Searching for Tina Turner [Paperback]

As the highest ranking black employee of TIDA, it seemed that Randall had it all. Even though he enjoyed the power and the money the position brought, for him it wasn't enough, and he didn't intend to stop until he became the CEO. The fact that his wife, Lena, had made sacrifices and given up her dreams for years, didn't seem to matter to him.

While Randall is on a long business trip, Lena falls into a funk. No one can understand why she's not happy since she has everything money can buy. But Lena wants more - she wants to do something for herself for a change. When she buys a copy of Tina Turner's autobiography, she finds strength in the singer's life, and decides that she has to meet her.

Searching for Tina Turner by Jacqueline E. Luckett was a more serious book than I presumed from the title. As someone who has put her husband's career and her child's well being first, I could really relate to Lena. I'm lucky though, because my husband is supportive and considerate of me and my wishes, unlike Randall.

I'm here to tell you, I had quite a conversation with Randall while I read this book. I told him a thing or two and called him a thing or two. At one point, Carl looked at me, and said, "it's only a book." I've met several men like Randall through the years, and I didn't like a single one of them.

I really enjoyed Searching for Tina Turner and I loved that Lena found her inner strength and stayed true to herself. She learned to let go and not try to do everything for everyone and actually let someone do something for her from time to time. I do think this book will probably appeal more to middle aged women.

Searching For Tina Turner

I have gotten to used to easy reads. Things I could read easily without much effort, not much of a challenge. Easy words, simple subject matter or same subject different title. So when I started reading Searching For Tina Turner, I hate to say I was expecting same topic different day. What a pleasant surprise. At first, it reminded me of Terry McMilan.. I love complex books that make you think and feel and identify with the characters and subject, and make you read slow to savor the favor. Lena grabbed me into her world. Always doing and settling and waiting for her turn to live. She has a great life, a hubby, two kids and a dream. She really doesn't want much, all she wants is to be herself and do what she's always dreamed of. She wants to do something that makes her feel. She has become uncomfortable in her own skin and circumstance and starts reminiscing of better days and Tina Turner.

Discontentment makes you do things to satisfy an urge. It also makes you feel disconnected to your self.

Lena is tried of waiting for her turn and takes it. She leaves her "perfect" life to satisfy her life long dream that was always being put on hold. She decides to embark on a journey to find herself and Tina Turner. The people who she's put her life on hold for are not getting that she has to do this for her, and it's not about them. Lena jets off to Europe with a friend and a camera and Tina's sprit in her heart. She has tickets to see her in concert and while waiting for that day, she starts to discover the Lena , she has always wanted to be.

I loved this book. I call a grown woman read. It's about taking your control back and about being uncomfortable in a too comfortable situation.
5*****

Jacqueline Luckett's debut novel, Searching for Tina Turner, explores a woman's coming into her own and how she goes about making a change that empowers and validates her life. On the surface, Lena Spencer does not have it so bad; as a matter of fact many would say she has it damn good. She is married to a handsome, wealthy, high-powered executive, has a beautiful home in the Oakland hills of the San Francisco Bay Area, an active social life, two intelligent children, a fast red Mercedes sports car and all the clothes and jewelry she wants. They are walking in high cotton. In her 50s, she is now facing not only an empty nest but also feeling undervalued and underappreciated and a strong need to redefine herself. How can she get her husband, Randall, of 23 years, and her children to see she has goals and desires that have everything-- and nothing to do with them? Lena has put off her dream as a photographer in order to help Randall reach the successes he has obtained. Lena is unhappy and nobody around her seems to get it.

Randall and Lena's first date was a Tina Turner concert and a used copy of Tina's autobiography is about to become the catalyst for the change that is to come. She admires Tina's tenacity, strength of character and will to survive despite being an abused woman. Even though her life is different from Tina's she feels they are kindred spirits. Within a few weeks after a volatile dinner party at their home, Lena's life begins to unravel and she finds herself on the verge of divorce. Dealing with her angry children, ages 20 and 17, a mother who thinks she is making a mistake, and a new life-style, Lena is free to pursue her career and finds a job in an art gallery. With encouragement from her best friend, Cheryl, she heads to France, tickets in hand for a Tina Turner concert in Nice. This is where the story becomes alive; amongst the cobblestone streets, fabulous restaurants, and beautiful architecture, Lena feels her world is finally opening up. A chance encounter with an ex-boyfriend adds even more steam to the equation.

Reading the first three-quarters of the book was like déjà vu. I had read this story before; the premise of middle-aged wife who has everything and chucks it all to find herself and her purpose was a running theme in the 1990s. But in France the story takes on a life of its own. The scenery, the food, and the sights, were vividly detailed. You could taste the white Bordeaux; savor the flaky croissants and fresh-caught sea bass. I could see the scenery captured by Lena's camera lens on walking tours in both Nice and Paris; I felt as if I was there. One could feel Lena come alive and embrace all that was coming to her and you knew she was going to be all right and what had felt like an obsession with Tina Turner becomes symbolism for "a natural woman." With her talented pen, Luckett does a credible job of giving readers a flavor of Oakland and the surrounding Bay Area community. I look forward to her next offering. Final rating 3.5

The advanced reading copy of this book was provided by the author for review purposes.

Dera R. Williams
APOOO BookClub

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