From Amazon
Fans of Fannie Flagg's Southern-fried yarns will enjoy her folksy reading of her third novel--the story of New York TV anchorwoman Dena Nordstrom, who must take her fast-paced life down a few notches, face her mysterious past, and shake hands with her small-town heritage in order to find happiness. Listening to Flagg's storytelling on this abridged rendition, one might as well be sitting across a kitchen table from her as she pours two cups of coffee and serves up slices of apple pie along with the latest neighborhood gossip. Flagg, author of the bestselling book Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe, received a Grammy Award nomination for her narration on the audio version of that book. (Running time: five hours, four cassettes) --Kimberly Heinrichs
From Publishers Weekly
Because so much of Flagg's third novel takes place in the 1970s media-celebrity echelons of New York City, it doesn't offer the regional and historical color and texture of its predecessor, Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe. Instead, Flagg's achievement here lies in a well-choreographed story of loyalty and survival that zigzags deftly across the post-war years, panning in on the never-changing decency of Elmwood Springs, Mo., then pulling back to watch national TV news devolve into sensationalism?all the while drawing us into the compelling life of Dena Nordstrom. Star of America's most popular morning news show, Dena shuts herself down and shuts men out for painful reasons that are unknown even to her. Only after the stress of ambush- and sound-byte journalism brings on a hemorrhaging ulcer does Dena slowly unearth the scandal that, when Dena was four, drove her mother from Elmwood Springs, hometown of the war hero father that Dena never knew. That her mother's nemesis is a newspaper gossipmonger is nicely ironic, although her mother's secret shame seems slightly larger than life. In contrast, Dena's college friend Sookie and great aunt Elner are reminders of how well Flagg can cook up memorable women from the most down-to-earth ingredients, while a cameo by Tennessee Williams is uncannily true to life. Fans may be sorry at first to leave Elmwood Springs for the big city, but even the most reluctant will get wrapped up in Dena's search for the truth about her family and her past. Author tour; Random House audio.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
