The Evolution of Annabel Craig: A Novel

The layered and timely latest from Grunwald (Time After Time) revolves around the 1925 Scopes Monkey Trial. Orphaned at age 16 in the 1918 flu pandemic, Annabel Craig counts herself lucky to have found domestic bliss with her lawyer husband, George. Then a client of George’s is acquitted for murder and subsequently kills his young son and himself, prompting George to retreat emotionally from Annabel and disappear for days on end. When Annabel reports she’s had a miscarriage, George fails to express concern for her well-being. His old spark returns, however, when he joins Clarence Darrow’s defense team in the case against high school teacher John Scopes for violating a Tennessee law prohibiting the teaching of evolution. Annabel, who grew up attending one of the local Methodist churches, finds her initial preference for populist preacher and prosecutor William Jennings Bryan challenged during the trial. Her assumptions about women’s place in marriage and society are likewise shaken by Lottie Nelson, an ambitious young reporter covering the case. Grunwald provides vivid depictions of the influx of reporters and expert witnesses into small-town Dayton, Tenn., as well as a nuanced and well-rounded view of the religious townspeople. With book bans and anti-trans legislation tearing apart school districts, Grunwald’s evenhanded historical speaks volumes to the present day. Agent: Julie Barer, Book Group. (Apr.)