After re-reading the book jacket, I am wondering just how it is these stories won so many awards. I think the answer is that they must seem better when they're not together.

First of all, the theme of Southern women that's intended to string all these tales together runs quite thin. There are more than a couple stories that aren't really about a woman at all: they are about men who just happen to know a Southern woman. This is true for the stories "about" Precious, Patty, Meredith, and Angie. That's 4 out of 12. I think it would have been perfectly acceptable to have dropped the "Southern women" gimmick and just called it a regular collection of short stories.

What I loved about this book was the attitude. Dogs in two different stories are named after Julia Roberts and Robert Goulet. The sense of humor represented is uniquely Southern. My favorite of the stories is Charmain's "White Trash Noir," in which she describes the events that led up to her shooting her husband and the trial afterwards. The words of her lawyer: "This is Murder One, Charmain. You just cannot kill your husband in this state if he played ACC basketball"(63).

My problem with Mr. Malone's short stories is that they leave me wondering whether or not he likes women from the South. They seem to come only in black and white categories: angelic or devilish, happy or miserable, simple or overly-complex, strong or dependent, selfish or selfless. All categories are able to get away with murder, as three, arguably four, of these women do.

While I believe Malone's writing is exceptional, I get too caught up in the characters. I find myself asking, as a Southern woman, do I talk as much as Stella or Marie? Is there really no middle ground between perfection and disenchantment? Do Southern women really kill people that often?

If you want to read enjoyable stories that lean toward the murder-mystery side of things, grab Red Clay, Blue Cadillac. However, if you're wanting something a little more palpable, stick with Bobbie Ann Mason. "Shiloh" beats out Malone's "A Deer on the Lawn" without question. ( )