The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion

The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion

Adult fiction
"Against all odds, she had just survived the last wedding of
their three daughters, Dee Dee, Ce Ce, and Le Le. Their only
unmarried child now was their twenty-five-year-old son, Carter, who
lived in Atlanta. And some other (God help her) beleaguered mother of
the bride would be in charge of planning that happy occasion. All she
and Earl would have to do for Carter's wedding was show up and smile.
And today, other than one short stop at the bank and picking up a
couple of pork chops for dinner, she didn't have another thing she had
to do. She was almost giddy with relief."
Of course you know Sookie (Sarah Jane), protagonist of Fannie
Flagg's The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion, won't get to
enjoy her leisure long. One day she receives shocking news. She was
adopted. Her birth mother was a Polish Catholic woman. Her father
was unknown.
This news would come as a shock to most women old enough to have
married off their daughters. Me? I'd be relieved not to carry the
DNA of plantation owners who had slaves and took the wrong side in the
Civil War. But for Sookie this intelligence is devastating. Lenore
(the woman she knows as her mother) was Southern old family elite with
European royalty ties. All Sookie's life Lenore has ruthlessly held
her to Southern Belle standards, pushing her to be a debutante. To
Lenore family status is everything.
Sookie has always prided herself on honesty. Now she believes
her whole life is a lie. What will people think of her? How will her
children react to the news? How can she keep Lenore from learning
that she knows?
But don't start feeling sorry for Sookie. She's about to embark
on a flight of self discovery and learn about a fascinating chapter in
feminist herstory. You won't want to miss the ride. So buckle up,
lean back, and be ready for one wild journey.
On a personnel note, my big house and shed reorganizing project is
taking on aspects of exorcism. I'm getting rid of the stuff I
acquired with good intentions and never got around to really using and
the ghosts of guilt they engendered. The bread machine is a good
example. I bought it to make good bread for my family. Amber was
three, Katie a baby, and Adam a plan. I made exactly one loaf that
was more suitable for door stop than anything intended for human
consumption. The machine got neglected in the hecticness of life with
three children. When I actually had time to make bread there were not
enough people at home to make this a sensible idea. Bye bye bread
machine! Bye bye guilt ghosties!
A great big shout goes out to all of my readers who have experienced
unfulfilled good intentions and guilt ghosties.
jules hathaway


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