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I Wish I Had a Red Dress
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
How do you follow up a debut that's a New York Times bestseller, an Oprah Book Club Selection that's still in the Amazon top 100 two years after publication? If you're canny like Cleage, author of What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day, you write a sequel, of course. Returning to Idlewild, Mich., the setting of her first book, Cleage takes up the story of Joyce, big sister to Ava, who was the focus of the original and who is absent from this one, traveling the country with her husband, Eddie. Fortysomething Joyce, a dedicated social worker, has always tended to be an optimist, despite her overwhelmingly tragic life. Her mother committed suicide on her wedding night, her two children died young and her beloved husband drowned five years ago. She's since taken to wearing black, but now she feels ready to wear red again, hence the title. The opportunity to do so comes in the form of Nate Anderson, a new student counselor in town who sees in Joyce the romantic woman who's still beneath the surface. Meanwhile, there's a lot going on at the Sewing Circus, the space Joyce uses for social work. Inspirational, idealistic and spiritual, the book is also sometimes judgmental, and a decidedly "women good, men bad" tone occasionally creeps in; some readers may find this unappealing. The bulk of the book is more about .problem solving specifically, Joyce's efforts at helping young African-American women become "free women" than it is about romance. (July) Forecast: As with many of the follow-ups penned by the Oprah-anointed, this effort will disappoint more than please the acolytes who made the first novel such a huge success, perhaps affecting Cleage's sales down the road. Major ad/promo; 7-city author tour; audio from Harper Audio.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
In her first novel, the New York Times best seller and Oprah's Book Club selection What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day, Cleage treated her audience to the life-affirming story of Ava, an African American woman diagnosed with AIDS and still finding new beginnings. In this work, she shifts her focus to Ava's widowed sister, Joyce, a social worker who counsels young black women in a community center affectionately dubbed "The Circus." When the story begins, Joyce has just lost any hope of government funding for the Circus and is looking forward to a comforting dinner with her friends, Bill and Sister. Sister, however, in typical matchmaking mode, has invited another man. An unsuspecting high school counselor, Nate proves to be the tallest, sexiest man Joyce has ever met. He also happens to be sensitive and supportive and he values her autonomy. With humor and sparkling dialog, Cleage balances the dark, abusive relationships of Joyce's clients with the delightfully healthy love between Joyce and Nate and the strength of women's friendships. These three plot lines are successfully carried to a satisfying conclusion. Recommended for public libraries.
- Jennifer Baker, Seattle P.L.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
See all Editorial Reviews
How do you follow up a debut that's a New York Times bestseller, an Oprah Book Club Selection that's still in the Amazon top 100 two years after publication? If you're canny like Cleage, author of What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day, you write a sequel, of course. Returning to Idlewild, Mich., the setting of her first book, Cleage takes up the story of Joyce, big sister to Ava, who was the focus of the original and who is absent from this one, traveling the country with her husband, Eddie. Fortysomething Joyce, a dedicated social worker, has always tended to be an optimist, despite her overwhelmingly tragic life. Her mother committed suicide on her wedding night, her two children died young and her beloved husband drowned five years ago. She's since taken to wearing black, but now she feels ready to wear red again, hence the title. The opportunity to do so comes in the form of Nate Anderson, a new student counselor in town who sees in Joyce the romantic woman who's still beneath the surface. Meanwhile, there's a lot going on at the Sewing Circus, the space Joyce uses for social work. Inspirational, idealistic and spiritual, the book is also sometimes judgmental, and a decidedly "women good, men bad" tone occasionally creeps in; some readers may find this unappealing. The bulk of the book is more about .problem solving specifically, Joyce's efforts at helping young African-American women become "free women" than it is about romance. (July) Forecast: As with many of the follow-ups penned by the Oprah-anointed, this effort will disappoint more than please the acolytes who made the first novel such a huge success, perhaps affecting Cleage's sales down the road. Major ad/promo; 7-city author tour; audio from Harper Audio.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
In her first novel, the New York Times best seller and Oprah's Book Club selection What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day, Cleage treated her audience to the life-affirming story of Ava, an African American woman diagnosed with AIDS and still finding new beginnings. In this work, she shifts her focus to Ava's widowed sister, Joyce, a social worker who counsels young black women in a community center affectionately dubbed "The Circus." When the story begins, Joyce has just lost any hope of government funding for the Circus and is looking forward to a comforting dinner with her friends, Bill and Sister. Sister, however, in typical matchmaking mode, has invited another man. An unsuspecting high school counselor, Nate proves to be the tallest, sexiest man Joyce has ever met. He also happens to be sensitive and supportive and he values her autonomy. With humor and sparkling dialog, Cleage balances the dark, abusive relationships of Joyce's clients with the delightfully healthy love between Joyce and Nate and the strength of women's friendships. These three plot lines are successfully carried to a satisfying conclusion. Recommended for public libraries.
- Jennifer Baker, Seattle P.L.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
See all Editorial Reviews
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
I WISH I HAD a red dress. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
The Circus, Super Bowl, Halle Berry, Dorothy Dandridge, Nate Anderson, Nia Long, Junior Lattimore, Sam Jackson, Sheila Lattimore, Ten Things, The Best Man, The Sewing Circus, Carmen Jones, San Francisco, Booty Call, Denzel Washington, Gregory Hines, Lake County, Lynette Smitherman, Set It Off, Tomika Jackson, African American, Angela Bassett, Anita Lattimore, Baldwin Road New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
I WISH I HAD a red dress. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
The Circus, Super Bowl, Halle Berry, Dorothy Dandridge, Nate Anderson, Nia Long, Junior Lattimore, Sam Jackson, Sheila Lattimore, Ten Things, The Best Man, The Sewing Circus, Carmen Jones, San Francisco, Booty Call, Denzel Washington, Gregory Hines, Lake County, Lynette Smitherman, Set It Off, Tomika Jackson, African American, Angela Bassett, Anita Lattimore, Baldwin Road New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 7
books:
See all 7 books this book cites
3
books
cite this book:
- What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day (Oprah's Book Club) by Pearl Cleage in Front Matter (1), Front Matter (2), and Back Matter
- Brass Bed and Other Stories by Pearl Cleage in Front Matter
- The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams on page 199
- Flyin' West (Dramatists Play Service) by Pearl Cleage in Front Matter
- Blues for an Alabama Sky by Pearl Cleage in Front Matter
See all 7 books this book cites
- Jeff Herman's Guide to Book Publishers, Editors and Literary Agents 2004: Who They Are! What They Want! and How to Win Them Over! (Jeff Herman's Guide to Book Editors, Publishers, and Literary Agents) by Jeff Herman on page 15
- Writer's Guide to Book Editors, Publishers, and Literary Agents: Who They Are! What They Want! and How to Win Them Over! (13th Edition) by Jeff Herman on page 118
- Mending The World: Stories of Family by Contemporary Black Writers by Robotham in Back Matter
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