The Honk and Holler Opening Soon [Mass Market Paperback]

Billie Letts (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2004

Caney Paxton wanted his cafe to have the biggest and brightest sign in Eastern Oklahoma-the "opening soon" part was supposed to be just a removable, painted notice. But a fateful misunderstanding gave Vietnam vet Caney the flashiest joke in the entire state. Twelve years later, the once-busy highway is dead and the sign is as worn as Caney, who hasn't ventured outside the diner since it opened. Then one blustery December day, a thirtyish Crow woman blows in with a three-legged dog in her arms and a long-buried secret on her mind. Hiring on as a carhop, Vena Takes Horse is soon shaking up business, the locals, and Caney's heart...as she teaches them all about generosity of spirit, love, and the possibility of promise-just like the sign says.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Letts's gently humorous second novel confirms the promise of her debut, Where the Heart Is. For 12 years, wheelchair-bound restaurateur and Vietnam vet Caney Paxton hasn't left his Sequoyah, Okla., cafe, known (thanks to a sign-maker's error) as the Honk and Holler Opening Soon. Now it's Christmas time, 1985, and for Caney and four-times married waitress Molly O, who helped raise him, the holiday looks bleak: business is slumping, overdue bills are piling up and the roof is leaking. Worried about her teenage daughter, Brenda, a country musician seeking her fortune in Nashville, Molly O is too preoccupied to recognize the romantic interest of cafe regular Life Halstead; Caney, ashamed of his part in the war, feels trapped by his wound and his painful past. But that changes when luck brings the Honk and Holler two new employees: beautiful young Crow Indian drifter Vena Takes Horse, who signs on as a carhop, and Vietnamese refugee Bui Khanh, a cook and handyman running from a guilty secret of his own. Initially skeptical of the two outsiders, Honk and Holler habitu?s come to value Vena and Bui, especially after an act of violence threatens Bui's life. Even a few unresolved loose ends can't diminish the cumulative effect of this warm, sentimental tale, abundant with quirky detail and homespun wisdom, which emphasizes not only the power of romantic love but the healing powers of community as well. Author tour.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

YA-In 1973, Caney Paxton returned from Vietnam in a wheelchair. While in the VA hospital, he and some buddies designed a cafe that was built on a then-busy highway outside of Sequoyah, OK. The cafe was supposed be called The Honk and Holler, but because of a misunderstanding and about a half a case of Coors, the nonrefundable $600 red-neon sign read "The Honk and Holler Opening Soon." Caney retreated to his cafe and for 12 years led a lonely life with only his combat nightmares and his regular customers for company. One day shortly before Christmas, a Crow woman named Vena Takes Horse appears at the door wearing red cowboy boots and carrying a severely injured dog. Caney could see that "she was trouble" but gave her a job, thus changing his life forever. Bui Khanh, a Vietnamese immigrant, arrives sometime after Vena and in broken English also asks for work. He becomes more than a short-order cook; he helps free Caney from his terrible nightmares. Caney, Vena, and Bui become the focus in a cast of unforgettable characters who carry heavy burdens and live life on the edge. As she did in the award-winning novel Where the Heart Is (Warner, 1995), Letts will again captivate young adults with this story of love, hope, and humanity.
Carol Clark, R. E. Lee High School, Springfield, VA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing; First Edition, First Printing edition (July 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 044661288X
• ISBN-13: 978-0446612883
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1.1 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (207 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #411,140 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a Great book!!!!!, September 23, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Michigan USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Honk and Holler Opening Soon (Paperback)

The Honk and Holler Opening Soon by Billie Letts What a terrific book! I loved the characters from the moment I set eyes on the first page. In all honestly, I waited to start it until I had completely finished another book.(an 800 page thing that really got tedious in parts-but I did finish, a mistake not to be repeated) The story opens in a small cafe in OK where we find Caney a Vietnam Vet,with a lot of baggage and unresolved issues. Also, we find his friend Molly O,a woman with her own set of problems. Everything is as normal as can be expected, until one-day in walks an Indian woman with a three legged dog looking for a job. The main characters in this book are great, but it is the minor characters and how they respond to the unfolding events that kept me turning pages to see what happens next. The town gossip, the three elderly guys that meet every morning for breakfast, the town villain, all add contrast to the picture beautifully painted with words by Billie Letts. I'll tell you right off I love to read, however, I am not a fast reader and for me to go through a book in a few days is a feet in itself. I very rarely do that unless I am really enjoying the story....I finished this book in 3 days. I found myself reading late into the night and crawling into bed(where I read) earlier than normal.

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Friends and Neighbors, January 22, 2000

By 

Alita Fortune (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Honk and Holler Opening Soon (Paperback)

Once I started reading this book, I couldn't put it down. With the threat of a freeze, I crawled in the bed and snuggled down and read, and didn't surface until I had read the last page.

Ms. Letts has created a group of characters who I cared about. I wanted to know what was going on in their lives to the point that I was growling at those who treated them carelessly, cheered when good things happened. It's rare for an author to not only draw you into a story, but make you a part of it as well.

Excellent read.

31 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I don't know if I can wait for Billie's Letts next book..., March 27, 2000

By 

Paula Romanowski - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Honk and Holler Opening Soon (Paperback)

I read her first book "Where the Heart is" and just fell in love with her unique characters. No boring people here. The next book " Honk and Holler Opening Soon" I just couldn't put it down. I think I read almost the whole book in one night...I don't think I have ever done that ever before. I made all my friend read it...I lived in Texas for 10 years and understood the atmosphere. I don't think my yankee friends got it as much as I did, but I know they enjoyed it alot. Now that her first novel has gone to film...opening up the end of April 2000, I hope this book won't be far behind. The characters here were even more endearing. Listen Hollywood...this book would make an even better movie. Billie...when are you writing another book? I will be first in line to buy it. Please say it's almost here...