The Oliver Mackenzie, carrying a show boat troupe, plied its way up the Mississippi River each Spring from St. Louis to New Orleans and back again in the Fall. In November, 1916, the season was mild and the old boat traveled up the Wisconsin as far as Sac Prairie, where the captain docked to give a performance of "Uncle Tom's Cabin." They had been nursing the leading lady through an attack of appendicitis and when they reached Sac Prairie she was too ill to play. But a young amateur actress in town who knew the part of Little Eva was recruited for the performance, and when the Oliver Mackenzie steamed away that night Jennie Breen was aboard eager to take the first step toward a great theatrical career. She had no regret about leaving home because she had been badly treated by her parents and she hated little towns, but she was sorry to desert Davey, her childhood sweetheart, who could not leave his mother to follow her.

There are several vivid descriptions of river life and of the Sac Prairie atmosphere, but ["Sweet Genevieve"] is a series of predictable incidents taken from the yellow pages of stock…. You know that ultimately young love will conquer all obstacles; but if the author makes you believe it, it is because he has drawn a skillful picture of Davey, the boy who waits back home, the only credible character of them all.

The author is at his best when he gives us the flavor of the seasons, the life in the river towns and the refreshing spirit of young love. Many of his observations about the actions of his characters, however, suffer from overamplification. If he's in doubt about your missing the point at any time, he all but draws a picture for you. His style also suffers from top-heavy modifying clauses, the kind that imprison a thought instead of releasing it.

In spite of all that, it is a pleasant story. The easy motion of the river runs through it. You get the small town feeling, and understand not only why Jennie wanted to leave it but also why she wanted to come back. If you like them slow and sweet and sentimental and if you don't mind being able to guess what's going to happen twenty pages ahead of time, then "Sweet Genevieve" is for you.