Rating: Summary: Fannie Flagg's best writing yet... Review: Fannie Flagg demonstrates that she is one author not content to rest on her past accomplishments. Refining her style, Ms. Flagg's latest book, "Welcome to the world, Baby Girl" is by far her best book. Using a well-metered pace and her trademark jumps through different times and places, Ms. Flagg weaves a heartwarming story of a woman with a mysterious childhood she doesn't remember, her career, and the small town family she doesn't really know. After brief introductory chapters, the reader is drawn in to the world of Dena Nordstrom and gradually learns of how this woman on the rise came from unusual roots. Unlike her first book, "Daisy Mae and the Miracle Man," "Welcome to the world..." does not bog down leaving all the surprises and excitement to the end. And like her astonishingly well-received second novel, Fried Green Tomatoes, there is intrigue and drama throughout with a highlighted unveiling in the end. This book is definitely a must read for anyone who is a fan of heartwarming novels that celebrate the comforts of home and family.
Rating: Summary: not worth the irritation Review: Having read and thoroughly enjoyed Ms. Flagg's previous novels, I picked up this book with high expectations. Welcome to the World, Baby Girl! was a disappointment on almost every count. The early parts of the book present some memorable characters with humorous and very true insights. And as the book drew towards a revelation of Dena's mother's secret I found myself eager to uncover the tragedy which separated a mother from her child. However, the revelation was disappointing and, simply put, absurd. After that the book trickled on to a trite ending which totally unsatisfactorily addressed the concerns and emotions of the characters. Baby Girl seemed more intent on making small town folk feel good about themselves than realistically depicting their lives and dilemmas. Most bad novels are only forgettable. Unfortunately, this one will get under your skin and irritate you for weeks. If you liked Ms. Flagg's earlier books and are looking for more, spare yourself the irritation and just re-read Fried Green Tomatoes.
Rating: Summary: Welcome to the World, Baby Girl! Review: This is a wonderful book. The characters are great and it will make you laugh and cry. It will put you in a good mood for the rest of the day!
Rating: Summary: A sophisticated book by a great author. Review: Fannie Flagg is truly improving as an author! Her first novel: Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man was good, Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe was great, this book is wonderful!A very interesting plot about a newscaster named Dena Nordstrom who lost her way home. She finds it with the help of two psychiatrists, a bleeding ulcer, a fellow, older newscaster, and of course the hilarious cast of characters from her hometown in Missouri! Aunt Elner is one of the greatest characters in literature! Under the ghost of "Neighbor Dorothy" a 1940s homemaker who had a radio show which "on a cold, clear day" could be heard all the way to the Canadian border, Dena learns the meaning of home in much the same way Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz does: in a voyage of self-discovery, including finding out some shocking, sad, truths about her mother's and her own past and origens. A well-written sophisticated, funny, suspenseful book which will have you flipping pages to the end. Great plot, beautifully characterized, will take you home.
Rating: Summary: Fannie Flagg triumphs again Review: Dena Nordstrom is presented as the type of complex character that pique's a reader's interest and this is sustained through a long novel. The dialogue is as real as the multiple character presentations. The reader is made to care about all the people who weave in and out of her life. This is a remarkable achievement for any novelist!
Rating: Summary: Disappointed Review: I loved Fannie Flagg's other two books and was really looking forward to this one. It was as if someone else wrote this completely. The book was one dimensional and really not very interesting. I didn't believe any of the characters. The story could have been interesting if the characters would have been more believable.
Rating: Summary: I laughed, I cried.... I got chill bumps! Review: I am an avid reader of mostly best-sellers.... with classics thrown in here and there. Family stories, romance and life perspectives have always touched me. "Baby" has it all! Although this is the first novel I have read from Flagg, it won't be my last. I devored the whole book in less then a day. From the moment I picked it up, I was totally captivated by the setting AND the characters. I found it all to be realistic and enjoyable to the very last page. The wisely sagacious Aunt Elner was a big treat, and brought back memories of many fantastic people I have known in my life. The heroine, Dena Nordstrom was a personality that I could totally relate to, as an abandoned and frightened child inside of a seemingly composed and successful adult. The "nerdy doctor" Gerry was to me, the perfect hero....a man strong enough to be a REAL support to the very fragile Dena. This story is about coming to terms with the past, and making a better life for the future. I adored the supporting cast of loving friends and family working to help their "lost child" stuck out in the "REAL" world. I cried, I laughed.... I got chill bumps! This was an excellent read, and I highly recommend it to anybody that wants to understand the meaning of life!
Rating: Summary: Utterly charming! Review: I thought that "Welcome to the world, Baby Girl" was a very charming and friendly book. It does not have finer intellectual points or any other fancy stuff, it is just a good read for a rainy afternoon. The author made the setting of the story come very much alive for me and the characters were very believable. Thoroughly enjoyable!
Rating: Summary: The Best Book in the World! Review: I have just started to get into reading books and until now, there hasn't been an author that I have loved all around. This book had it all. It was funny, sad, and completely enthralling. I just gave my copy to my mom and recommend everyone read it. I can't wait to pick up other books by Fannie Flagg.
Rating: Summary: What a surprise Review: I loved Fannie Flagg's other two novels, so I had to try this one too. The way all the seemingly unconnected people and events come together was great. And when we learn the truth about Dena's mother, it was quite surprising and heartbreaking. Flagg is a first-rate story-teller.
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