comment on theme

There is a pronounced focus on religion in this novel. Catherine Grace's father is a preacher, and the life of the town revolves around church activity. When he passes away, the whole town mourns. Gloria Jean, who is by all accounts a "good person" based on her treatment of the Cline girls and her involvement in the town. However, she is not seen as such because of her many divorces and departures from Christian "values."

Reverend Cline's adherence to the Christian faith also affects how he raises the girls and the expectations he sets for them; how well Catherine attaches to this faith is affected by her mother's death when she is 6 years old. The grief over her mother changes how she sees God and His will.

When Catherine moves to Atlanta, she sees herself as Moses, and her journey to the city as an Exodus. During this part of the novel her attitude towards God is more favorable, because she sees her life moving in the direction she likes.

Later in the novel, religion plays a part in Catherine's story because it requires a measure of grace and forgiveness towards her parents; towards her mother for faking her death and allowing them to think she was dead, and towards her father for carrying on an illicit affair with Miss Raines ending in her pregnancy. This change of the heart requires a deeper understanding and acceptance of Christianity's teachings on forgiveness.