnnie Mae's obsession with swimming was her parents hatred because of their beloved daugther lost in the river.

This book really made you think about life as you read. The author touched on some very strong feelings when she talked about how her mother greived her daughter's death. This book shows how the African-American community deals with life, death, racism, placism, and about the river across many of our hearts. Well done Breena Clark, well done.

River Cross My Heart touched my heart. I grew up in Washington DC and now I work in Georgetown. I walk the same streets mentioned in the book and took my own 'self-guided walking tour' of Georgetown while I was reading. I believe the focus of this book is Johnnie Mae and her coming of age, not Clara. Johnnie Mae has plenty to deal with such as her slow blooming figure, her longing to swim in the pool, acceptance by her step-father, her own guilt/stress over the death of little Clara, her new friend, Pearl (or the ghost of Clara), and her new baby brother. I think Miss Johnnie Mae Bynum was searching for her niche in the world and she found it through swimming. Unfortunately, her little sister died in the process. This book really hit home for me and touched my heart. It has quickly become a personal classic that I will re-read again and again.