Laurie Frankel

This fictional story could certainly be a true story ripped from the pages of your local newspaper. It concerns the town of Bourne whose residents thought they hit the jackpot when a chemical company chose their little town to produce their product. Within a short period of time women began having miscarriages, residents were dying of cancer and babies were born with abnormalities. The main children we follow are the triplets, Mab, Monday and Mirabel, aka 1, 2 and 3. Each has varying degrees of afflictions. Their mother Nora has been seeking retribution from the now defunct company with the towns backing until.....the chemical company wants to return with a new and improved product. That decision tears the town apart.
The conclusion felt rushed and not realistic.
The serious subject matter is lightened by humor and the quirkiness of Bourne and its residents.
We had a very good discussion of this novel and I'd recommend it for book discussion groups, maybe even yours.… (more)

Laurie Frankel's "One Two Three" takes place in Bourne, a small American town that, seventeen years earlier, was the site of an environmental tragedy. When the owners of Belsum, a chemical company, opened a plant and hired locals to work there, some thought this was a great opportunity to raise everyone's standard of living. Soon, however, the air began to reek; Bourne's water supply turned foul; and the inhabitants started coming down with unusual medical conditions. The Mitchells were particularly hard hit. Nora's husband died of cancer, and two out of her three triplets were born with neurological and/or physical challenges.

The title comes from the sixteen-year-old triplets' nicknames. Mab is known as "one," Monday is "two," and Mirabel is "three." These resourceful and resilient teenagers, who narrate alternating chapters, adore Nora, their hard-working and compassionate mother. Nora Mitchell tends bar, bakes pastries, is Bourne's therapist, and take meticulous care of Mirabel, a wheelchair-bound adolescent who speaks with the aid of special technology. Mab aspires to go to college, Monday (who is autistic) has been the unofficial librarian of Bourne since the regular library closed down, and Mirabel not only keeps the books for her mother's boss, but is also a source of arcane facts and sound advice.

This is a darkly humorous, heartrending, and achingly poignant tale about the ties that bind us, and the obstacles encountered by those who want to make corrupt people pay for their transgressions. The plot centers on the unexpected arrival in Bourne of Duke Templeton's son, Nathan, who moves with his family into the town's former library. Nathan's father is the person whose factory released emissions that contaminated Bourne's air and water in the first place. Now Nathan is planning to open a new and—he claims—safer plant that he confidently announces will bring renewed prosperity to Bourne. Nora, who for years has tried in vain to bring a successful class-action lawsuit against Belsum, is enraged. The Mitchells are the book's heart and soul. Nora and her girls squabble occasionally, but they give one another unwavering support and, in addition, do what they can to help their beleaguered neighbors. "One Two Three" is an eloquent, stylishly written, and engaging David and Goliath story that is told from the perspective of three quirky and endearing sisters.… (more)