One of the previous posters wrote that this mini-series was based on a series of "supermarket novels." I would like to defend these books. I believe later editions printed in paperback were most likely designed with supermarket novel buyers in mind and at first glance would appear to be silly romances. Years ago I happened on an old paperback copy in a library with a caption reading, "Beulah Land. Where splendor mingled with shame and sex was as easy as laughing." This made ME LAUGH because I had just finished reading the series (in vintage hardback) and they're actually quite good and well-written. The miniseries is far too melodramatic compared to its source material. Sure, there are some historical inaccuracies in the books but all in all the characters are well-thought out. The characters of Sarah, Loretta and Annabelle are surprisingly real, in my opinion, and readers really get a chance to know them because they each remain fairly prominent throughout all three novels. Each remains entirely true to her character to the last.
