Customer Reviews

Baggage Check

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Baggage Check By Curtis Bunn

Reviewed by Zane (Author of Addicted and The Sex Chronicles: Shattering the Myth) RAW SISTAZ Book Club

Many have tried, but few have succeeded. Curtis Bunn has penned an excellent novel on relationships from a male's perspective. Julian, Greg, and Larry have a lot of baggage (hang-ups about women passed on from past relationships with lovers, mothers, and friends). Enter a slew of women boggled down with their own baggage and it gets extremely interesting. At first, I was skeptical about reading the novel because I assumed it would be yet another relationship drama full of male-female bashing and stereotypes. Not so. The stories entwined into Baggage Check are so realistic, they will bring back memories for anyone that has ever loved before. The three men in the book show that males can be sensitive to the needs of females and discover the true priorities in life. Greg, after losing the only woman that ever mattered to him over money, realizes that the love of a woman is the most valuable asset. Larry, the playa of all playas, meets his match in the form of the lovely nurse Renee, who leads him to not only love but also to the Lord. Julian, after having his heart crushed by a straying lover, finally finds his ideal mate, giving up his self-imposed list of prerequisites (no children, no long distance, etc.) Curtis Bunn is an author with a remarkable voice and I suspect he will be around for years to come. His talent for details and descriptions is outstanding, but even they can't hold a candle to his talent for writing emotional-driven dialogue. In a world of AA literature heavy-laden with mediocre relationship novels pushed onto the public by publishing houses more concerned with quantity than quality, Baggage Check is a step ahead of all the rest. I give this novel a 5 on the RAW Scale.

Absolutely great! I loved "Baggage Check." Just an excellent job by the writer of telling the story and developing each character. I cannot say enough of how I enjoyed the religious tone without throwing in the religious tone. It was absolutely wonderful. I also saw a lot of what I was looking for as far as how men think about certain situations like hand-holding. I know it was not necessarily the way every man thinks about it, but it gave me a different way to look at that subject with a man's perspective. To be frank, the book taught me a lot. I have always gone into relationships thinking that my partner was on the same page when in fact he was not. Looking at how you explain the way people look at situations, depending on where they are in their own developmental stages, helped me. When Larry became comfortable with the handholding and other "touchy-feely" things, it made me realize you have to wait for a person to be ready. I thought I knew all of this stuff but actually I wasn't applying it to my own relationship. I tried to prolong the book when I saw I was nearing the end. It was that good that I had to fight with myself to not finish the book so I would have some more to read the next day. My friend said that she did the same thing too. We cannot wait for the next release from Curtis Bunn. We are sure it will be just as good. Sonequa Braddy

Julian, Greg and Larry have been best friends since their childhood in Washington D.C. All three have different career paths and place value on different things, however they all have two things in common, their love for each other, and their inability to maintain a monogamous relationship.

Julian, the professor, says he loves his girlfriend Joanne but ends up in the sack with her sister and soon after said tryst finds out that Joanne is pregnant. He plans on taking care of his child, but his commitment to Joanne is lukewarm. Greg, the penny pinching bookstore owner, made the "mistake" of telling his long time love that he plans to marry her. Now her constant haranguing about when the marriage will take place is getting to him. Finally there's Larry, the aspiring actor and "playa". He spreads himself around and sticks with no one long enough for the words commitment or relationship to pop up. No woman has been able to hold his attention in that way. In today's climate these three are really quite ordinary in terms of their behavior and value systems. What makes Julian, Greg and Larry special is that they all learn by means of one fairly extraordinary event that they all have "baggage", which needs to be checked. (read the book for explanation). Once their baggage has been checked they all learn to love more freely.

As a female reader I was skeptical about how a story about men, written by a man would speak to me and speak about women. However, Baggage Check was a pleasant surprise. All the elements of a good story are there, believable characters, a startling beginning, a middle that held the reader's interest and a happy ending. Parts of this story in fact were uproariously funny as well as touching. How women are portrayed really became background for the real story of personal growth that happened for each of the characters. Yes the women were there and aided in the growth but the men had to do the hard work on their own. Bunn enabled this reader to drop her skepticism by simply writing a good story.

This was a very good novel told from the male's point of view . So often we hear what women have to say about relationships and their baggage. Not to often do we get to share in the feelings of our brothas ! Well, we get to take a peek in the lives of three tight brothas ,their relationship baggage and watched them go thru a baggage check experience . While I will admit to giving this book 5* I'll say it was 4.5 ! I could not list 4* for it was more than 4 but less than 5 !

If you are debating on getting this novel, do not hesistant any longer get it and read it now !!! You will not be disappointed !

I enjoyed meeting Julian,( a college professor ) Greg, ( a bookstore owner ) and Larry,( an aspiring actor ) and sharing in their baggage experiences ! It is so nice to know brotha's are willing to share in their baggage check experiences ! Oh did I mention Chapter 49 still has me fanning !!!!

Julian even learned a hard lesson and got a taste of his own medicine !

Yes what's good for the goose is good for the gander but he could not handle it when the shoe was on the other feet ! We got to meet three brothas and shared their baggage experiences which put them in check !!!!

Can't say much except Curtis Bunn is a future star. I can't believe Baggage Check is ihs FIRST novel, but I do see why it was No. 1 on the Essence best-seller list. I'm mad at myself that I just discovered this book.
Without giving away the story, it's a lot of life lessons and insight and humor and passion and emotion and fun in this book. Each character had a different voice and a different set of baggage, and the way Bunn crafted each person's growth was extremely smooth and realistic and moving for me. This is one of my favorite books. I highly recommend it ot anyone who loves great writing, great characters (and some strong women characters, too), great stories and learn something in the process, you should read this book.
Lana Rickett, New York, NY

I LOVED IT!! You know when the characters are still with you once you have finished reading the book, it was a really good book. I want more. It's like reading the Bible, you thirst for more. Curtis Bunn captured the characters so well, I feel as though I know them. Also, I am received some great information, so much so, I am taking notes and believe it or not, I am understanding myself more, as well as men. The book truly enlightened me on the fact that relationships are truly misinterpretated by both sides. If individuals would be more honest and straightforward with each other and not just one-sided, life as it is would be more relaxing and fun. Trying to keep ahead of each other instead of being side-by-side, is very frustrating. I am so impressed with Larry the most, I cried at his revelation. I wish every man and woman be black or white would read this book. This book is the best book I have read that put everything into perspective about what men and women are looking for. By Sheena Young

If ever there was a book that offered insight into the complexities of relationships between men and women, Baggage Check is it. The author, Curtis Bunn, has a unique way of detailing the long-term friendship of three men as they go through the trials and triumphs of dating. I highly recommend this book.

Baggage Check is the story of 3 male friends who grow up and outgrow their womanizing ways. The tale is well told and thought provoking. You will recognize some of the men who have pushed up on you in the past. If you're blessed, you are one of the women who these men finally recognized they needed. Read it - with a quickness!

Many novels are meant to entertain or shock you, while others deliver a message. In Curtis Bunn's debut novel, Baggage Check, he sends one loud and clear. Nothing in life is free, I don't care what Luther and Janet sang back in the late 80's. You pay a price for everything; entertainment, lifestyles but often times a hefty price for love. When that check arrives you better hope you have the resources to handle the bill.

Mr. Bunn introduces his readers to three childhood friends, Julian, Greg and Larry. All with the same desires and dreams, to have success and as many women as their little black books can handle. At least that's what he wants us to think. In retrospect, Julian and Greg are semi committed in their relationships and Larry, well, he's just out there. While they're totally committed to one another, they lack that same luster when it comes to the matters of the heart. Each living their life in a fashion that they're content with.

There's Larry breezing through the fast women and streets of LA living the Aretha Franklin song, "who's zooming who?" until he meets feisty, freespirit Monique who leaves him scratching his head, wondering who was zooming who? With an ego teetering on the brink of,'gotta get my groove back, cuz my name ain't Stella', he meets Renee who leaves him singing get on the good foot, but not before she brings him down to his knees in more ways than one.

P.Diddy once sang, "It's all about the Benjamin's baby." Yeah, that's what Greg thought too until his Cha Ching started sounding like Cha Dumped after Brianna had one ride too many on his Wheel Of Fortune attitude. After losing his true love, Greg begins to take inventory of his possessions and sets out to make an investment of a lifetime upon realizing he's blessed financially and bankrupted emotionally.

Julian tried to do the right thing by committing to his pregnant girlfriend, Billie Jean, I mean Joanne completely. But while on vacation, he meets Alexis and in a single night she changes his entire perception of women. After his life goes into a complete tailspin, he goes on a mission to find the one thing that's been missing from his life casting his two commandments out the window.

Baggage Check has a message alright, one about control. It's an illusion and these three friends found that out the hard way. Mr. Bunn did a fantastic job of allowing the reader to watch these men evolve into something greater. Very well written, emotionally fulfilling and mentally draining as you began to check your own baggage throughout this read.
I highly recommend this book and look forward to his next novel.

Great debut novel for Mr. Bunn, did not expect the ending. Will change you view on relationships. Definetly gives one a great outlook of the possibilites of having a positive relationship!