Marjorie [Paperback]

Lawrence F. Bassett (Author), L. Bassett (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 8, 2002

It's summer in the early Sixties and Marjorie is restless. Holden Caulfield without the angst, she is out to find her Self, but far too many other people in her little town are telling her who she is. Her parents have her future mapped out as a "good girl," church-going and docile. Her boyfriend Harry wants a submissive sexual playmate, and the strippers at a local girlie show are happy to indoctrinate her in the ways of manipulating men. Marjorie's guidance counselor at school has all sorts of antiquated advice for her, while her friend Janie is convinced that cheerleading is the pinnacle of female achievement. Marjorie isn't buying any of it. Caught between girlhood and womanhood, she relentlessly pursues one of the most elusive goals of the Sexual Revolution: a sense of being an independent modern female individual. How she reaches her objective will leave you laughing, cheering and nodding in agreement with this fascinating character. You'll thank your lucky mood ring that you discovered this quirky, provocative, and poignant coming-of-age novel.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Lawrence F. Bassett teaches high school English and is the author of numerous published articles, poems and short stories. Marjorie is his first novel.

Product Details

• Paperback: 184 pages
• Publisher: Sterlinghouse Publisher (January 8, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1563152460
• ISBN-13: 978-1563152467
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,850,811 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent first work, May 22, 2002

By 

Emma Somers (Cogan Station, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Marjorie (Paperback)

I admit that I am biased since I know the author of Marjorie well, but nonetheless, I really enjoyed this book. I felt like the sex scenes were all necessary for advancing the plot and theme of the work, and that they were not inappropriate. Of course, I wouldn't give Marjorie to my hypothetical ten or twelve year old child, but for anyone who likes the coming of age genre, or who is experiencing the sort of difficulties that Marjorie is, I believe Marjorie would be a great read. Good work Bassett!

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Self-defeating, June 4, 2003

By 

Peter Swift (Cogan Station, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Marjorie (Paperback)

I'm not a stranger to literature that includes sexual themes and references, and I'm not afraid of feminist writings. I consider myself to be a feminist, maybe not to the point of burning bras,but still a feminist. With that in mind, I find Marjorie by Lawrence Bassett to be a book that relies heavily on sexual themes to keep the read interesting and seemingly self-defeating in purpose. The book promotes the idea of independence and self-relience, especially for women. It also promotes the idea that women are dominant over men because they can control to some extent the sexual urges that men have. I agree with this point at some level; I can understand that women can gain control in relationships by regulating sex and that men are weak because of their desires. However, I think Bassett's point is self-defeating because the strong female character that Marjorie meets wants sex herself!

I dislike this book overall...not simply for what appears to be gratuitous sexual themes, but also because what could be a strong plead for feminism and the rights of women in our culture and families is ultimately impotent in this book because the strong women in the book have the same flaw that men have.