A Day Late And A Dollar Short by Terry McMillan (Waiting To Exhale, How Stella Got Her Groove Back) is very different from the usual type of book I read. And I am so glad I branched out! This story, filled with its many colorful characters, had me hooked from page one. It's a story of a family. It happens to be a poor black family, but it could be any family in America. Well, any family with a ton of problems, that is.
Viola Price is the matriarch of this group. We meet her in the hospital, where she's recovering from yet another asthma attack. She should be concentrating on her health, but she's a bit overwhelmed dealing with her four grown children, and all of their issues. Not to mention her wandering husband, Cecil, who's currently shacking up with a young welfare mother and her three kids. And now she's pregnant, and claiming Cecil is the Daddy.
It's not just Cecil driving Viola crazy; her kids also give her plenty to worry about. Paris is the rich one, with a successful business. But she struggles with internal demons. And now her 17 year old son, who should be on his way to a successful college career with a football scholarship, has gotten his girlfriend pregnant. Paris can only seem to find peace one place: at the bottom of a bottle of prescription painkillers.
Lewis is smart, and he has tons of great ideas. But he struggles with alcoholism. He can't keep a job, can't keep a driver's license, and can't keep himself out of jail.
Janelle lost her first husband tragically but seems to have a happy life with her new husband, George. But what exactly is George doing with Janelle's young daughter, behind closed doors? When Janelle finds out, her whole world will fall apart.
Charlotte has felt angry her whole life. She separates herself from the rest of the family both literally and figuratively. When she discovers that her husband has another child from an affair a decade ago, she tosses him out, and has to deal with her three kids on her own.
As you can see, this family is full of "issues". But they ultimately love each other, even while they allow their differences to come between them. Still, sometimes you have to hit rock bottom before you can start to heal, and that's exactly what this family does.
What I loved about this book is that everybody gets equal time. That's because the characters all take turns narrating the story. Each chapter is someone else speaking. Interestingly, they don't just come out and tell you who's talking for the chapter. You have to figure it out for yourself based upon on the context of the situation. Further, the characters have slightly different ways of speaking. Depending on their age, and their education level, the characters speak using different kinds of language. Thus, Charlotte's "voice" is completely different from Janelle's. Thus, as I got to know the characters, I learned to discern who was speaking in a matter of just a few sentences.
Speaking of "language", the characters don't really hold back. The "street talk" is rampant in this book. If you can't take lots of "colorful language" in a book, then you might want to skip this one. I don't love when books contain loads of bad language, but somehow in this book, for me it was OK. It simply wouldn't have rung true, if the characters didn't speak "colorfully".
I particularly enjoyed the chapters where Paris is speaking. She told the story of an addict beautifully - explaining exactly what one thinks, when something so little can wield so much power. Paris views herself as having two sides to her personality. "The Smart Side" knows that the pills don't fix anything, and that she needs to give them up. But "The Dumb Side" is stronger. That side speaks louder, and is able to take control. The struggle Paris feels between these two sides seemed so "real" to me. I've never been addicted to any drug, but watching the various stages of Paris's struggle helps me to understand how it could happen.
Of course, with so many characters, until you really get to know them, it can be quite difficult to keep them straight. Thankfully, there's a family tree drawn at the start of the book. I admit to referring back to it quite a few times, especially in the beginning.
The female characters are all very well defined. We get to fully understand them. The male characters definitely take a back seat in this book. I would have liked to better understand Cecil and Lewis.
Overall, this was a terrific book that I couldn't put down. I would love a sequel, or a movie! Actually, I suppose it would more likely be a soap opera than a movie. In any case, I felt completely immersed in the Price family, and I'm glad I got to spend a week or so with them.
Recommended:
