Customer Reviews

Friday Night at Honeybee's

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

On a Friday night at Honeybee McColor's you will find a "gather" which includes good food, good conversation and good music among some of the best black musicians in Harlem. Set in the early 1960's, Friday Night At Honeybee's is a musical anthology of that time.

This story revolves around two characters that arrive at Honeybee's brownstone after literally running away from home. Told in alternating chapters, Forestine Bent and Viola Bembrey are running from the consequences of their actions in their homes. As a child Forestine always relished the music around her. She practiced with the best and dreamed about a life of singing and traveling. Her Achilles heel is her narrow-mindedness. Viola has an angelic voice but was relegated to life as a deacon's wife. One incident had her branded and forced from her southern hometown. Viola, provided with the name and address of Honeybee McColor, arrives in Harlem under duress and fear. Together, these two woman deal with their demons and their guilt to form a friendship rich in loyalty. With the assistance of Honeybee, Willa and Vernon, the other inhabitants at Honeybee's brownstone, Forestine and Viola definitely come into their own as woman of that time.

This is an interesting novel told in a fluid, symphonic and dramatic tone. Ms Smith provides the reader with Forestine and Viola's family history, which guides the reader in understanding their plights. The reader is also provided with a wealth of musical knowledge as it pertains to the history of blues and finally jazz. This is an excellent portrayal of 1960 Harlem, its music and the musical accomplishments of that time.

Reviewed by Dawn R. Reeves, APOOO BookClub

This story is joyful and heartfelt simultaneously, exciting as well as realistic. It was gripping to the extent of not wanting to put the book down and to continue into the lives of the characters. Reading about the lives of the two women that was vividly told, I found that I was able to relate to parts of their lives. Parts that were sad as well as celebrated. I cried, laughed and felt the many different emotions that were expressed through the characters. I wish that I were there at Honeybee's house to experience some of the joys, food, music and ambience of the house. This book is worthy of five stars and more. The new author Andrea Smith has the techniques and skills to inspire further contributions to literature.

THIS EXCELLENT, WELL WRITTEN PIECE OF WORK KEPT MY ATTENTION THROUGHOUT. IT IS ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS I'VE EVER READ. THE AUTHOR'S WAY OF WRITING REMINDED ME SO MUCH OF MICHELE A. BOWEN'S "CHURCH FOLK", BERNICE MCFADDEN'S "SUGAR", AND ZORA HURSTON'S "THERE EYES WERE WATCHING GOD".

Throughout the reading of this book I was reminded of my upbringing. I knew and know those places, people, their thinking, their expressions, their dialects each so wonderfully infused herein. Only the proper nouns were changed.

My parents and older relatives are from S.C.. I heard and hear their stories and expressions; I was born and raised in New Jersey. I was too young for the rent parties but heard [and still hear about them]; I was old enough to and so attended the "Pay mama to get in socials".

I snuck into and later strutted or slide into the juke joints and socialized with the musicians and the people. I knew and know people with each of the personalities, situations, habits and characteristics of each character that this author so knowing, sensitively and wonderfully described.

If you are growing up or grew up around "down home" folk and were raised or are now growing up in a city then you will find yourself as I did laughing uncontrollably, smiling, and or wiping away tears in different moments of your reading. In some places because of this author's wonderful storytelling I felt as if I were a fly on the wall in the various scenes while in others I felt as she was "peeping in my window" or "stepping on my toes".

This story will stay on my mind for sometime. I also read [during the same week] her other book "The Sisterhood of Blackberry Corner". This one {Friday Nights at Honeybee's)tore at my mind, my memories; the other tore at my heart. Read them! You will enjoy.

Two female singers who live in two different worlds are drawn together -- their lives take unexpected turns and they're forced to grow and learn and hurt and love in a manner that celebrates and/or examines their existence.

I loved everything about this book. The author's descriptions make you feel as if you're in NYC, in the 60's, smelling the smells of greens and potato salad, and listening to the sounds within the clubs - the loud musical instruments, the moans of jazz songs, and the funny/naughty/down-home conversations.

Vibrant characters, a compelling plot, and plain old good storytelling make Friday Nights at Honeybee's a commendable and highly recommended read.

Forestine and Viola are two women with very different lives but similar dreams. Forestine grows up in Brooklyn, in a home she feels less than welcome in, with a dream to one day become a singer. As Forestine grows older, her dream to become a singer is her only true passion, quite often at high costs. Viola is raised in the country, the daughter of a preacher and his "proper" wife, she is less sure of what she wants out of life but knows she will have a hard time finding it in the small constrictive town in which she was raised. Miss Honeybee was from the same small town, Jasperville, North Carolina that Viola is from but made her escape to New York City where she built a life for herself that the people in Jasperville talk about in hushed voices. Honeybee's "gathers" have become notorious as a time where there is good food and good music come together, almost any musician of any merit has passed through Honeybee's home at some point to take part in a "gather". Through Honeybee both women overcome heartbreak, find healing and ultimately discover themselves.

This tremendous story will take you back to a time where jazz was in full swing, and carry you through to a time when the music form became overshadowed by its more contemporary counterparts. While you are immersed in a world of music, you are also drawn into the lives of the characters as they experience, heartbreak, love, sadness and happiness. Andrea Smith's eloquent writing, gives the story just the right literary flair to keep you engrossed in the world of gathers and gigs, taking you back to another time. Emotions run high in the story and as you become more drawn into the story; you can't help but experience the ups and downs right along with the characters. Saying I highly recommend this book would be an understatement, it will no doubt be one of the best reads of the year.

Reviewed by Stacey Seay

i read this book after reading "the sisterhood of the blackberry corner" I am a member of the "no name yet book club" this was our choice for Dec. 06. we all agreed that this was a very good book. Mrs. Smith has an uncanny method of writing that puts you right there on the pages with the characters. we enjoyed the way the character's shortcomings ultimately defined their triumphs. great book,skip the library, you will want to own this one.

This was a great book.
You really learn to love the characters and care about what happens to them.
I read this in two days.
Hope there is a sequel.

I am enjoying this book! It is good to have someone affirm you when those in your family cannot, and in the instances of Forestine and Viola, that was the case. Both of these girls were not understood by either of their families, and Viola's case, they marry her off to an eligible bachelor at their church to get rid of her. Even though she questions and asks whether or not she could love this man, no one really answers these things to her satisfaction. To be honest, the union should have never happen. In Forestine's case, she had no support, no backing by her mother, who should have given her what she needed and didn't. Only by her father and Nick, who taught her how to sing and project the gift that she had. Perhaps if she received the nuturing and love by BOTH parents, none of that stuff with her and her brother in law would have started. A great book by a debut author I hope to hear from again.

This was our selection of the month. It wasn't what we thought it would be. We found it started off slow but we stayed with it and enjoyed the book. We loved the feel of the "gathers", the jazz and blues feel through the story. We felt deeply the wounds of both women and could see how they would both end up at Honeybee's. It started slow, but we did enjoy it in the end and we had a good discussion about the women, their family life, old Harlem, The music scene back then. It was a nice stroll back in time and heartfelt...A nice read.