The Hatwearer's Lesson

Grandma Ollie and her granddaughter Terri have been together since Terri's mom passed away in Grandma Ollie's arms, giving birth. Born with an extraordinary sixth sense, Grandma Ollie knows just when things are going to happen, good and bad. So when her pen runs out the day she goes to enter Terri's engagement into her bible, Grandma Ollie knows something's wrong with her granddaughter, now a prominent attorney living up North. Terri, however, won't listen to Grandma Ollie's concerns. She has a great career, a successful man in her life, and feels like her small town roots are finally far behind her-she's going places and not looking back. But Grandma Ollie is never wrong...

With The Hatwearer's Lesson, the bestselling author of He Say, She Say; Bebe's By Golly Wow; and This Just In gifts us with a heartwarming and high-spirited novel about the lessons life teaches us, the rich histories families share-whether they wear hats or don't-and the memories we carry with us all our lives.

Adult/High School-Terri, a successful young lawyer in Chicago, has the physical attributes, material possessions, and active social life that many teens admire and aspire to. She's engaged to marry Derek, a sexy, charismatic, and equally successful professional man, but finds out that he is a philandering liar. When her beloved grandmother falls sick, Terri flies down to Arkansas to help care for her and soon meets Lynnwood, a man who seems like a good match for her-even though he doesn't have Derek's money and status. She is eventually faced with the choice of forgiving Derek and going through with her plans to marry him or pursuing a relationship with Lynnwood instead. This upbeat love story will appeal to young adults. The portrayal of Grandmother Ollie is particularly humorous and well crafted. With her quick and witty tongue, she offers her granddaughter words of wisdom and shares moving stories about her own experiences with men. Readers can pick up good advice for building positive self-esteem and choosing mates wisely. The rich imagery and lively dialogue of this novel will at times remind them of Zora Neale Hurston's romantic masterpiece, Their Eyes Were Watching God (HarperPerennial, 1994).
Joyce Fay Fletcher, Rippon Middle School, Prince William County, VA
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Readers who know that success isn't measured by material wealth will root for beautiful Terri Mills, a powerful attorney for the city of Chicago, who comes to understand that false values could destroy her life. Despite having grown up without parents or much money, Terri has made it big. She's riding high until her fiance, Derek Houser, cheats on her. His smooth-talking apologies are none too convincing; in fact, his smarminess and self-indulgence makes one wonder what she ever saw in the guy besides his Jaguar XJ6. Yet Joe (Babe's by Golly Wow) makes clear that it's especially difficult for a professional African-American woman to find a man who is not intimidated by her smarts. Not to mention that Terri and Derek are the perfect power couple, and Terri hates the idea of losing the fruits of their collective networking. When Terri's beloved Grandma Ollie becomes ill back home in Collingswood, Ark., Terri rushes to her bedside. There, she has time to reflect on her muddled love life, and Grandma Ollie offers additional insights by way of stories from her own youth. Distracted by Grandma Ollie's dramatic past and Derek's long-distance contrition, Terri doesn't realize that local rodeo superstar Lynnwood Conway has fallen in love with her. The unassuming ease with which Lynnwood woos Terri forces her to reconsider what and who truly makes her happy. This is a spirited fairy tale for young black professional women with an ending as predictable, and as satisfying, as one would expect.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Terri Mills is an ambitious Chicago lawyer, a rising star on a fast track, recently engaged to an equally ambitious young lawyer, Derek Houser. Together they make an enviable pair at the political dinners and charity galas attended by Chicago's young black elite. But Terri's Grandma Ollie, who raised her granddaughter after her daughter died in childbirth, is unable to record the engagement in her Bible--a bad sign. Grandma Ollie's sudden illness sends Terri home to Collingswood, Arkansas, while she's in the midst of romantic and career turmoil--she's discovered that her fiance has been unfaithful, and she's in the throes of a make-or-break lawsuit. Granddaughter and grandmother share a gift of vision, although Terri's talent is not as well developed. In their time together, with Grandma Ollie flashing back to her own youth, the two help Terri sort out conflicting emotions when a competing love interest materializes. Joe's fans will enjoy this touching novel about what a matriarch with memories and the vision can teach a troubled young woman. Vanessa Bush
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