Welcome to the World, Baby Girl!

Rating:
Summary: While an okay book, it was a terrible let down
Review: I put my kid to bed, kicked my husband out of the room and settled down to what I anticipated to be one of the most enjoyable reading nights I had the pleasure of having - WHAT A DISAPPOINTMENT! While I did laugh out loud once, the hairdresser coversation, the book left me longing.

Rating:
Summary: Flagg's latest is a departure from her previous novels.
Review: Let me start out by saying that fans of Flagg's previous novels may be a bit disappointed by this one. The characters are well fleshed out but too often we just don't care what happens to them because they aren't very likable or compelling. There are some good lessons about fame and money not being everything, but I learned that a long time ago on my own. My favorite parts of the book by far are the ones set in the south. Dena's southern relatives and her college roommate Sookie and Sookie's mother, along with the flashbacks to the Neighbor Dorothy's radio program in the '40's, were what kept me reading on. I liked the last third or quarter of the book best, and Fannie could start her next novel where this one leaves off and I think it would make a great book. I should say that Daisy Fay and Fried Green Tomatoes were two of my favorite novels and just because I was hoping for something more along those lines doesn't mean others won't find this book to be very enjoyable. However, if you loved Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man, may I suggest Crazy Ladies by Michael Lee West for a contemporary author or try finding a copy of Addie Pray by Joe David Brown. This is the book that the movie Paper Moon was based on.

Rating:
Summary: A great read!
Review: I couldn't put this book down. This sweet, sad and happy story just pulled me in and wouldn't let go. I loved the interesting and quirky characters that seasoned this compelling tale of a woman in search of her past. I won't soon forget Sookie, Dr. Diggers and Aunt Elner.

Rating:
Summary: Serious issues without depressing the reader!!!!
Review: This book is not as funny as Daisy Fay - but this book is wonderful!!! This book shows the good side of human nature, how kindess to others and to yourself is more important than success. Most of the other books available consists of so much detail of the characters trying to find themselves by overcomming some deep rooted secret of race, sex, drugs that I get depressed reading about these characters and would rather keep up with current events in the newspaper about murders and assualts. This book is mature and shows the good with the bad, but does not throw it in the readers face to make the reader depressed (Oprah, this book would be a nice change for your picks). I did notice some geographical problems with reference to Jefferson County. Overall, this book deserves to be a best seller!!!

Rating:
Summary: You can't put it down, but you're not sure why til' the end.
Review: I buy and read Fannie Flagg's books because she looks through the all of the superficial things that surround each of us and finds the true goodness in people and the inherent humor in life. She describes and develops each of her characters so well that you feel as though you know them. And "Baby Girl" was no exception. When I began reading this book, I was wondering where she was going with the story. "Where's the plot?" I kept asking myself (perhaps I've been reading too many mystery novels.) But as I kept reading, I couldn't put it down. The characters are so engaging. The twists and turns that effect Dena Nordstrom's life are such a reflection of today's society that you keep hoping that the good in Dena's life will win out over her demons. And then it unfolds. The good in Dena's life is not all of the superficial "fame" that surrounds her, it's the unfailing loyalty of her friends, the love of her family and the old-fashioned values that our parents' and grandparents held so dear, and that still exist in small-town America. You'll feel for Dena, chuckle at her old sorority pal Sookie, and wish you lived in a town like Elmwood Springs, Missouri and lived next door to Neighbor Dorothy. Thank you, Ms. Flagg, for reminding us to look at the humor and good in life.

Rating:
Summary: Not as solid as her earlier books.
Review: As an avid reader of Ms. Flagg's other two books, I will admit to being somewhat disappointed with this latest book. It's not that it wasn't a pleasant read - it was just too a bit self-conscious and contrived. I did not buy into the scene with Tenessee Williams nor did I like the ending. Most of all, I found myself not really caring what happened to Dena by the end of the book.

Rating:
Summary: I was disappointed with the content of this book.
Review: I thought Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man was hilarious; this novel is not. I expected more from Ms. Flagg. This book read more like something that Danielle Steele would write.

Rating:
Summary: You are guaranteed to smile from Page One until The End!
Review: Filled with humor, human drama, and downright southern comfort, the latest book from Fannie Flagg, Harper Lee's soul sister in prose, is a worthy follow-up to her supreme Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe. From Post WWII Middle America to 1970s New York City, Flagg covers a lot of ground in the life of Dena Nordstrom, a Jane Pauley-ish, Barbara Walters-ish news reporter who is too ambitious and too career driven for her own good and comes to a crossroad in her personal and professional life. Buy this book and read it. Re-read it if necessary. The only drawback quite honestly is a less-than-thrilling dust jacket. The book deserves better. Be that as it may, the inside of the book is wonderful.

Rating:
Summary: waste of time
Review: I was disappointed in the ending of this book even though it was an unexpected ending. I won't give the ending away except to say that it was full of holes, like swiss cheese. There were inconsistencies and no explanations for actions not taken that should've been. If a person went missing from your life wouldn't you call the police? If you were in boarding school in your teens and the support for that boarding school disappeared, how would you continue? The mother had a history of attending to the daughter, then all of a sudden she didn't. I'm trying not to give the ending away but one reviewer said it was as though it was made up along the way and that seems to be true. The whole premise behind the moving from place to place didn't even make sense. Don't waste your time on this one. Read 467 pages of some other good book with a tighter story line.

Rating:
Summary: At a loss for an ending?
Review: I enjoy Fannie Flagg's writing, and I love the manner in which she depicts small town life. In this book, some of the characters are lovable, with the exception of the main character, Dena. She seems to have no personality whatsoever. The book held my interest long enough to finish it, but the ending appeared as though Fannie sort of made it up as she went along. All of this mystery and intrigue are built up throughout the book, only to let the reader down in the end.