Customer Reviews

Weeping Willows Dance

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Weeping Willows Dance will gently pull readers into the
recession of 1929 where abuse, poverty, suffering, and
above all, the depth of faith in the Almighty God, are
key elements in the life of Mozelle Parker. This gripping
tale about her plight will saddle readers' hearts and
penetrate their souls.

One thing Mozelle knows is that she does not want a husband,
children, or farm life. With 11 siblings, she already spends
her days performing like a mother. So, it is quite a shock
for her when on a warm Sunday morning she looks fleetingly
at her destiny when a dashingly handsome man makes something
in her flutter. At age 15, against her parent's wishes,
Mozelle is briefly courted and wedded to Randell Tate, 22
years her senior. She leaves home with the message that
Randell is her husband for life no matter how rough times
get. Mozelle wants to blame the Great Depression on the
jeckel/hyde person her husband becomes. But in truth,
she was too young to know and understand what caused his
change.

The writer introduces several secondary characters, and as
necessary as these characters were to the story, they
remained secondary; appropriately stopped at their boundaries.
This is a riveting, haunting story that underlines Mozelle's
struggles to rise above the tragic place where she is lodged.
No one told her that her life was going to be easy, but the
life of drudgery as sharecroppers did not prepare her for the

backbreaking struggle of her own life to survive. She knew
whatever she got out of life she would have to work hard for
it. She didn't think she should have to do it alone when she
had an able-bodied husband; but that was the bed she'd made.
Like the weeping willow tree on a breezy day, she stood her
ground against all obstacles that came her way, proving just
how strong she was. She would let nothing and no one keep her
from her goal.

This was a personal story for Ms. Mallette and as she writes,
her words literally dance across the pages. Pick up a copy of
Weeping Willows Dance and share a true family saga. This is my
first book by Gloria Mallette, but without a doubt, I will
find and read her other works. This story begged to be told
and this book deserves to be read. I wanted to give this book
a rating higher than five.

Reviewed by aNN Brown

This is a true story of Ms. Mallette's grandmother Mozelle Tate. In my opinion this woman lived 2 steps above slavery. Mrs. Tate was marrried to a no good cheating "husband" at the age of 15 who never encouraged anything Mozelle wanted to do or get. He was 25 yrs older. It's a shamed she lived her life being punished by her husband because Randell, Mozelle's husband, couldn't marry the woman he really wanted. As a woman living today, it was very difficult to read this novel and not get angry and cry. Many times I said to myself, I would have...she should have..., but the truth be told, I have no idea of how to handle Mozelle's life since I've never been in her shoes. Mozelle made a promise to God that once Randell was out of her life (one way or another), she would never take another man or husband. In the end, she was really married to God. Talk about having strong faith. Ms. Mallette is a wonderful writer and story teller.

This was an excellent read. Very sad but real story of Mozelle growing up in the South. I felt so hurt for her for all the pain her "husband" brought forth in her life. You feel so connected to this story while reading it. All in all through everything, her strength and faith in God is what brought her through trials and tribulations. Excellent book. Keep up the good work Ms. Mallette!

My Book Club SISTERFRIENDS (New Jersey) just finished reading a dynamic story of strength, inspiration and courage. "Weeping WIllows Dance" by Gloria Mallette was a genuine reading experience. Mozelle's (the central character) life leaped from the pages and the reader was transported thru time to be an eyewitness as she dealt with unsurmountable obstacles time and time again.

This woman's true story, is a must read. Everyone goes thru periods in life when we question the decisions we make and the course our lives have taken as a result of those decisions. Sometimes we hit bottom and feel there's no way out, that no one has ever dealt with the issues we face. The courage and determination demonstrated by Mozelle is a testimony to womanhood. Mozelle has left us the legacy of her life as a gift.

Ms. Mallette visited our October book club meeting. She graciously shared from her heart her own experiences with her grandmother shedding even more insight and love for this powerful woman.

Honor yourself and read Mozelle's story. You will never be the same!

Let me give praise where it is due. Gloria Mallette's story of her grandmother's life is a testament to black women and indeed to all women who have been oppressed. This engaging, moving story is riveting from start to finish and as I dabbed at the tears forming my eyes in the end, I realized that I was forever changed by this story of a common woman with most uncommon resolve.

The graphic detail of the years of suffering that Mozelle endures is inspiring and demands your sympathy. Her unwavering faith and focus to obtain her goals by any means necessary is humbling. I will never utter the words "I am tired" again without a tinge of guilt in recognizing that I may never have experienced a fraction of the "bone tired" that this brave woman endured constantly for more than the years I've been on this earth. My gratitude for my own life's blessings were magnified as I read page after page.

Randall Tate is an artfully drawn character who is reminiscent of an even more vile version of Mister from the Color Purple and the reader becomes more and more invested in seeing this man's ultimate demise -- which comes as it so often comes in life -- too long in coming and with not as much fanfare as
the misery he caused merited. But nevertheless, I breathed a sigh of relief knowing he would never darken the doorway of the woman he claimed to own from the time she was 15. Randall Tate is a character of modern proportion and women today would be wise to look out for "fool's gold" like him.

I challenge anyone to read this book and feel sorry for themselves ever again. Mozelle's life is one of honor, unyielding faith and the key component -- action. All the faith in the world would have done her no good, if she sat back and waited for her desires to be dropped in her lap. Hard work was and is the pivotal factor in achievement. Her faith sustained her through all times whether it was during the depression when she had to eat dirt from the very field she toiled in to quiet her aching belly to heartaches of seeing her cherished first born die too soon to the loss of her beloved home.

Mozelle did indeed live a life worth every word (and more) that Ms. Mallette lovingly penned in remembrance of this remarkable woman.

I believe this book should be required reading for all young women, particularly African American young women who too often find themselves bewitched by young brothers who show one face to get you and reveal their true evil selves once they have you.

A weeping willow tree sways back and forth just like the days of our lives. It can provide a sense of peace and a resting place as it did for Mozelle. As a child, Mozelle was often relegated to helping out with the many children in her household; whether they were her siblings or the children her mother took in. A tomboy at heart, Mozelle's desires were to leave her Southern town at age eighteen, find work, buy some of the finer things in life and never marry nor raise children. She wanted to be a free woman. At age fifteen, Randall Tate walks into town, chooses Mozelle as his wife and because it would be one less mouth to feed, her parents reluctantly consent against Mozelle's wishes.

What follows is a hardship of a marriage and life in general. Mozelle had borne several children, worked in the cotton fields, cleaned houses and cooked in restaurants throughout several Southern towns. Randall was not the man she assumed him to be. He was a womanizer, refused to give Mozelle money for food and denied his children the presence of a father. This is not the life Mozelle envisioned but because of her resolve, she did what many strong, God-fearing woman would do-she accepted her fate and vowed to make it on her own.

Gloria's Mallette's Weeping Willows Dance is a testament of a woman's strength when faced with hard times during a sad period in American history. Written with a strong Southern dialect and literary flair, Weeping Willows Dance could provide a blueprint for many to follow. Excellent!

Reviewed by Dawn R. Reeves
APOOO BookClub

Mozelle's story is sad and endearing. Everyone who knew her, loved her, except Randell. (He loved only himself.) Mozelle lived through his shortcomings and became a mother, grandmother and great-grandmother of principle.

Pass this book onto mature women who may relate to her trials and tribulations. They may identify the way to renew their lives.

Weeping Willow Dance is well written and engaging. Mozelle went through so much and never lost her faith. The book is a tribute to how strong we Black women are. I am glad Gloria Mallette had the courage to tell this story.

This is the most frustratingly, touching book that I have ever read. Ms. Mallette has made this book my absolute all-time favorite. I felt that I was actually there with her family,experiencing all of their struggles, as well as their triumphs.Her great-grandmother has got to be the strongest woman I have ever known(I felt like I knew her!), having experienced the depressing and triumphant black woman's struggle.I cried with and for this woman WHO NEVER QUIT. A real tear jerker that is sure to make any other woman's struggle seem small. We should all learn from her strength.

Weeping Willows Dance is undeniably an AWESOME read. I am in awe of Ms. Mallette's writing style and her ability to bring the reader into the depths of Mozelle's unforgettable world. Mozelle is a true testament to all African American women that with faith you can endure and overcome whatever you are dealt in your life. Unfortunately, I know what it is like to be have been in an abusive relationship and the experience is demeaning to your self-esteem. Although my situation was not as hellish as Mozelle's (but abuse is abuse) and yours might not be either, this book awakened me and allowed me to see that if she stood strong through all of her trials and tribulations, I could surely stand strong in mine. LET NO MAN BRING YOU UNDER. IF IT DOESN'T KILL YOU, IT WILL ONLY MAKE YOU STRONGER!