Items related to Mother of Pearl: A Novel
Synopsis
Introduces the McAlister dynasty, a quirky, quarrelsome Southern family that includes such colorful characters as overbearing matriarch Eugenia Fane; her son Frank, who seeks peace in jail; and his squabbling sisters, Wanda Gay and Pearl
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Reviews
Although this tale about a family acting out its nuttiness winds down before it ends, good humor and the author's respect for his characters prevail. Widowed grandmother Pearl moved back home to East Texas, to live with sister Wanda Gay. They bicker continually about where to plant new rose bushes, whether their mother was devil or saint, how to raise children, what to wear. Swift reveals, through flashbacks and the women's natterings, how people bear the overwhelming weight of an inherited past: their grandmother, who responded to her husband's affair with their mulatto housekeeper by becoming outrageously crazy; their mother, who, wanting above all to appear normal, learned to detest men, to play the piano and finally to ape her mother's flambuoyant death. Though some of this seems contrived, Pearl, who favors her father, an iconoclastic auto mechanic, partly escapes and partly is bound to her heritage in this mostly genial, slightly frayed, story from the author of The Christopher Park Regulars.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
This is the tale of the McAlister family's incessant bickering, which is fueled by the entire clan of petulant, ill-humored, contentious McAlisters. While the novel has much to recommend it--interestingly eccentric characters, an energetic unfolding of events, a deft focusing on various members of five generations of McAlisters--ultimately, it is not successful. The characters, for example, all sound the same; not one has a distinct voice. The ending, too, when the reason for all the bickering is explained, is most unsatisfactory. Generally, what is meant to be amusing is only tiresome.
- Dorothy Golden, Georgia Southern Coll., Statesboro
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Mother of Pearl
Published by
British American Publishing, 1990
ISBN 10: 0945167261
ISBN 13: 9780945167266
Used
Hardcover
First Edition
Seller: West With The Night, Tucson, AZ, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hard cover. First edition. Sewn binding. Paper over boards. 214 p. Audience: General/trade. Fine in very good dust jacket. light shelfwear to the jacket, book like new, first printing. Seller Inventory # Alibris.0023480
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MOTHER OF PEARL: A Novel (Signed)
Published by
British American Publishing, 1990
ISBN 10: 0945167261
ISBN 13: 9780945167266
Used
Hardcover
First Edition
Signed
Seller: The Book Abyss, St. Paul, MN, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition. SIGNED BY AUTHOR --- --- Please see any and all photos connected with this listing. Cover and spine are like new. No dog-eared corners. Solid Binding. All pages intact and legible. Clean. No store stamps. --- --- Introduces the McAlister dynasty, a quirky, quarrelsome Southern family that includes such colorful characters as overbearing matriarch Eugenia Fane; her son Frank, who seeks peace in jail; and his squabbling sisters, Wanda Gay and Pearl. . .See photos for additional content. . . Signed by Author(s). Seller Inventory # 38760
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Mother of Pearl: A Novel
Seller: ThriftBooks-Dallas, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. No Jacket. Former library book; May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 0.8. Seller Inventory # G0945167261I4N10
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Mother of Pearl
Published by
British American Publishing, (Latham, New York), 1990
ISBN 10: 0945167261
ISBN 13: 9780945167266
Used
Hardcover
First Edition
Seller: Between the Covers-Rare Books, Inc. ABAA, Gloucester City, NJ, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine. First edition. Binding slightly cocked, else fine in a near fine dust jacket with light edgewear, and a couple tiny scuff marks on the front panel. Seller Inventory # 586596
Quantity: 1 available
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Mother of Pearl [SIGNED COPY, FIRST PRINTING]
Published by
British American Publishing, Latham, NY, 1990
ISBN 10: 0945167261
ISBN 13: 9780945167266
Used
Hardcover
First Edition
Signed
Seller: MostlySignedBooks, San Francisco, CA, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition. Near fine in very good dust jacket. SIGNED and inscribed to the LGBT poet, author, editor, and playwright 'To Kevin Killian with love' by author on title page. 1st edition, 1st printing, complete number line. Dust jacket is scratched and rubbed and has fraying to the corners and the cap and base of the spine. Book has mild softening to the base of the spine. By the author of "The Daughter of the Doctor and the Saint" and "Principia Martindale: A Comedy in Three Acts". Rare signed. Where possible, all books come with dust jacket in a clear protective plastic sleeve, sealed in a ziplock bag, wrapped in bubble wrap, shipped in a box. Signed by Author(s). Seller Inventory # Alibris.0008685
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Mother of Pearl: A Novel ---- INSCRIBED REVIEW COPY----
Seller: Craig Hokenson Bookseller, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine. Inscribed to local book reviewer. Publsiher letter laid in, along with author 5 x 7 glossy photo. Seller Inventory # 38820
Quantity: 1 available
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Mother of Pearl
Published by
British American Publishing, (Latham, New York), 1990
ISBN 10: 0945167261
ISBN 13: 9780945167266
Used
Hardcover
First Edition
Signed
Seller: Between the Covers-Rare Books, Inc. ABAA, Gloucester City, NJ, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Fine. First edition. Fine in an about fine dustwrapper with minimal edge wear. Signed by the author on the half title page. Seller Inventory # 354346
Quantity: 1 available
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Mother of Pearl: A Novel
Seller: The Book Spot, Sioux Falls, MN, U.S.A.
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Hardcover. Seller Inventory # Abebooks217082
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