Today we’re having a long weekend double delight for Starts at Sixty Bookies from the delightful Fannie Flagg. Enjoy.
Published by Random HouseAustralia, November 2013
Many Starts at Sixty Bookies would have seen the movie, Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café and I am sure many of you have also read novels by its creator, Fannie Flagg.
When I saw on NetGalley there was a Fannie Flagg new release, I was reminded how much I enjoyed her previous novels, Standing in the Rainbow and Welcome to the World Baby Boy. It is definitely time to re-enter Fannie’s world so I requested a pre-publication copy from Random House Australia. Good decision!
What I think of as “Fannie’s World” is best described as small town America. Although I’ve never lived in this world, Fannie opens a door making it accessible. She writes about the type of people you could meet anywhere, genuine, salt-of-the-earth type people.
Stanislaw Jurdabralinski, who arrived in Chicago on 5 January 1908 fleeing the Russian conscription of Polish men and boys, is one of these people. By 1916 he and wife Linka Marie have settled in Pulaski, Wisconsin and in short time, have five children, (4 girls and a boy), and own a Phillips 66 gas station.
When America enters World War II, the Jurdabralinski women, lead by eldest sister Fritzi, successfully take over the running of the service station. They learn how to do “men’s work” but they do it in a uniquely feminine way. As the war continues and petrol is rationed, the sisters decide the time has come to meet the challenges of war in another way.
Three of the girls have pilot’s licenses and so like their European counterparts they become transport pilots WASPs (Women Airforce Service Pilots) ferrying new planes to airfields, even flying the B-29s known as the Flying Fortress. Without pushing the feminist barrow too hard, the immense service these women rendered their country was totally ignored by the US military. The women were considered civilian not military personnel, hence they were not awarded service medals, did not receive service pensions, nor did they have access to the GI Bill. For the families of the thirty-eight women who died doing this dangerous work there was no compensation, no military funeral. It was not until 1977 that their service was acknowledged and lauded.
Sookie (Sarah Jane) Poole knows nothing about the Jurdabralinski family; she has never been to war, unless you count the war she wages against the blue jays who keep the smaller birds out of her garden. Her resume reads “wife of Earle, mother of four, daughter of Lenore Simmons Krackleberry, lives in Point Clear Alabama, member of the DAR”. But all this is to change! … and now read on!
What a good book this is, another I thoroughly enjoyed. The All-Girl Filling Station’s Last Reunion tells so many stories and they are told with such clarity; I found the WASP story riveting, as was the story about the filling station itself. Add to this Sookie’s story and the way they interweave and you have a very satisfying whole, truly a sum of all its parts.
Can’t Wait to Get to Heaven
Just when I was reminded of how much I enjoyed reading Fannie Flagg’s books, my library book club chose this one as the our first choice for 2014. Dare I say yet again, what a great read! (It’s becoming quite difficult to describe the books I’m reading without resorting to the same phrases, or perhaps I should consult Roger’s Thesaurus?)
Can’t Wait to Get to Heaven reminds us that you don’t have to be rich and famous to be loved and appreciated in your community. It doesn’t take the brains of an Einstein, or the wealth of a Rockefeller, or the psychoanalytical skills of Freud to make a difference to the people around you. Sometimes a friendly wave is all it takes to change someone’s day; the familiarity of seeing someone in their accustomed place means all’s well with the world.
Elner Shimfissel is just a simple countrywoman; she has her own set of values which stand her in good stead in her community. She loves ginger cats and names each new one Sonny, her way of keeping the memory of her first Sonny alive. She knows secrets and which closet hides the skeleton. She also asks questions, and if you want to know “Which came first, the chicken or the egg” this book will tell you!
Have you ever wondered what Heaven might look like? Will it be white robed angels on fluffy clouds, will it be the family and friends who went before you waiting to meet you? Elner gets a preview! She is attacked by a swarm of wasps whilst up a ladder picking figs and despite the best efforts of doctors she doesn’t survive, or does she? Whilst her family and friends start their grieving, Elner goes visiting.
Caution: This book contains good old fashioned humour, which may cause spontaneous outbreaks of smiles, giggles and laughter in public, guaranteed to make those around you wonder what you are up to!
Fannie Flagg has the ability to paint word pictures of people and places which allow the reader right inside the story; love it!
About the author – Fannie FlaggKnown professionally as Fannie Flagg, Patricia Neal (born September 21, 1944), is an American actress, comedian and author. She began writing and producing television specials at age nineteen and went on to distinguish herself as an actress and writer in television, films, and the theater. She is the author of the New York Times bestsellers Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man, Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe, Welcome to the World, Baby Girl!, and Standing in the Rainbow. Flagg’s script for Fried Green Tomatoes was nominated for both the Academy and Writers Guild of America Awards and won the highly regarded Scripters Award. Flagg lives in California and in Alabama.
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