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ALL I NEED
Jaquie Bamberg Moore
$ 14.00 / Paperback / 282 pages
ISBN 0971192405
Reading Time Publishing / 2001
Fiction / African-American Fiction
Jaquie Bamberg Moore’s novel is a vivid portrait of the tempestuous
friendship of three African American women, their interconnected lives, and
their common journey into maturity. Randi, Umi, and Michelle, are in their
mid-thirties, and have been friends since high school.
Randi, whose favorite saying is "time waits for no man and neither does a
smart woman," is not as tough and invulnerable as she sounds. Confused about
her goals in relationships and often abused by the men in her life, she is
in danger of not recognizing a good thing when she sees it.
Umi has an one-track mind and nothing can make her stray from her goal
which is mainly to reach the highest level of achievement in the corporate
world. She is soon to find, however, that there are other things besides
good businesses and businessmen.
Michelle, a housewife and the mother of a sixteen-year old, must suddenly
face some of the harsh realities of life after an unhappy turn of events at
home forces her to look for love elsewhere.
Although their characters and personalities are quite different, the
three share a great deal when it comes to such traits as being extremely
opinionated, headstrong, and assertive. These qualities, healthful in
moderation but potentially destructive in excess, are abundantly present in
the three friends, and this usually leads to flaring tempers, explosive
arguments, and finally to readjustments in their friendship.
There is no doubt that these women share profound affinities and deep
sister-soul ties, yet when heated disputes erupt within the trio, their
friendship can be seriously threatened. The harsh words and bitter insults
they fling at one another during their intense verbal brawls test the limits
of their tolerance for each other. As they all finally come to understand
that it’s the people with the closest relationship to one that can and cause
the most damage, they must each rethink the nature of their friendship and
decide whether forgiveness, and tolerance and understanding of one another’s
weaknesses comprise the optimal choice for them.
By allowing us to peek into the lives of these three women, lives fraught
with challenges and difficulties, tragedy and love, and marked by the
struggle for authentic happiness and intimacy, this novel in an engaging and
dynamic fashion offers the reader a profound vision of the true meaning of
friendship. |