Reviews for Coming attractions

The average rating for Coming attractions based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2020-06-07 00:00:00 Duncan Fleming I am a nonfiction reader at heart who appreciates quality historical fiction. Now that that is out of the way, I think that 2020 will be remembered not as much for what I read but for who I read with. With personal relationships at a premium these days, I have craved buddy reads in all of my good reads groups. Although reading is a solitary activity, at least I know that others are reading the same book as me that will be followed by a lengthy discussion. In one of my good reads groups, some of us have decided to read through Fannie Flagg's novels. The author of Fried Green Tomatoes, Flagg is a southern writer who might not produce the best literary prose, but you know you will be reading a quality story full of well developed characters. This month, our group agreed on Flagg's first novel, which takes readers back to the 1950's Mississippi gulf coast. Daisy Fay Harper is eleven years old in 1952. At a tender age, she begins to keep a diary because she realizes that her family life is not the most stable and needs someone to confide in. Daisy lives in Jackson, Mississippi with her father, a movie projection operator and full fledged alcoholic, and her mother, who is constantly on her father's case to stop his drinking and womanizing. Her mother threatens to leave her father on a daily basis, whereas the father believes he is always one deal away from striking it rich. Daisy's mother would never leave her comfort zone of Jackson until one day, her father came up with the scheme of schemes- along with his lifelong friend Jimmy Snow, all they had to do was raise $500 and they could own a malt shop in the resort town of Shell Beach. Daisy isn't sold on the idea at first as all that she knows is in Jackson. Her grandmother's mascot at bingo games and convinced by her mother that this plan will never work, Daisy would rather stay in Jackson, until somehow her father actually raises the $500 and the family is on its way to Shell Beach. I am drawn to books set in the 1950s as the era presents a much more wholesome time in America. Shell Beach, Mississippi is a resort town. Most people would rather go to the Florida panhandle so Shell Beach relies on tourism in the summer months to make ends meet. Few residents call the town their year round home, and Daisy has a limited pool of people in her age group to call her friends. Michael Romeo's parents own an Italian diner so the two become fast friends, concocting adventures to ease the boredom of life in Shell Beach. Usually these adventures involve viewing adult shows at clubs from a window, but in this bygone era with little adult supervision, few people paid attention to these adolescent whims. Daisy's mother forces her to attend Junior Debutante meetings whereas she would rather be on an adventure with Michael. The group's de facto leader is town spoiled bratty snob Kay Bob Benson who one can not help but detest. Never developed as an actual antagonist, Kay Bob is developed as a rich kid whose life is handed to her on a silver spoon, often getting in the way of Daisy Fay achieving her dreams. One day, Daisy Fay's mother actually leaves. She remains in Shell Beach with her father and Jimmy Snow. In the 1950s this was all but unheard of, so I give Flagg credit for writing about a non-nuclear family in her debut effort. Daisy is guided through adolescence but a myriad of friends and female mentors, starting with her sixth grade teacher Sibyl Underwood, with whom she develops a lifelong relationship. Flagg shows Tommy Harper and Jimmy Snow as forward thinking as one of their strongest relationships is with African American business owner Peachy Wigham and her partner Ola Sour. It appeared to me that Flagg wanted to develop these characters further but they were not the focal point of the book, but one can sense Idgie Threadgood and her gang emerging from the characterization of these two women. Between Sibyl Underwood, Peachy Wigham, Junior Debutante leader Mrs Dot, and correspondence with her grandmother Pettibone the bingo player, Daisy Fay somehow gets through her adolescent years raised by two alcoholics. With memorable characters as these, Daisy Fay's story makes for fast reading as one can not help but root for her to make it to adulthood not just unscathed but ahead in life. Told from Daisy Fay's point of view in diary form, Flagg's debut is ambitious and refreshing. With the novel spanning seven years in linear form, Daisy Fay Harper's story takes the reader until she graduates from high school and makes it big. Faced with challenges that most of her friends did not have to deal with, Daisy Fay held a layer of grittiness that allowed her to persevere a difficult adolescence. Fanny Flagg introduces difficult topics in a novel taking place in an era where things were normally perceived as carefree. Looking at the 1950s through a 21st century lens, the era of malted milkshakes and drive in movies was definitely less complex than the world today; however, Daisy Fay Harper navigated through a troubled childhood. Fanny Flagg showed readers that she is willing to tackle multiple societal issues in a novel here in her debut. Daisy Fay might not be remembered as Flagg's most memorable novel or character, but her story makes for fun reading, setting the stage for Flagg's achievements later in her career. 4 stars

Review # 2 was written on 2018-05-29 00:00:00 Richard Young I did enjoy the end of the book more than the beginning, but it was hard for me to want to keep going through this. I have to admit that I like Ms. Flagg's later books much better!