Morning Is A Long Time Coming (1999) - Plot & Excerpts
Reviewed for THC Reviews"4.5 stars" Although there doesn't seem to be an official series title, Morning Is a Long Time Coming is a sequel to Bette Greene's modern classic, young-adult novel, Summer of My German Soldier. Since that book had a decidedly unsatisfying ending, I was glad to see that Ms. Geene had written a follow-up. I had always felt that there were many reviewers who mis-characterized Summer of My German Soldier as a romance. I didn't really see it as such for a number of reasons, not the least of which was the 10-year age difference between Patty and Anton and the fact that she was still just a girl when they met. Love can take many different forms, and although Patty and Anton cared for each other deeply, I was never 100% convinced that what they shared was a romantic sort of love. Nevertheless, Patty does begin this book with unresolved issues surrounding her time with Anton. Undoubtedly, a lot of reviewers will view Morning Is a Long Time Coming as even more of a romance than the first book, because of Patty's relationship with Roger, a young Frenchman she meets in Paris (which I will concede is definitely of the romantic variety), but at it's heart, this book is totally about Patty's journey of self-discovery of which Roger is just one part. He brings joy and happiness to her life that she had never known before, but ultimately, Patty must vanquish her demons on her own.When we first meet up with Patty again, she is now a young woman just graduating from high school, but the frightened, hurt little girl is still there, as is her burning need to belong to someone. Of course, her parents think her crazy for wanting to spend her graduation money on a trip to Europe, but that's exactly what she does with a plan in the back of her mind to meet Anton's mother, thinking that she can receive from her what Patty's own mother was never willing or able to give. Of course, the best laid plans often go awry, especially when the person who makes them is relying on someone else to provide emotional security. I felt that in the six years between books, Patty had grown and matured. She engaged in a fair bit of self-analysis, as well as trying to figure out her parents, why they were abusive toward her and why she never seemed to be able to please them no matter what she did. I could really relate to Patty feeling like a square peg in a round hole. She discovers that she is pretty socially inept with her peers which isn't too surprising. Some of that comes from a lack of self-confidence that was beaten out of her all her life by parents who constantly criticized and were physically, emotionally and mentally abusive. The rest is quite simply that Patty truly is different in the way she thinks and perceives the world around her. She is more open-minded than most about those who are different from her and truly wants to give of herself to help others. It's what drove her to assist Anton all those years ago, even knowing that it might lead to more trouble than she could imagine, and her quest to understand this part of herself still drives her now. In fact, all of these things weigh so heavily on her that it makes her physically ill. Once she is out of her stifling hometown, Patty finally feels a freedom she's never known, yet I wasn't too surprised to see that the first young man she felt attracted to on the voyage to Europe was just like her father, critical, demanding and temperamental. She is definitely a classic case of an abused person gravitating toward what is familiar and comfortable even if it isn't good for her. I was glad to see that didn't last long, and when Patty got to Paris and met Roger, it was like she became a whole different person around him. It was uplifting to finally see her laugh and smile, but those old demons still lurked in the background, keeping Roger at arms length. When Patty finally made her decision to go to Germany, I understood her obsession with needing to meet Anton's mother, but at the same time, I agreed on some level with Roger that he deserved better considering all that they had shared.Roger is the only supporting player with a meaty role in this book, but since the entire story is written in first-person perspective from Patty's point of view, we don't get a lot of deep insights into his character. However, there were just enough relationship scenes for me to really like him. He is a gentle, free-spirit who is the perfect foil for Patty's more serious nature. I liked that Roger was a gentleman. He very easily could have taken advantage of Patty when she got drunk once, but instead took care of her and waited for her to sober up before trying to take things any further. Throughout their time together he was tender and sweet, but at the same time, those wonderful qualities are what make Patty a bit suspicious of him and his motives, because she has only ever known men who were hard and cynical. In many ways, Roger understood Patty even better than she understood herself, but when her obsession with somehow making Anton's family the family she never had finally reared its ugly head, he was understandably upset and said some hurtful things. Luckily, Roger was a very forgiving man who truly did love Patty and wanted to make a life with her.There were certain elements in Summer of My German Soldier which has caused it to have a long-time place on the most banned/challenged books list, and Morning Is a Long Time Coming followed suit with some of the same potentially objectionable content while upping the maturity level. Though not pervasive, there are some mild and religious profanities peppered throughout the book as well as racial slurs against Mexicans and African Americans, including several uses of the “n” word. Patty smokes a couple of times, drinks wine on a few occasions and one time consumes a stronger alcoholic beverage, getting drunk. Patty's father threatens to beat her, and her parents are abusive. There is mention of Patty's father having “taken advantage” of young ladies, and some mild discussion of sex in general including but not limited to Patty's parents thinking she's sexually active and possibly pregnant, and a classmate who earned a colorful nickname for apparently messing around with the boys. There is also one love scene between Patty and Roger that ends in a cut scene with no real details, but some may find it troublesome that the couple have just met at that point and then live together for the next few months without being married. Additionally, the complexities of Patty's emotions may be difficult for even adults to understand, so in that respect, I thought it had more the feel of an adult novel. However, in spite of all this, I still did not feel that there was anything that older teens couldn't handle especially with parental or educator guidance. As a parent, I wouldn't object to my 15 year old reading it.Morning Is a Long Time Coming is a story that delves fairly deeply and realistically into the psyche of an abused person and her efforts to make sense of that in order to carve a meaningful place for herself in the world. For that reason alone, I thought the book was emotionally touching and deserved kudos. That said though, I couldn't help wanting the ending to be a little more solid than it was, which is why I knocked off the half star. By the time I finished the book, I did believe that Patty had learned some valuable insights about herself and life in general and was finally on the right road. It was just that her peace did not feel quite complete to me, but then again, she was still very young with much ahead of her and this type of recovery is always a lifelong journey. Although as I've already said, I fully realize that this story was not really meant as a romance, the hopeless romantic in me also wanted an HEA for Patty and Roger, mainly because I thought they complimented each other well, and after everything she'd been through Patty quite simply deserved it. The way it wrapped up felt like more of an HFN (happy for now) ending, but at least, I felt like they had a strong chance to make it work on a more permanent basis. Overall, I liked Morning Is a Long Time Coming very much. It has earned a spot on my keeper shelf and with two lovely books in a row, Bette Greene has earned a spot on my favorite authors list. She is a writer who is good at expressing the emotional and psychological complexities of her characters and who doesn't seem to be afraid to explore issues of marginalization or other controversial topics. I love these types of stories, so this makes me eager to check out the other books she has written soon.
In the spirit of summer reading lists of yore, I thought I'd focus on another book that was on one of the many lists I went through. Or rather the sequel to one of those books--MORNING IS A LONG TIME COMING--the sequel to Summer of My German Soldier. Reading Summer of My German Soldier kind of wrecked my twelve-year-old self. I loved it, but man did it hurt. I was on Patty's side from the beginning and I was frankly horrified at the way her family treated her. Particularly her atrocious mother. In fact, it was probably the pains she suffered at the hands of her parents that lingered in my heart far longer than the loss of her sweet friend. I remember being outraged and bereft at the end of it, having come up hard against Patty's many injustices, both social and personal. It's a beautiful book, but man does it hurt. Fortunately, this lovely sequel went a long way toward healing that hurt. Just as it did for Patty. And every time I read it it makes me want to go to sleep and wake up in Paris.MORNING IS A LONG TIME COMING opens six years after the events of Summer of My German Soldier. Patty is graduating from Jenkinsville High and heading to visit her grandparents in Memphis to celebrate. While there, they present her with a check for college and she begins entertaining the possibility of fulfilling her dream and traveling to Europe to find Anton's mother. Unable to set the circumstances of his death behind her, Patty longs to meet his family and explain her story to the mother of her friend. Against the wishes of her family (and the entire closeminded population of Jenkinsville), she sets sail for Europe, making a few friends on the voyage who help her come out of her shell a little and who remind her there is so much more to the world than Arkansas. In Paris, Patty meets a young photographer and English instructor name Roger who opens up another view of the world to Patty. And even as she experiences a happiness and freedom she has never known before, her obsession with Anton's death and with finding and meeting his mother rears its head, lurks in the back of her mind, pressing on her, prodding her to leave Paris and Roger for Germany and the possibilities it represents.I love this book. It is such a simple, sweet story. And I love it as a sequel because, even set six years later, it addresses the implications of its predecessor with just as much gravity and attention as they deserve. Patty was just twelve years old when she met Anton. The fact that she has reached the legal age of adulthood has nothing on the power of the impressions that were made at that tender age. At the same time, I was proud of how strong she'd gotten in the interim. She stood up to her mother and father, she defied everyone who ever told her she was dirt and she left them in the dust and traveled to the Old World, which for her was so breathtakingly new. It's a fine line presenting a protagonist with a true obsession. And Patty was a slave to hers. But she was cognizant of it. That fact is what always strikes me about her. She knows it's killing her, dragging her under with its constant emotional assault. And yet she moves through it, trying to keep her head above water and do the right thing and accomplish what it takes to lay her ghosts to rest and move on with her life. I love her for her doggedness and her earnestness. And I love Roger for his quintessential Frenchness and for the wholehearted and compassionate way he embraces life and Patty. Few people read beyond the first book. Many don't even know this one exists and it deserves so much more than that. Recommended for fans of Eva Ibbotson (particularly A Song for Summer) and Madeleine L'Engle's And Both Were Young.
What do You think about Morning Is A Long Time Coming (1999)?
I loved Summer of My German Soldier when I read it in the 70's in 5th or 6th grade. So I reread it as an adult. It still had much of the same appeal, but with the awareness now of the profanity and depressing life this young girl lived. The ending left so many questions, I was excited to learn there was a sequel. Unfortunately, the sequel didn't live up to the original except for the language and that Patty's depressing life continued. What this girl needed was serious therapy and counseling. Bu
—L Frost
Wow, after reading Summer of My German Soldier, this book really didn't compare. In the first book you really sympathize with the characters, even the 'bad' ones sometimes, even though they do cruel and unreasonable things. In Morning is a Long Time Coming, I really didn't feel empathy with any of the characters, and I tried. Instead of discovering herself and her own self-worth, as I expected from the first book, Patty seemed determined to be insecure and bitchy, judging everything based on what her parents did, and basing her self-esteem on a guy. Patty did learn some things about herself, but I felt most of the book was Patty thinking deeply (and incomprehensibly) about life, while not really getting anything accomplished or decided. All in all, I really think the sequel was pointless since it didn't show Patty gaining her independence in a healthy, mature way.
—Provost
his is the sequel to Summer of My German Soldier, which I never knew existed until I stumbled across it at a used book sale. Summer of My German Soldier was one of my favorite books as a preteen, so I was looking forward to reading the follow-up, especially as I recently re-read the original. I didn’t think a sequel was necessary, and the story told in the book was pretty much what I expected - just extra happenings. There was really nothing that needed closure or expanding upon. I was actually frustrated by much of the book, because Patty still seemed immature even at 18, and her being the disliked child of the family was a little over the top. I’d still recommend the first novel to younger readers, but I wouldn’t necessarily push the sequel
—Allison
