Mark Childress

Crazy in Alabama is a book of split personalities. Set in the 1960s, one half of the narration is dedicated to Lucille's escapades in California. She's seeking fame and fortune as a wannabe actress while on the run from the law with her husband's decapitated head in a Tupperware container. The other half of the narration is from the perspective of Lucille's nephew Peter Joseph (Peejoe). He's in racially torn Alabama witnessing violence and civil unrest at its worst. While Lucille's side of show more the story is insanely surreal, Peejoe's is intensely serious. The disconnect between the two voices created a divide almost too big to ignore. Luckily, Childress pulls them together and makes the entire plot work. show less

Mark Childress is funny. At least his books suggest that he is because they are chock full of fun and entertainment and I have never finished one of them without a grin on my face. This is not to say that they are shallow or mindless. It's just that they will keep you happily barreling along the pages with his wacky but delightful characters even as they touch on darker concerns; here these concerns are racism and sexuality, complacency and image.

Georgia Bottoms is keeping secrets. Her show more well-respected family's money long gone, she must support her aging mother and her alcoholic brother who can't seem to stay on the right side of the law as well as send what she can afford to an address out of state for reasons not immediately explained. But just how does a charming, ladylike Southern belle can go about this? Why, she discreetly takes on lovers who come to her once a week and leave her monetary "gifts" for the privilege of her company of course. Georgia manages to keep each of her lovers from knowing about the others, hide her trysts from the town and her mother, and keep up the appearance of goodness that she has cultivated for so long until the preacher's wife discovers just exactly where he has been spending his Saturday nights. The trouble headed off at the pass, Georgia resumes her life, influencing town politics from behind the scenes, organising her annual ladies' tea, and struggling against her mother's creeping dementia and increasing racism. But the dam has broken, the world has changed (9/11 happens during the course of the novel), and some of Georgia's best kept secrets are about to be exposed.

Georgia is a performer, acting a role not only with each of her lovers but also acting the role of dutiful daughter, responsible sister, paragon of Southern gentility, pillar of the community, and town darling. She really hasn't had time to figure out who she actually is and it's not until she comes face to face with her past that she has to reach down inside herself and find the kernel of the real person she actually is without regard to what others expect.

The plot here is unique and the characters are wonderful. Georgia is charming and delightful and the reader roots for her the entire story, even when she is being intentionally obtuse. Her heart is generally in the right place and the situations in her life are highly entertaining. The story and everything about it is humorous with just the right amount of sass and verve thrown in to make it incredibly appealing. The story keeps moving at a good, consistent pace and ending is about perfect. I wish we could go along with Geogia and see what's next for her. She is a steel magnolia if ever there was one. Fans of Southern fiction have a gem waiting for them in this one. show less

How can a novel about murder and racism in Alabama be both funny and moving? It takes a writer with talent and a deft touch! Orphaned Peejoe is living with his loving Meemaw when his Aunt Lucille decides to murder her husband and head to LA to audition for the Beverley Hillbillies. Sent to stay with his Uncle Dove, a funeral home owner and the County coroner, Peejoe finds himself in the middle of the Civil Rights movement when the town's Black residents try to desegregate the new swimming show more pool.
Alternating chapters present PeeJoe's point of view as well as Aunt Lucille's. Lucille is a hoot, Peejoe is just trying to figure out what is going on and how he feels about it all. While the chapters describing the horrible acts of racism are disturbing (though historically accurate) it is how the people in Peejoe's life respond that provides insight and raise thought provoking questions. Excellent read! show less

Georgia Bottoms may be Six Points, Alabama's finest feature - beautiful, worldly, a splendid cook and faithful churchgoer who cares for her aged mother and sells handmade quilts to her grateful neighbors.

Georgia also has a discreet side business, "entertaining" six local gentlemen at night. Judge Barnett on Sunday, Sheriff Allred on Friday, the doctor on Wednesday (Monday's are Georgia's own). Each gentleman gets a night tailored to his particular tastes, each has been trained to leave a show more "gift" to help Georgia get by, and each one thinks he is Georgia's only secret lover.

When Preacher Eugene Hendrix (Saturdays) decides he must confess their affair in front of his wife and the entire congregation, Georgia may be able to stop him in time. But one pin pulled out of her elaborately protected life may be all it takes to send the whole structure to hell in a hurry. Chin high, posture perfect, her Chanel handbag tucked firmly under her arm, Georgia sets out to save herself, her mama, and her particular notion of virtue from total ruin. Nothing in Six Points will ever be the same. show less