It Happened in Eighty-Eight by Bettye Griffin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Cornell Sebastian returns to the fictitious town of Eighty-Eight, Mississippi to handle the house her late uncle has willed to her. She hires kitchen and bath designer Ajay Vincent to upgrade the kitchen and spruce up the rest of the house. Ajay is enchanted by Cornell, takes her to meet his friends and family in the little town, and romance begins.
Cornell and Ajay both have secrets that make them "damaged goods." Ajay doesn't give up on Cornell who freezes up every time he touches her, even though she wants to be in a relationship with him. When she finally tells him her secret, it lifts a burden from Cornell but adds to the weight for Ajay who has his own secret.
I guessed Cornell's secret from the first time it was implied. Ajay's secret was more complicated.
It was a good read.
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Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Kambili and Jaja Achike live what seems to be a privileged life. But their father Eugene is tyrannical, controlling and abusive. He is respected in their Catholic church due to his wealth and position in the community, owning a newspaper, and several factories that produce various goods. But he refuses to allow his father to enter his house because Eugene considers him a "heathen" who holds on to his traditional African ways, refusing to become a Catholic.
Kambili and Jaja live in fear of their father who insists that both of his children must have the highest grades in their respective classes in Catholic school. They are both smart students, but when Kambili brings home her grades as the second highest in her class, she is whipped for that transgression.
Eugene's sister Ifeoma is a lecturer in the University at Nsukka several hours away from Eugene's family in Enugu. Aunty Ifeoma recognizes her brother's controlling and abusive nature, and invites Kambili and Jaja for a visit during the holidays. Aunty does not tell Eugene that the children will also visit their grandfather who lives in a traditional village. Kambili and Jaja's eyes are opened to a different way of living in Aunty's house, and Kambili finds her own voice, and her own freedom.
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Baby Girl by Bette Lee Crosby
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Cheryl Ann falls in love with Ryan when she is a teenager, living with a mother who never has anything good to say about her. Cheryl's Daddy has died, and Cheryl sees so much of her Daddy in Ryan, that she falls in love.
When her mother puts Cheryl out of the house, Cheryl is determined to make her own way in the world, with Ryan by her side. When she becomes pregnant, Ryan isn't ready to get married and have a baby, and Cheryl won't consider abortion. Ryan would rather have a boat. She does, however, decide to give the baby up for adoption to a loving couple she has met.
Ryan stays around long enough to see the birth of "Baby Girl," while Cheryl becomes as bitter as her mother always was. After she and Ryan are divorced, Cheryl falls in love again. This time with Nick who loves her, but who decides he is too old to have a family. After Cheryl has his baby, whom she keeps this time, Nick leaves.
Cheryl is determined to keep this baby named Violet, and manage by herself. But she does have people in her life to help and guide her through being a single mom. She has her best friend Nicole from work, Ophelia who helped her through the decision to give her Baby Girl away, and her landlady who was always at the ready to babysit. But Cheryl Ann was sure she was the strong one who could do it all by herself.
And then there is another baby, Felix. How did that happen? No spoilers here. But it took a few more years for Cheryl to see she didn't have to always be the strong one, didn't have to do it all by herself.
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Gone Crazy in Alabama by Rita Williams-Garcia
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I have fallen in love with Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern, the Gaither Sisters. I was late discovering this series for "Middle Grades" with great historical lessons.
It started with "One Crazy Summer," with the sisters visiting their wayward mother in Oakland, CA. Then the aftermath and return home to Brooklyn in "P.S. Be Eleven."
The latest installment is "Gone Crazy in Alabama" when Pa sends the girls "Down South" to meet the relatives on the farm. I so much enjoyed the voices of the girls as they complete each others' explanations in an almost poetic harmony. They remind me so much of my middle sister, my niece, and me.
I was so charmed that every time I opened the book at the next chapter, I couldn't hold back the smile on my face. Their adventures, learning the family history, helping gather the fresh eggs, and help milk the cow reminded me of days in Forsythe, Georgia, so long ago.
I was happy just reminiscing until something went terribly wrong, when I found myself in the middle of the night, with an unexpected page-turner. No spoilers here. You have to read it for yourself.
Rita Williams-Garcia is a winner.
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