Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells

A wildly entertaining novel of life long friendships, mother daughter relationships, loss, love and the south.

Siddalee ("Sidda") is directing a play and during an interview with the New York Times, accidentally lets slip some not-so-flattering stories about her mother, Viviane ("Vivi"), going so far as calling her a "tap-dancing child abuser".

Vivi lets known her displeasure by basically disowning Sidda compelling her wildly original and flamboyantly southern group of lady friends to come to the rescue to reunite mother and daughter.

These lovely ladies (known as The Ya Ya Sisterhood) are:
Aimee ("Teensy") known to the sisterhood as "Princess Naked as a Jaybird" 
Denise ("Necie") known to the sisterhood as "Countess Singing Cloud" 
Caroline ("Caro") known to the sisterhood as "Duchess Soaring Hawk"
and, of course,
Viviane "Vivi", known to the sisterhood as "Queen Dancing Creek"

Minus her mother, these other wonderful women bring Sidda to an isolated cabin on a lake and explain to her the facts of her mother's life that Sidda had never known. They share a scrap book that contains previously unknown stories and family secrets long buried that help Sidda to see and understand better both her mother's attributes as well the understandable reasons for her failures.

A remarkable story, this is part of the "Ya Ya Trilogy", along with "Little Altars Everywhere" and "Ya Ya's in Bloom", they are all worth reading.

I really loved this one!