Please Please Please [Hardcover]

Renee Swindle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 13, 1999

Babysister's got a secret: the tall, well-dressed, and gorgeous Darren Forrest Wilson.  For week after glorious week, Babysister hides her love affair from everyone she knows:  her doting father, who's spoiled her since she was a child; her resentful older brother Malcolm; her on-again, off-again boyfriend Rob; her gossiping co-workers at the bank; her spitfire friend Lisette, (a self-described "goddess of color" from New York); and especially her best friend Deborah, who just happens to be the woman Darren was dating before Babysister stole him away.  

What starts out as lust, though, quickly turns into the real thing for Babysister, and her life feels complete--until Darren begins to have regrets about Deborah.  Pure, church-going and beautiful, Deborah is clearly "the marrying kind," and soon the tables are turned.  When wedding bells ring, Deborah's the blushing bride and Babysister's out in the cold--until, of course, Darren returns, begging forgiveness.  With the love of her life on her doorstep, Babysister is torn between the two halves of her broken heart--the one that desperately wants him back, and the one that's just beginning to wise up.

A love story with an attitude, Please Please Please is as bold, sexy, and hilarious as Babysister herself. Her impudence, her humor, and finally, her wisdom, give a fresh new voice to the value of honesty, friendship, family, and love.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

It takes about 15 lines of Renee Swindle's comic first novel for the reader to realize that this is something special. Maybe it's the voice of Babysister, the main character, a bright young African American woman of almost unbelievable selfishness, who sets her sights on her best friend's new man, Darren. Or maybe it's the sharply observed details, or the ricocheting plot line, or the intelligence underlying Swindle's lively and versatile prose. Or maybe it's because, in a field of books described by their publishers as "hilarious," Please Please Please actually is. Some of the best moments arise when Babysister, a spoiled brat with the ethics of a 10-year-old, tries to locate her stunted sense of right and wrong:

I didn't start feeling guilty until after we made love and Rob held me from behind. There was something about the way he was trying to get me to play itsy-bitsy spider with him that made me feel awful. He was acting so sweet, yet the whole time we were making love I couldn't stop thinking about Darren. I had no business having sex with Rob, I thought. And later, as he fed me lumpy spoonfuls of oatmeal with his dopey love-struck smile and little bitty head, I swore to myself--swore--romantic side or no romantic side, I would not have sex with him ever again. Period. A handjob is one thing, but it was simply not my style to sleep with two men.

Babysister's kind, indulgent father and weakling brother are equally well drawn, as is her poor friend Deborah, who has a Bible verse for every occasion except for when her best friend steals her fine-looking boyfriend. Not the wedding invitation, not even the wedding ring, can turn Babysister away from what she wants. This is a naughty and refreshing page-turner from a wonderful new writer. --Regina Marler

From Publishers Weekly

"I always get what I want," says brazen Babysister, an L.A. bank teller and heroine of Swindle's debut novel, a confection that follows a sassy, single black woman's cutthroat, even ruthless adventures in dating. The minute she lays eyes on handsome architect Darren Forrest Wilson, she's got to have him. There's one tiny hitch: she already has a boyfriend. Rob is an easily dismissed inconvenience, considering that the real obstacle is that Darren ("Prince Charming, Superman and Superfly") is the beau of her loyal best friend and bank teller colleague Deborah. This gives Babysister pause, for about one minute, before she's aiming for Darren's bed while trying to talk him out of dating Deborah. Soon she does seduce him, and hides their affair from everyone while rationalizing her betrayal. To her surprise, Darren dumps her and proposes to churchgoer Deborah; undaunted, Babysister comes on to Darren at the wedding, a ploy that may seem outrageous even for a player like Babysister. She stops scheming for a few moments while she provides readers with a little background: her mother died when she was four and she became her father's adored little princess, while her older brother, Malcolm, kept his distance. Babysister gleans some insight into her family, and her community, when she trades her position at the bank for a waitressing job, and gets to know Malcolm's ex-model girlfriend, Sharice, and her young son, Prophet. The entire cast inhabits an Afrocentric world, with references to Nation of Islam, traditional hair-styling rituals and contemporary, laid-back vernacular. The narrative coheres more energetically as Swindle veers away from the somewhat implausible love triangle and focuses more on Babysister's extended circle of family and friends. This is a slight story with mostly comic nuances and simple characters; readers won't be surprised to learn that Deborah spinelessly, though spiritually, forgives her best friend's betrayal, that Darren's a dog and that Babysister's impudence remains unchecked. First serial to Essence; Literary Guild selection; author tour; foreign rights sold to Germany and Japan. (July)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: The Dial Press (July 13, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385318634
• ISBN-13: 978-0385318631
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (120 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,195,854 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Babysister Stole My Man...Thank-ya! Thank-ya!, July 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Please Please Please (Hardcover)

Please Please Please is a great book about a "bad girl" who doesn't know her own strength. If you've read a negative review about this book, it was written by someone who 1. didn't get it, or 2. has been stung by the good ol' fashioned fun-killing morality bee. For cool young urbanites like myself and yourself, the book has all the necessary insights into "our" world. Every book written by a black author is not a history lesson, people! This one is far from it. I matched every character to someone in my own real life drama, so Please Please Please satisfied my own sordid hunger for sensuous literary misogyny. I've never read a character quite like this before, but Babysister's get up and go kinda reminded me of Stella's get up and go (if I HAD to compare). Females like Babysister have never had the chance to be the main character in books. They have, however been the ones getting all the male attention in your social circle, though!

Babysister is not so much dysfunctional as she is spoiled. She saw her mother die when she was little, and so earned all her daddy's attention and all her brother's resentment. Babysister is like those people who step on toes, but have too much fun and energy to realize their dysfunction. She does what she wants to do, but gets all she deserves, good and bad. She never apologizes when she should, and that just adds to her believability. Trust me, I KNOW this person! The standout of the supporting characters is definetly Babysister's funny but all-about-business friend, Lisette. I mean, this girl right here, she practically pops off the pages, okay? This novel screams, "Hollywood feature!

Another character I really dug was Sharice, the new age, culturally conscious single mom who tames Babysister's Bigbrother, Malcolm. Without big brother Malcolm, of course, there could never be a Babysister. But just like real life brother and sister, they never learn to appreciate one another. Say the title with that James Brown-esque desperate, pleading lilt and you'll understand the passion that drives this outstanding book. Babysister's sexiness, jealousy and lustful weaknesses speak for themselves. When you ask yourself, "Is she really gonna do this?" your heart rate and reading speed will increase simultaneously.

Now, go. Buy. Read. Enjoy!

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE get this book now, August 1, 2000

By 

Pamela Osbey - See all my reviews

This review is from: Please Please Please (Hardcover)

With a powerful punch of her characters, and well written plot and dialogues, Renee Swindle pulls in her readers within the first pages of this book. Her main character "BabySister" is a no-nonsense, go-gettem' sistah who don't take any punches at all. She goes for broke, and i mean that literally. This is a well written novel by a first time author and i really enjoyed the book. I purchased this book on 7/31 and finished it today (8/1) so that tells you one thing. Once you begin to read this interesting tale of friendship and love, and go through the journeys with BabySister, Darren, and Deborah you will not put this book down until the last drop. These characters are warm, funny, witty, and keep you coming back for more. Watch out Terry McMillan, cause Ms. Swindle is coming up right back at 'cha.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Babysister Does Exist So Watch Your Back And Your Man!, May 30, 2000

By 

Yasmin Coleman (PENNSYLVANIA, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Please Please Please (Hardcover)

This book was HILARIOUS! I read it in one setting over a year ago and have been recommending it to all of my friends--young and old. Please, Please, Please is the story of the ULTIMATE BAD GIRL, Babysister. Babysister is a 20-something sista' who's all about self...self-centered, self gratification, self-absorbed, self determination, lack of self control, self-absorbed, selfish and who's a character that would make you want to slap her silly if only you thought it would help; but you know it won't. Babysister is so bad, and her escapades are so out-of-the box that you find yourself going "should I kick her butt or laugh"...and in reading the book you will experience both feelings. As the storyline goes... Seems that Babysister was spoiled by her dad at an early age; of course, because Dad spent so much time, love and money on Babysister that did not ingratiate her with her older brother Malcolm; not that Babysister seemed to mind. Since Babysister was used to getting her way and everything she wanted or desired as a child, she assumed that life would continue that way indefinitely and didn't even think about changing as an adult. Afterall, who said that Darren, her best friend Deborah's boyfriend was off limits...especially when she wanted him. Of course, Devious Darren was tempted and wondered if he could tangle with both Babysister and Her Friend/His Girlfriend Deborah. Afterall, there was just something about Babysister that he had to have...but the question was could he hook up with Babysister without hurting Deborah? So What if he did? If Deborah was unfortunate to get hurt in the meantime so be it.. because she was so naive that she would take him back no matter what...or would she?

As I mentioned earlier, I read this book almost a year ago. However, as I sit writing this review and remembering details of Babysister's antics it's as though I only read this book yesterday. The storyline was exciting and memorable, the dialogue was witty and the characters had depth. The main characters were familiar and easy to understand as well as the supporting characters including Babysister's dad, girlfriend Lisette, brother Malcolm and especially Sharice--Malcolm's Afrocentric girlfriend. The book is RAW in that it doesn't present the most positive aspects of the AA community or relationships and a few brothers were upset because of the male bashing; however, I do not believe that Ms. Swindle's intent was to write a historical piece or even a social commentary on the AA community but rather to provide a FICTIONAL NOVEL which offered a change of pace, and was lighthearted, entertaining, hilarious, (somewhat)controversial and a novel that would have folks reading and talking about it for months(years) to come. I commend Ms. Swindle on a job well-done. Despite Please, Please, Please, being Ms. Swindle's first book, her writing style was beyond the depths of a first time writer and I look forward to follow up books from Ms. Swindle.