Aftermath of Dreaming [Kindle Edition]

DeLaune Michel (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A southern belle gone awry, Yvette Broussard admits to "some Daddy issues"—the ultimate understatement of this honestly written but cringe-inducing debut novel. Twenty-nine years old and finally making it as a jewelry designer in Los Angles, Yvette is afloat. But she's still mourning her father's decades-past disappearance and her mother's death three years earlier, and she wakes up screaming from nightmares more often than not. When she sees her ex-lover, movie star Andrew Madden (29 years her senior), at a movie premier, her world falls into breathless disarray. Segue into 350 pages of pathos detailing her self-destructive on-again-off-again 10-year relationship with controlling, remote, seductive, unavailable Andrew. Beginning with their first liaison, when she was a starving 18-year-old artist/restaurant hostess in New York, fresh from the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, Michel charts the lovesick obsession that brings Yvette winging across the country to join Andrew and keeps her waiting drunkenly by the phone. Though Michel conjures a credible voice for her unfortunate protagonist, watching Yvette waste her life and self-esteem is like witnessing a slow-motion train wreck. (Apr.)
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From Booklist

Michel's debut novel opens with a scream, literally: Yvette Broussard, a talented L.A.-based jewelry designer on the cusp of 30, has been waking up in the middle of the night screaming at the top of her lungs, for no reason she can discern. When she runs into her former lover, movie star Andrew Madden, at a performance by a mutual acquaintance, all of Yvette's buried issues are brought to the surface. She never quite fell out of love with Andrew, a man almost three decades older than her whom she met while working at a restaurant in New York when she was only 18. Their passionate affair carried on for several years, while Andrew continued to date his costars and Yvette kept hoping he would eventually settle down with her. Yvette's sighting of Andrew brings him to the forefront of her mind and eventually back into her life, forcing her to confront issues she's long avoided and make sense of her unremitting attraction to him. Michel's crisp writing and keen observations make her a writer to watch. Kristine Huntley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 384 KB
• Print Length: 400 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins e-books (October 13, 2009)
• Sold by: HarperCollins Publishers
• Language: English
• ASIN: B000GCFBWE
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #555,351 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

More About the Author

DeLaun' Michel was raised in South Louisiana in a literary family that includes her uncle Andre Dubus, her mother Elizabeth Nell Dubus, and her cousin James Lee Burke.

Ms. Michel was named for Helene DeLaun', the first woman over from France on her mother's side of the family. Helene DeLaun' was in the court of Marie Antoinette and her husband, Jules Andre, fought in the French Revolution. Antoinette gave Helene DeLaun' jewels to help her and her husband escape to South Louisiana, a far cry from the court of France! Ms. Michel's father's family was the eleventh family in New Orleans.

Upon leaving high school, Ms. Michel moved to New York City. She did some modeling there and in Europe, then spent several years studying acting in NYC with teachers from the Neighborhood Playhouse, The Actor's Studio, Juilliard, and the Yale Drama School.

She then moved to Los Angeles, where she had guest starring roles on TV shows such as NYPD Blue, The Gilmore Girls, and Judging Amy, among others. She did a number of independent films that never saw the light of day (happily for some, sadly for others) and Equity-waiver theatre, including her own one-woman show.

In 1996, Ms. Michel created Spoken Interludes, a critically-acclaimed reading series where award winning, bestselling, and up-coming writers read their own work. This literary institution has been covered extensively by publications ranging from The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, GQ Magazine, LA Magazine LA Weekly, and has been heard on NPR.

The salon begins at 6:00 with an exquisite buffet dinner. The readings follow at 7:30 until 8:30, and feature writers such as: Kathryn Harrison, Arthur Phillips, Michael Connelly, Arianna Huffington, Ann Packer, Michael Korda, Alice Sebold, Mona Simpson, Bruce Wagner, and Amy Hempel. Since its debut in May of 1996, Spoken Interludes has provided a place where people come together, enjoy great food, and hear stories like their own reflected in the voices of others.

In 2001, Ms. Michel made Spoken Interludes a non-profit arts organization through which she developed, taught in, and continues to run out-reach writing programs for at-risk teenagers in LA public high schools and detention halls. The Spoken Interludes reading series has been heard on National Pubic Radio and continues to have readings in Los Angeles and New York. For more information, please visit www.spokeninterludes.com.

The first two short stories that Ms. Michel wrote won recognition in the Thomas Wolf Short Fiction Competition sponsored by Duke University. Later work won the Pacificus Foundation Literary Award. One of her short stories caught the eye of an agent, who then sent it to Joyce Carol Oates. Ms. Oates called Michel's writing "a wonderful, idiosyncratic voice and an extremely promising talent." But Ms. Oates felt that the story was actually a chapter of a novel. Ms. Michel agreed and her first novel, Aftermath of Dreaming, was born.

In Aftermath of Dreaming (William Morrow/HarperCollins, April 2006), Ms. Michel explores with humor and pathos the universal themes of abandonment, forgiveness, and letting go. The novel is loosely based on an intimate six-year relationship she shared with Warren Beatty.

Her new novel, The Safety of Secrets, (Avon A/HarperCollins 13.95) will be published by in May 2008. She lives in Westchester County, New York with her husband and two sons. She is currently working on her third novel.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Aftermath of Reading, April 15, 2006

By 

M. E. Weiss (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Aftermath of Dreaming: A Novel (Hardcover)

Delaune Michel's novel had me laughing at the insanity that is Los Angeles, dizzy from the overwhelming energy that is New York at 18, and breathless with the obsession of love. With her heroine, Yvette, she takes us on the perilous journey of finding our way in life - beautifully capturing both the frailty and hidden strength of the human spirit. Hers is a voice of honesty and humor wonderfully infused with the honey sweet gentility of the south. The aftermath of reading this first novel was anticipation for her second.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Follow This Author, April 14, 2006

By 

Jene LeBlanc (Chappaqua, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Aftermath of Dreaming: A Novel (Hardcover)

This deeply felt first novel is a wonderful read. Both funny and poignant, DeLaune Michel's unique and talented voice tells the story of Yvette, a Southern transplant living in Los Angeles. Yvette narrates her story of love, longing, and self-discovery with wit and humor. This novel will touch deeply anyone who has struggled on a personal journey to find what is really important to them in life. I found myself engrossed in Yvette's search-- and enlightened by the insights revealed by Michel along the way.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You really need to read this..........., April 11, 2006

By 

LL (Westchester County, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Aftermath of Dreaming: A Novel (Hardcover)

I experienced every emotion reading "Aftermath...." The story is written so beautifully, skillfully and with such a real voice that while reading the book I felt like the author was in the same room with me telling me her story.