Carpool [Import] [Paperback]

Karin Kallmaker (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Silver Moon Books (April 20, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1872642241
• ISBN-13: 978-1872642246
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Excerpts from all my novels: www.kallmaker.com

At my website you can find my complete bibliography, descriptions, reviews and links to additional content, like podcasts and video.

Recent review from the Lesbian News by Teresa DeCrescenzo: "Warming Trend is... populated with a fine, credible cast of supporting characters... It's a good read, as we've come to expect from Kallmaker. The contrasting settings-Alaska and Florida-and the richly drawn characters make us want to connect with them, especially with Ani and Eve. Even the rather esoteric interest in ice rings true."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A rare look at interracial lesbian romance, January 21, 2001

By 

Lesbian Reader (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Car Pool (Paperback)

I think I can count on one hand the number of lesbian romances that deal with an interracial relationship, and this is one of them. I think the writer should be congratulated for an excellent depiction of the casual racism that Asians receive. Shay, who was born in the US, is told her English is excellent, for example. I have always thought that when reviewing a book, it's best to review the book you read, not the book you wished the author had written, and to rank that book for itself. I loved this book for what it delivered: a solid, intriguing romance between a closeted white accountant and a Japanese-American environmental biologist.

Even rarer, this book deals with class differences. Shay is near penniless, though well-educated, and digs sampling wells on an oil refinery. Anthea is rolling in dough she inherited from distant parents. Each woman has real issues about money and it's dealt with in a complex way -- no easy fixes here.

Last, I'd add that anyone wanting to see the totality of Kallmaker's ethnic diversity needs to read *all* of her books, including those written as Laura Adams. Night Vision and The Dawning have both black and native American characters who contribute vitally to the action. The Dawning's immersion in the Navajo culture was illuminating.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What you see is what you get, May 8, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Car Pool (Paperback)

I do wonder why people read books by writers they don't like. I enjoy all of Ms. Kallmaker's books. They are heartfelt romance novels, not Lesbian American studies. Car Pool was first and foremost a romance with a closeup focus on racism that one woman experiences on the job. They also have class differences. There's a little mystery thrown in and as always in a Kallmaker book, great sex. I was pulling for Shay and Anthea every step of the way, and for their gay male friends, Adrian and Harold. The scene in the bar where "the difference between gay men and lesbians" is discussed had me howling with laughter.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A romance on an oil refinery?, May 26, 2005

By 

blondiechick (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Car Pool (Paperback)

This is one of the last of Karin Kallmaker's early books that I've been longing to read, and finally it has been reprinted. I never thought I would find a story set in part on an oil refinery in any way absorbing, but as usual I went along for the ride in Car Pool and the journey was well worth all the shifts in speed along the way.

Anthea is wealthy but still working. Shay, on the other hand, like most of us, must work. She needs two jobs just to keep it together. Each of them treats the other like a stereotype, but that car pool means they slowly have to get to know more than what they see on the surface. That they are both lesbians comes as a surprise to each woman, because of the stereotypes they have been entertaining.

Once Anthea sees outside the closet, and once Shay gets over some of the bitterness of her father's death, they find life a whole lot easier, and enjoying each other's company more and more. Their two gay male friends provide a wonderful counterpoint to the slow pace Anthea and Shay take.

There is a mystery on the oil refinery - a setting that is wonderfully conveyed. I never want to see one for myself now! I like how the women work together to try to get all the dirt they can and how Shay is finally able to prove wrongdoing. The final work scene with Anthea and her racist, homophobic boss is incredibly SATISFYING.

Readers who are just now discovering this early work should treat themselves to the follow up story in Frosting on the Cake about Anthea and Shay, Harold and Adrian, trying to become a very modern 21st century family. It's hilarious *and* heartwarming.

My only regret in devouring this book the moment it arrived is that I am now have so few Karin Kallmaker books left to read!