And the church was no match for Eddie Levert. The O’Jays were still Mama’s favorite group, and Eddie Levert was still her favorite in the group. Mama B.C. (Before Church) would tell her girlfriends Miss Nancy and Miss Lajene, “Eddie Levert can have me anytime, anywhere, and anyway he want it, honey! You hear me?” And they would all fall out laughing. The nine stories in this collection are sometimes funny, sometimes frank and defiantly sexual, and sometimes poignant. Philyaw’s characters are daring to live their lives the way they want, but it often takes them a while to get there, and it sometimes requires reconciling their religion with their desires. And the girl whose mother regularly shares peach cobbler and herself with their married male pastor. The girl, now a teen, begins tutoring lessons and a liaison with the same pastor’s son.

The stories are all very poignant, sometimes laced with heartache, sometimes with humor. The connections between these women and their lovers, their mothers, and their siblings are explored so intimately, without a single wasted word. These relationships are never simple. Are they ever?! I loved the complexity of their thoughts, the turmoil, and the yearnings. Some of these “church ladies” are grieving; others are full of anger, perhaps even vengeful. They may miss home, their mothers, or other loved ones. They are all linked together by their love, determination and courage. As a Southerner who lived in Milwaukee for four years, I related to the weather aspects of “Snowfall.” It's another tale of mother-daughter conflict, but it was nice to have a ‘warm’ resolution this time, especially coming after the previous story. Daisy Ridley To Star In Survival Thriller From Zak Hilditch, The Penguin Empire and Campfire Studios; Neon & UTA To Shop At AFM The Westworld star has launched Viva Maude with a two-year deal at the WarnerMedia-owned cable network and streaming service. In Dear Sister, a woman writes a letter to her half-sister to notify her that Wallace “Stet” Brown, the wayward father they share with three other sisters, has passed away.The collection was rejected for publication by several publishers and presses, including the Big Five, before it was acquired by West Virginia University Press. [6] Reception [ edit ] Commercial success [ edit ]

The relationship between women and their mothers are also at the center of this collection,usually fraught with familial tension and often with the daughters being caregivers to their aging mothers such as in Not-Daniel and When Eddie Levert Comes’ The latter is especially effective as the daughter is merely called Daughter despite each other character having a name. He sighs. “Which is why I didn’t trip when you didn’t respond to my messages at first. I figured if you’d wanted me to leave you alone you would’ve said so. But you didn’t. Now I did trip a little when you ghosted me, but”—he shrugs and pulls you closer—“I figured you had your reasons.” I can highly recommend the audiobook. Janina Edwards performed this book like no other. It truly was a performance, not just a reading. It elevated the stories and brought me right into the characters’ worlds. You deflate a little. You want him to be the one you’ve been waiting for, and you want him to feel the inevitability of you as well. You want to be his default, not an option. You want the promises of a new religion. The stories of these women and their friendships come alive, beating with tenderness and imperfection, and build upon one another to create a beautiful melody of female determination.”Sign me up for whatever Deesha Philyaw writes next! This was one of the best short story collections I’ve read in ages, maybe ever. Almost every story was a perfect 10. My favorite was “Peach Cobbler” for sure, as well as “Snowfall” and “Eula.” And while Philyaw does an excellent job of depicting the hypocrisy of church leadership and the misogynoir stemming from the intersection of class, sex, race, and religious belief, this story is really about the fragile relationships between mothers and their children, and how resisting parental neglect, essentially striving for self-love, can often look like rebellion. There is fourteen-year-old Jael, who has a crush on the preacher’s wife. At forty-two, Lyra realizes that her discomfort with her own body stands between her and a new love. As Y2K looms, Caroletta’s “same time next year” arrangement with her childhood best friend is tenuous. A serial mistress lays down the ground rules for her married lovers. In the dark shadows of a hospice parking lot, grieving strangers find comfort in each other. You stand up and pull down your skirt and panties. “Rumi wrote of an intuitive love of God, and he was a Muslim,” you say. “But people like to strip away the Islam from his work.” I was also fascinated with the many types of relationships- mother/daughter, men/women, women/women...

And you only believe that because of how another group of men interpret the first group of men. People say you're supposed to put your faith in God, not men.” After he drops his luggage into your trunk and closes it, he turns to you and says, “Finally.” And you say, “Finally.” And he draws you into his arms and kisses you. His lips are as soft as you thought they would be. Ms. Philyaw was raised in Florida, as I was, and several of these stories take place there. I could relate to so much. . . the food, the eclectic neighborhoods, being raised on cheesy shows like Dallas and Dynasty, too. After graduation, she landed what seemed like a dream job, at a management consultancy. She made good money but cried every day on her way to work. Nine months in, without another job lined up, she quit. She got a master’s in teaching, and loved being in the classroom, but when she got married, she decided to stay at home to raise her children. That’s when she started writing fiction.Sex, friendship, freedom, and agency are centered throughout this cheeky, insightful, and irresistible new book.” In The Secret Lives of Church Ladies we meet women and girls who are exploring their sexuality, while trying to be that “good girl”. We see where religion is ever present and how it is interpreted can lead to years of hurt. I think Philyaw did a superb job of exploring mother-daughter relationship in a nuanced way. These relationships are complex and never one dimensional. I love the theme of love and how it was executed, from those who are waiting for their love to arrive, to those not knowing what to do when they arrive.