Bailey's Café (Bookcassette(r) Edition)

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Summary: Bailey's Cafe
Review: Bailey's Cafe is a mixture of suffering and redemption shown through a number of African-American women's lives. Nalyor does a great job explaining the characters and their backgrounds. It has wonderfully descriptive portrayals of each character and no one character is alike. The stories easily saddened me, but it is clear that hope, respect and recovery are important themes throughout the novel. There were also times when I was a bit lost as to what Naylor was trying to say . But, by the end of the chapter, I would figure out what it was that she was trying to depict. At the end of the novel, you realize that Naylor's complex writing style and all her characters will to survive just make this book that much better. I especially love the way Naylor connects her books. This is a must-read for anyone who is a fan of Gloria Naylor. I first got into her books because of my teacher, and now i have read all but "Mama day", which i look forward to reading. But Bailey's Cafe has been my favorite so far.

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Summary: Should've Made A Movie Based On This Book
Review: I read this book about a year ago and I must say that this was one of the best novels I've read and my first of Gloria Naylor's. I plan on reading it again and I am sure to get something new out of it. As other reviewers have commented, the stories of the customers of BAILEY'S CAFE are sad, inspirational and funny at the sametime. I've heard that all the customers are actually dead, ghosts caught in bewteen life and death. There was a hint of this when I first read it but I didn't quite pick up on it. Well, I have yet to any other novel from Naylor. This novel talks about issues of racism, class status and there's a little religion and philosophy intertwined in the mix. A great read!

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Summary: Bailey's It's what's for dinner!
Review: This is the first Naylor book I ever read. I have now read them all. This book, along with Mama Day and to some extent Linden Hills put her in my trinty of greatest living writers, along with Morrison and Kingsolver. The technique of introducing us to the "customers" at Bailey's is a great way to tie together so many wonderful stories. All of her characters are beautiful, sweet sad and doomed. Between the happy little wife who becomes a wino prostitute and the little delta girl who can never wash the delta dust off, I cried and I fell in love a hundred times (and I'm a big tough souther nwhite male). I notice some of the other reviewers had a hard time "following" Naylor at times. My suggestion is just ride the story, do not try to see what's coming or what she means. It is like the most wonderful meal in the world, put it in your mouth and savor it, don't spend too much time trying to figure out what the chef was thinking, its all about taste and feel. This is one of the 10 best books written since Faulkner died, in my opinion, and Mama Day is another of those 10. Enjoy!

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Summary: A rich read.
Review: This is, and has for a long time, been one of my favorite books. It is a complete package. Naylor's characters are chock full of depth, her writing is lyrical and her tales are down-right fascinating. While it's difficult to find an author these days who can provide the reader even *one* of those things, Naylor gives us the whole she-bang. Although written with humor, this novel is somewhat of a difficult read: there is an undeniable sadness surrounding many of the characters (even when re-reading it, I can hardly get through the chapter "Mood: Indigo"). Although it's easy to be saddened by the stories, it's important to note that hope, respect and recovery are common themes throughout the book. The Cafe itself is supposed to be a surreal bedrock of healing. I found this book more accessible than "Mama Day," and a little more heart-wringing than "The Women of Brewster Place." All and all, it's deeply satisfying and comes *highly* recommended. Bring on more Naylor, please!