Welcome to the World!

Just finished Fannie Flagg's Welcome to the World, Baby Girl for my library book club. While I love the movie Fried Green Tomatoes, I had never actually read one of her books. I was delighted by the novel and without giving away the ending...shocked! The story follows Dena Nordstrom, a big time tv journalist with small-town roots, who struggles with her increasingly demanding boss and her loneliness. Both parents dead and no real relationship with her few remaining relatives, Dena (aka Baby Girl) makes work her life until it causes health problems. Recovering with relatives in her hometown of Elmwood Springs, Missouri, Dena must confront her feelings about herself and her mysterious mother who disappeared when she was fifteen. Her journey to discover what happened to her mother was the most interesting portion of the book. I was shocked by the reasoning behind her mother's disappearance. I never saw it coming. Growing up in the 80s and 90s, it wasn't as much of an issue but I can understand how painful it must have been to give up her child. Well worth your time. If you like this type of title, you should also try Billie Letts and Jodi Picoult.