From Publishers Weekly
Like Rebecca Wells in Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, Hinton has a knack in her novels for tapping into a woman's longings for lifelong, authentic, messy friendships. In this engaging follow-up to The Friendship Cake, Hinton picks up the threads of the lives of the five quirky women who make up the North Carolina Hope Springs Community Church cookbook committee and spins out more of their stories. She hangs her narrative on gardening as a metaphor for life, occasionally succumbing to clich‚s ("They were rough and spindly souls with very shallow roots"), but usually handling the theme with subtlety. There's plenty of room for metaphor. Pastor Charlotte finds she has lost her faith as she attempts to help Brittany's mother, Nadine, recover from her second suicide attempt. Louise ponders grief and love; Bea enjoys her newlywed status; Margaret wrangles with breast cancer; and Jessie battles fear that James will abandon her again and agonizes over a possible move. Hinton admirably mixes poignant moments (the friends shaving their heads in solidarity with Margaret) with amusing incidents (Louise notes, "This tea tastes like shit, Beatrice" and discovers it's Easy Movement, a laxative drink). While she avoids tendering pat answers to difficult questions of faith, Hinton folds themes of hope and redemption into her story. Conservative CBA readers may shrink from such expletives as "Jesus!" or "horseshit!"; Louise's lesbian status; feminine gender references to God; or the occasional sexual description but many readers of faith should find this novel both entertaining and tender.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
From Booklist
The sequel to
Friendship Cake (2000) is not the proverbial icing. Things aren't going too well for Charlotte, the pastor of the Hope Springs Community Church. After she struggles to revive a suicidal woman's faith after her daughter dies in a car wreck, she ends up seeking counseling for help with her own spiritual doubts. Margaret learns she has a lump in her breast, and is reluctant to tell her best friend, Jessie, since Jessie's husband has returned and wants her to move to California with him. Louise stays on the fringe, making the occasional pithy comment, but Beatrice is happy in her second marriage and having fun writing a gardening column. Not only have most of Hinton's characters lost control of their lives, they even lack distinctive voices. Worse yet, Hinton glosses over the seriousness of breast cancer by using it in an attempt to add drama to a disappointing imitation of earlier success. But fans of the first book will want to read the second, so larger libraries may consider purchasing.
Melanie DuncanCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
