Pride: A Novel [Paperback]

Lorene Cary (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 19, 1999

Four women, lifelong friends, are turning 40--and what a year it is.



Roz, the perfectly controlled (and controlling) politician's wife, is trying to keep her family together as she recovers from breast cancer and her husband runs for the biggest election of his career. Though he has strayed from her in the past, she has always been there for him--but all that is in jeopardy now that she has learned he has been sleeping with one of her three best friends.



Tam has been avoiding commitment all her life, both in an academic career that shows no sign of becoming permanent, and in her sexually combustive affairs with men. But she's ready to make some radical departures--including trying to return the interest of a sexy hunk who has more than just looks.



Ever since her husband's early death, Arneatha has immersed herself in her work as an Episcopal priest who runs a school and several community programs. But something is turning cold and brittle inside her, and for the first time in her life she questions her faith. Her last shreds of certainty are stripped from her when she is unexpectedly thrust into the role of mother--and finds herself falling in passionate, school-girlish love with a handsome African man.



Finally there is Audrey, whose climb back from the depths of alcoholism nearly costs her her life, but brings renewal to the friends' commitment to each other.



Vibrant, funny, heartwrenching, and real, Pride is an unforgettable novel.


From the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Pride weaves together the intriguing lives of four middle-class black women in their 30s, best friends and soul mates since high school. Throughout the dramas of life--illnesses, divorce, death, and infidelities--the women struggle to keep the essence of their friendship alive. Although the plot is not revolutionary, author Lorene Cary creates remarkably believable and intricate characterizations. Roz is the respectable politician's wife, struggling with breast cancer, only to be betrayed by her husband and girlfriend. Tam lacks commitment in her life, flunking in her career and involving herself with a string of men; she must change her ways or lose her friends. Arneatha is the nucleus of the group, the peacemaker who is confronted with a romance which could ruin the stability of the group. Finally, Audrey is the most tragic of the four, an alcoholic who relies on her friends to save her. Like the dramatic scenarios that quickly accumulate in the novel, the book's language is fast-paced and energetic. Pride has a theatrical quality to it: each woman narrates her own scenes, offering a fresh new way of looking at events. The plot does not dull for a moment, and readers looking for a fast, entertaining read and characters of real depth won't be disappointed. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From Library Journal

Cary, author of the marvelous memoir Black Ice (LJ 3/1/91) and the immensely readable historical novel The Price of a Child (LJ 4/15/95), attempts her first commercial novel here. Unfortunately, it can best be described as rehashed Terry McMillan. Four African American women, girlfriends since they were children, live through a tumultuous year of self-discovery, long-hidden secrets finally revealed, betrayal, and, ultimately, acceptance of one another's foibles. Roz, recovering from cancer, discovers that her politically ambitious husband has been involved in a longtime affair with one of her best friends; Tam, losing a bid for tenure at the college where she teaches, falls for the man of her dreams; Arneathea, an Episcopal priest lonely since her husband's death, meets a handsome African and unexpectedly (and totally unbelievably) becomes a mother; and alcoholic Audrey struggles to overcome her addiction. Calling a novel "commercial" doesn't mean it needs to have flat characters, hackneyed writing, and an uninteresting plot. Cary's novel, which exhibits all these traits, is simply bad commercial fiction and is not recommended.?Nancy Pearl, Washington Ctr. for the Book, Seattle
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Anchor; First Edition edition (January 19, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385481837
• ISBN-13: 978-0385481830
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,443,118 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars OK, January 9, 1999

By 

Dawn R Reeves "tamardi" (Harrisburg, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pride (Paperback)

The characters were interesting but the plot was boring. I enjoyed their friendships and their bonds. However, too much time was spent on the past. While explaining each character's past was informative, too much time was spent revisiting and I found myself bored. I also thought that Roz and Tam's conflict should have been explored more. I was disappointed that the author did not explore how Roz dealt with Hiriam and his infidelity. What, their life went on without any discussion about his affair with one of her best friends. I doubt it. I would not recommend this book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing after Black Ice, October 19, 2000

By 

M. H. Bayliss "book queen" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pride (Paperback)

I'm not going to be quite as harsh as many others who trashed this book. I loved Black Ice, so I started this book with a much more positive attitude. One of its problems is that it does't know if it's a tragedy, a comedy, or a statement of the human condition. The opening chapter aims at humor at the wedding, but then there are wrenching scenes like Nikki's abortion and the affair between Tam and Hiram. The book needed much better editing, a livlier story line and better writing. Though the characters are interesting, the writing is flat and ponderous and it really does drag on. I read for a few hours and was dismayed to see that I was only on page 70. I barely made it to the end, and only because I don't like to leave any book unfinished. I think publishers should be more careful when preparing second books. Just because Black Ice was good doesn't mean this one should have made it without chopping. Terry McMillian does this kind of writing about a hundred times better. This book made me want to reread Waiting to Exhale. Cary could take a lesson from McMillian's sense of humor and stronger writing. That being said, there's still hope for Cary if she tightens up the plot, provides clear clues to the narrator and finds a good editor. I'm not writing her off yet.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Bad Plot, August 25, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Pride (Paperback)

I finished the book unsatisfied. The character development was complicated, unfinished, and boring. The storyline(s) were so hard to follow. And why would you give one character two or three nicknames (Arnethea), I could never tell who they were talking about or talking to. Pure disappointment!