Bad Girl Creek: A Novel [Hardcover]

Jo-Ann Mapson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 2, 2001

From the acclaimed author of The Wilder Sisters comes this bittersweet, deeply moving story of four displaced women who unite to run a flower farm, heal their hearts, and real- ize the depth and necessity of friendship.

Phoebe Thomas has lived life as a spectator, confined to a wheelchair, in awe of her beloved Aunt Sadie and overshadowed by her financial wizard brother, James. But when Sadie dies, leaving her a flower farm, the world opens up to Phoebe in ways she could never have imagined. Taking in three roommates to help get the farm running, she finds herself, for the first time in her life, part of a close circle of woman friends. Each displaced from her home, these four women form an invaluable bond as they help one another learn to change their lives.

Set against the gorgeous backdrop of California's central coast, "Bad Girl Creek" is the inspiring story of how friendship and purpose can transform even the most compromised of women, as well as situations. With her rich, melodic prose and charming wit, Jo-Ann Mapson enchantingly chronicles female strength, family complexities, life crises, the use of humor as a curative power, and love in all its many aspects. "Bad Girl Creek" is a breathless and pitch-perfect tragicomedy of female friendship in the new American West.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The bestselling author of such hits as Hank & Chloe and Blue Rodeo launches a trilogy with this sentimental novel of communal life and reinvented family, centering on four women who come together, tending to each other and healing old wounds. Phoebe DeThomas has lived carefully all her life. Thirty-eight years old and in a wheelchair because of a bad heart, she's always felt dwarfed by her flamboyant aunt Sadie and her successful brother James. Now Sadie has died, bequeathing her a flower farm on California's Central Coast. In order to make a go of it, Phoebe takes in three women as boarder/farmhands. Each of the three is "homeless," having recently undergone traumatic life changes: Ness, a black cowgirl with a horse and a secret fear that she has AIDS, has lost her job; Nance, a down-on-her-luck Southern belle, has broken up with her boyfriend; and Beryl, a former kindergarten aide with a prison record, has been evicted from her apartment. All have families that are less than perfect and, living under the same roof, they soon become like blood relatives as they share their secrets and learn to trust again. Mapson combines poignancy with the good-natured banter of girlfriends in her tale of women in transition, waiting to be reborn. Short on conflict but long on comfort and characterization, this is neither the author's best nor her deepest work. Still, there are enough of the quiet charms that fans have come to expect for them to tune into the second installment when it is released. Agent, Deborah Schneider. 50,000 first printing; BOMC, Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club alternate selection; 13-city author tour.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School-When her aunt dies, Phoebe DeThomas finds herself the owner of a 40-acre flower farm, complete with debts and only one farmhand. Having to deal with her bad heart, her life in a wheelchair, and the financial problems brought on by the inheritance, she takes in three boarders who assist in running the farm. The women form strong bonds that help them all through the joys and heartbreaks of their lives. Phoebe finds love but has to battle pneumonia along with her other problems. Ness, the strong-willed, protective black farrier, discovers that she may be carrying the AIDS virus. Beryl has been in prison for murder, and Nance struggles to recover from her relationship with a boyfriend, even as she falls in love with Phoebe's brother. The setting is a picturesque area along central California's coast, where the weather and environment become major factors in the success or failure of the flower farm. Mapson draws another layer of interest with the detailed storytelling that deals with the naming of Bad Girl Creek. This helps define the physical geography as well as the people who live there. A contemporary story with a realistic perspective and a positive ending, this book should appeal to readers who have enjoyed Barbara Kingsolver's work.

Pam Johnson, Fairfax County Public Library, VA

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 377 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster (May 2, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0739418297
• ISBN-13: 978-0743202565
• ASIN: 0743202562
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,733,407 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I was born in Southern California and lived there for most of my life, the middle child in a pack of five. Early on, my mother made a reader of me, with weekly library visits. I thank her for me becoming a writer. Her willingness to read to me, her funny sayings, and endless patience telling me stories, turned me into a storyteller. In elementary school I discovered clever poems and stories could get me out of homework assignments, and took complete advantage of that.

My first published book was Fault Line (stories) and until recently difficult to find. I've now obtained several cases of the book and hope to get it up on Amazon for sale soon. Since then I've published ten novels: Hank & Chloe, Blue Rodeo, which was made into a CBS TV movie starring Kris Kristofferson, Shadow Ranch, Loving Chloe (and a sequel to Hank & Chloe), The Wilder Sisters, the Bad Girl Creek trilogy, which includes Bad Girl Creek, Along Came Mary, and Goodbye Earl, The Owl & Moon Cafe and Solomon's Oak.

My eleventh novel, Finding Casey, will be published by Bloomsbury USA and UK in October 2012.

In 2000, my husband/artist Stewart Allison and I (and our four dogs--do not try this at home!)loaded up the car and drove the Alcan highway to Anchorage, Alaska. We lived there eight years, enjoying the Northern Lights, visiting moose, amazing glaciers and the occasional bear (honest!). When my job changed, we took advantage of the opportunity to move to the place my husband wanted to retire, Santa Fe, four Mexico. We live in a little pueblo-style house on the prairie with our five dogs and many "projects-in-progress." Stewart and I have been married thirty-six years. We have a grown son, Jack, who is an RN.

Everyday I pinch myself that I've somehow managed to end up a writer, my life's dream. Thanks to all of you who read and buy my books, it's a dream come true.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Chocolate & Kleenex at Bad Girl Creek, August 20, 2001

By 

Bonnie "winkxs1207" (SALINE, MI, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bad Girl Creek: A Novel (Hardcover)

Who wouldn't want to spend time with the ladies of Bad Girl Creek? Prerequisites to being a part of the Bad Girl phenomenon is to have a great pet; an open mind; a sense of humor; a desire to work hard, and a willingness to open your heart. Ms. Mapson's "girls" have all of those things and more!

Phoebe is the driving "wheel" of the group. She has inherited her favorite Aunt Sadie's flower farm. It is in dire need of money as well as able hands and strong backs to make it go. How to do that without selling out to her brother Stinky? Run an ad in the town newspaper, looking for women who will help her run the farm, in return, they may have room and board for themselves and their pets.

As Phoebe welcomes Ness, Nance, and Beryl into her home, each of them brings along their loving pet. They also bring their fears, hopes, dreams and friendship. Unbreakable bonds form among them; they complete and compliment one another. The ladies of Bad Girl Creek have things in common, but each is an individual and strong woman in her own right.

The men in this story are also well defined. We come to know each of them and understand them as we do the women they love. Juan who's only desire is to please Phoebe; James a/k/a Stinky, who realizes that sometimes money isn't everything; the self-centered newspaperman; David with his money and his horses, and the best surprise of all for me - "Buckethead".

Grab a glass of wine, or a cup of tea. Wrap up in an afghan and cuddle up with your favorite pet. Open this book and enjoy an afternoon or evening with the Girls of Bad Creek. Oh yes, don't forget the chocolate and Kleenex too!!

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Journey To Bad Girl Creek, August 1, 2001

By 

Paula Hess (Iowa United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bad Girl Creek: A Novel (Hardcover)

This book invites you in from the 1st page and doesn't even let go with the last page! I am thrilled that this is going to be a triology. It was too good a journey not to continue. The book starts out with the reading of Pheobe's Aunt Sadie's will. Phoebe has spent her life in a wheelchair just trying to make herself be seen for what she is. A person. And with this will it begins to give Phoebe life. A flower farm is left to Phoebe and she must decide what to do with it and how to make it work to keep it out of her money scheming brother's hands. Phoebe takes in 3 roommates and the story is about how these four women come together, overcome their pasts and insecurities and learn to live for themselves. The wit and the charm of this novel, along with the wonderful animal characters that are also very much a part of this book, make this a fantastic read from beginning to end. Can't wait to read the second in the trilogy.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not Bad Girls, September 29, 2001

By 

"snowflake_1108" (Missouri) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bad Girl Creek: A Novel (Hardcover)

This is the first Jo-Ann Mapson book I've read but I'll be looking for more. I love the way she told the story. She takes 4 women from different walks of life and makes them roommates. They learn to share their grief and joys, their fears and successes. They go from not trusting anyone to learning they can trust and depend on each other. They learn to take the risk to love again. They have 3 wonderful pets that help them learn these things.These are the kind of friends we all need to have and need to be, the kind that loves and accepts you just the way you are.