A Mother
"Violet Clay" (1978) and "A Mother and Two Daughters" (1982) are each about an unmarried protagonist's career in a creative profession. In "A Mother and Two Daughters" the main character resists the temptation to get married and chooses instead to focus on her work. "A Mother and Two Daughters" and "A Southern Family" (1987) each depend heavily on a southern setting and employ themes traditionally associated with social problems in the South. Some of their themes include racial discrimination, social-economic class and the cultural differences between generations. Many characters struggle to reduce the gap between the rich and poor or try to break free from a dominant cultural tradition, with mixed success.