The Sweetest Hallelujah

By: Elaine Hussey

Narrated by: Natalie Ross

An unforgettable story of two courageous women brought together by one extraordinary little girl

Betty Jewel Hughes was once the hottest black jazz singer in Memphis. But when she finds herself pregnant and alone, she gives up her dream of being a star to raise her beautiful daughter, Billie, in Shakerag, Mississippi. Now, ten years later, in 1955, Betty Jewel is dying of cancer and looking for someone to care for Billie when she’s gone. With no one she can count on, Betty Jewel does the unthinkable: she takes out a want ad seeking a loving mother for her daughter.

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, recently widowed Cassie Malone is an outspoken housewife insulated by her wealth and privileged white society. Working part-time at a newspaper, she is drawn to Betty Jewel through her mysterious ad. With racial tension in the South brewing, the women forge a bond as deep as it is forbidden. But neither woman could have imagined the gifts they would find in each other, and in the sweet young girl they both love with all their hearts. Deeply moving and richly evocative, The Sweetest Hallelujah is a remarkable tale about finding hope in a time of turmoil, and about the transcendent and transformative power of friendship.

©2013 Peggy Webb (P)2013 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Life in the South in the mid-50's, tear jerker.

Wonderful saga of two women from opposite sides of the tracks brought together by the scoundrel men they loved that did them wrong. It's a lot more complicated than that set in the middle of very ugly times in U.S. history. The challenges they overcome and hardships they face together, are skillfully intertwined amidst life and death situations. It's a good read.