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by
T.D. Jakes
Published by AOL Time Warner Book Group
243 pages / Hardback
0-446-52906-0
Cover Girls
A
Peek Into A Diary
It’s a wonderful feeling to get a novel, which requires preparation before
sinking in. While the microwave popcorn is popping and the soda absorbs the
ice cubes in a tall tumbler, I turn the air conditioner unit on high and
ensure the phone ringer is off and lay out my pallet.
Preparations are essential when reading Cover Girls by T.D.
Jakes. It’s one of those novels, when after reading the first couple of
pages you look up and say “Thank you God.” There’s nothing like being
blessed with a book you know right off the bat that you’re not going to be
able to tear yourself away from. Cover Girls is that book.
Cover Girls is a meritoriously written novel that follows
the lives of four very different women who have the same issues many of us
often dwell upon; life’s challenges. The characters are very real
and could be your next-door neighbor, the woman at work and the lady at
church. You become so engrossed by Cover Girls you tend to forget it is a
work of fiction. It almost feels as though you are taking a prohibited peek
into someone’s diary.
T.D. Jakes created a melting pot of women, black, white, rich, poor,
churchgoer and the customary believer. Michelle is a driven career woman
who has survived an abusive childhood, but has not forgotten it by any
means. The reader goes on a mental roller coaster with Michelle as she
comes to terms with her past. Michelle was one of the more memorable
characters and the most easy to connect with. She’s the girlfriend who
calls you every night singing the blues. The one who makes it seems like
your own problems aren’t so bad after all.
Tonya, who readers will more than likely see as someone who wears religion
on her sleeve, feels her faith is the only thing in this world she can count
on. Tonya isn’t as easy to relate to and she can be very aggravating. She
manages to get under the reader’s skin with her holier-than-thou attitude
just as much as she does some of the other characters in the book.
Then there’s Mrs. Judson, who puts all of her faith in the almighty dollar.
She feels the power that evolves from wealth will safeguard her from life’s
challenges. She’s content with being an onlooker to other’s provocations
versus a vindicator.
Miz Ida will put you in mind of the old lady who lived a couple houses down
from you as a child and always gave the neighborhood kids candy. She has
dedicated her life to God and enjoys being the caregiver to others. Her aura
drifts from the pages and into your heart
The author uses the stages of seasons changing to describe the
different phases in the life these women go through. The struggles, issues
and challenges these women are faced with are anything but fantasy. It was
very easy able to relate to each character and their individual dilemmas.
At certain points in the book I even felt like I was reading my own diary.
I found it hard to believe that this was T.D. Jakes first work of
fiction. He achieved all of the qualities in his writing of Cover Girls
that makes a good fiction story worth reading.
This is actually the first book I have ever read authored by Jakes. I’ve
now discovered another favorite author to add to my collection, which means
going back to read all of his other titles.
Joylynn M. Jossel resides in Columbus Ohio and is the author of “Please
Tell Me If The Grass Is Greener”, “World On My Shoulders”, “Twilight Moods”
(publisher/contributor), “The Game” (editor/contributor), “The Root of All
Evil” (2004 St. Martin’s Press) and “Dollar Bill” (September 2003 Triple
Crown Publications). You may visit her at www.JoylynnJossel.com. |