Faraday's Popcorn Factory [Hardcover]

Sandra Lee Gould (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1998

When a black woman living in the town of Good Sky, Indiana, meets the new neighbor across the way, she finds her heart opening for the first time in almost ten years. Filled with exuberant characters and lush lyricism, this book announces a remarkable new talent and that rarest of all things: a new way to tell a love story.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A man descended from heavenAliterallyAembodies the fairy-tale premise of Gould's goofy, feel-good debut, which employs a storm of meteorological and astronomical references to buttress an otherwise flimsy love story. After zooming through "asteroid belts and busy meteor swarms," space-traveler Clement looks down at EarthAmore specifically Good Sky, OhioAand spies Willow, a young woman who works in a popcorn factory. Deciding he must meet her, Clement takes human form and courts the aloof, kernel-popping beauty. His dandified oddness soon beguiles her, and new love allows Willow to overcome previous heartbreak at the hands of mortal men. Clement puts off her questions about his background (a rather odd "twist" is that Clement's mother is the life force responsible for tornadoes), but Willow sticks it out. Not all readers will stick it out with her, since our curiosity over Clement's origins wanes long before they are fully revealed. Although the main characters, including Clement, are black, this fabulistic tale transcends color in the mannerAalbeit without quite enough of the funAof the work of Tom Robbins or Douglas Adams. Author tour.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

When Willow stops off in Good Sky, Ohio, on her way to visit her aunt in Akron, little does she know that 10 years later she will meet Clement, a somewhat strange and intriguing man. Just how strange Clement is becomes clear to the reader early on in the novel, but Willow remains in the dark. Clement is actually an alien far-evolved beyond humans (although there is a hint that these beings began as humans eons ago). Clement is hiding out in Good Sky to escape an overly domineering mother (the being responsible for bringing storms, tornadoes, and hurricanes to Earth when she's angry) and the Aftreete, an evil force that is hunting Clement down for a presumably nefarious but never explained reason. As their relationship develops, Willow discovers that sex with Clement is outstanding, although she doesn't realize that the good sex is due to the fact that Clement can change his sex at will and, therefore, knows firsthand what will please Willow most. Eventually Clement has to resume his nonhuman duties, but the reader is assured that Willow will find comfort with a former boyfriend who has returned to Good Sky. This first novel is a mishmash of possibilities, any one of which would have worked better than lumping them all together. That Willow is African American has almost nothing to do with what plot there is. Part fantasy, part love story, and part mystery, the story is told from eight different points of view, but without chapter headings indicating who is talking, the reader is hard pressed to distinguish among the possibilities. Not much to recommend here, then, except for the fact that the publisher is planning an extensive publicity campaign. Anticipate some demand and order early, but be cautious: this one doesn't come close to living up to its hype. Nancy Pearl

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 273 pages
• Publisher: St Martins Pr; 1st edition (May 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312185782
• ISBN-13: 978-0312185787
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,157,964 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Incredible tale, but not for the faint of taste, November 6, 2000

By 

Scott Woods (Columbus, Ohio United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Faraday's Popcorn Factory (Hardcover)

Before I start, read the other reviews prior to this one. They cover enough elements of the story itself. What I want to review is the MOOD and REWARDS of the book; how it rates with other books that are marketed to the same people (Black women).

I'll be this honest: I had, like a lot of people I know who love to read (not just love the idea THAT they are particpating in the act of reading, but find that they have a true passion for words and seek out original, fresh ideas), recently gotten sick of most of the books by Black authors out here. Every book was a romance, and most of them thinly veiled attempts to pass off autobiography-diary as epistolary fiction. On top of that, if I had to read another so-so written book by someone in first person narrative ("I woke up this morning next to a man I met the night before", "I went to the club", "I..."), I was going to cut up my library card. I am so sickened by the better part of these works that I almost hate walking down the Black aisle in a bookstore...so much incestuous ripping-off and just plain bad stuff.

So when I saw "Faraday's", I was wary. I picked it up and read the jacket and checked out the author's pic. I flipped to the middle of the book to see what perspective the story was being told in ("aghh! First person! And MULTIPLE, at that!"). I sighed, I hemmed and hawed.

Then I read the first 10 pages.

They started off in short, sweet journal-like entries, which were easily dissovable and got me interested. I'd become accustomed to letting the same ol' normal words in the same ol' normal situations wash over me and getting the story through a feeling of the book, but I couldn't get through these passages that way. I had to stop and go "equinoxes" and "sparkling solitude"; literaly say the words aloud a bit to taste them.

I like a book that challenges me, that makes me think and feel at the same time; that makes me want to add words to my everyday speech. "Faraday's" does that to stunning effect. I admit, this is not a book for the average book club group accustomed to "Cheaters" or "How Stella..."; this is high reading for solitary, moody evenings, and you almost have to prepare yourself before sitting down with it.

Thank God a book can still make me want to do that.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A different type of love story, December 31, 2003

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Faraday's Popcorn Factory (Hardcover)

Faraday's Popcorn Factory is a great book. It talks about a woman named Willow who lives in a town called Good Sky.And how her heart was broken so many times that eventually she gave up on love. But just when that happens a strange man named Clement moves in to town and shows her how to live again. But he has secrets of his own that he tries to hide and responsibilities that he runs away from.To me this book was really good,it put love,myth,mystery,and magic in one book. This book tells a love story in a different way. I'm sure lots of people will find it refreshing, as well as touching.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Someone Help Me, Please!!!, September 21, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Faraday's Popcorn Factory (Hardcover)

I usually read a book in about two days, regardless of the story-line. It took me a week and a half to finish this book. I must say, it was absolutely awful. I was being used a gineau pig to read the book first. I gladly accepted my role, because I love to read. I was so upset with myself for even opening the book. It left a lot to be desired. It did not flow very well at all. I still don't even know what the book was about. It had too much going on. You couldn't even follow the story line. I hated it. I hated it.