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Apparently, this is the tale of an old woman reminiscing to a younger one about her life in a small town in Alabama, and the changes which take place as the American South moves from its racist past to the more inclusive present. It can be read like that, and enjoyed for its simplicity, its easy pace, and engaging characters. But perceptive readers who go beyond the facade will unearth a rich treasure of allegory and metaphor: because in this novel, as with any good work of literature, the real story is on the unwritten pages.

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Evelyn Couch, a middle-aged, disillusioned woman on the edge of menopause, meets Virginia ("Ninny") Threadgoode at the Rose Terrace Nursing Home while on a visit to her mother-in-law who is lodged there - and her life changes forever. For the eighty-six-year-old Ninny is everything she is not. Even though alone in the world, the old woman revels in life, even with the realisation that it may be snatched away at any moment: while Evelyn broods upon a largely uneventful life, Ninny delights in wandering over the colourful landscape of her memory. And as she starts sharing the stories from her childhood and youth, the younger woman gets drawn into the world of the small town of Whistle Stop in Alabama, dominated by the cafe described in the title - and its co-owner, the indomitable Idgie Threadgoode.

Ninny, orphaned from childhood, had stayed with the Threadgoodes ever since she was a child - a big, benevolent southern family comprising Poppa, Momma, the steady Cleo, flashy Buddy, feminine Leona, artistic Essie Rue and the incomparable Idgie. Later on, she married Cleo and became part of the family. Now all of them are gone, leaving Ninny alone with her memories, which she shares in typical scatterbrained fashion, and a picture of southern life slowly emerges.

Idgie is the centre of the narrative. She has opened the cafe with her friend Ruth Jamison who, we later come to know, is separated from her husband. The food is cooked by Sipsey and Onzell, two "coloured" women, and Big George, Onzell's husband. And around this cafe revolves the life of the small town, as it grows, reaches maturity, and slowly fades away into oblivion. Life with all its attendant tragedy, comedy and farce (with even a murder mystery!) flourishes in Whistle Stop.

We have Ruth's son, Buddy "Stump" Threadgoode, missing an arm but still the heartthrob of the town. We have Jim Smokey Philips, committed to a life on the road when he is not putting in time as a helper at the cafe. We have Artis, Big George's son, the playboy of Slagtown. We have Albert, Ninny's mentally challenged son. We have Sipsey, whose thirst to be a mother is satisfied when she adopts Big George, an abandoned child... the list can go on and on. But they are all the supporting cast. The only one that really matters is Idgie.

Idgie, the compulsive liar. Idgie, the hot-headed feminist. Idgie, whose tough-as-nails exterior hides a heart of gold...

...And as she gets more and more involved in this tale of a bygone era, Idgie inspires Evelyn to find her inner superwoman.

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What impressed me most about the novel is its structure. The tale is told in snippets, as the narrative jumps across time and space. Several chapters are narrated by Ninny, while others are extracts from various periodicals (the main one being "The Weems Weekly" of Whistle Stop edited by Dot Weems) and some others, straightforward third person narrative but with focus on different characters. It is really like listening to the reminiscences of an old woman who is pretty far gone in years, but whose mind is still remarkably sharp except for the chronology of events.

At the heart of the novel is the relationship between Idgie and Ruth: while it is no doubt lesbian, there is nary a mention of sex. Ruth's doomed marriage to Frank Bennet and the tragedy within that marriage is foreshadowed early - but the author drags on the suspense till the very end about what actually happened to Frank Bennet. Through these flawed characters and their tortured relationships, the changing face of America across half a century is brilliantly portrayed.

A lovely read.