Featured Book Review
'She's the Girl' by Susan M. Brooks © 2007 Zumaya ISBN 978-1-934135- 60-0 215 pages Paperback $13.99 (U.S.)
Once again I am reviewing a book which has NO relationship to Paganism. While most of my reviews over the past several years have been Pagan-oriented, I have been expanding my limits to include work which may appeal to the GLBT segment of the Pagan community. This is one of those books.
Having set that up I need to state that, like many of the novels I have been reviewing lately, this book is about love, and not particularly about sex.
This is a story of a road-trip. But it is more than a mere road-trip - it is a voyage of discovery equal to that undertaken by Lewis and Clark. It covers many miles, more experiences, and (greater than either of those) dawning self-knowledge. Natalie has a simple plan at the start and definite ideas about how things will culminate. But, as often happens, life gets in the way of her carefully planned expedition.
A girl and her dog (Trina and P), a transvestite bar owner, a charming (how else?) gigolo and a 68 year old virgin were never in the original plan. And what they reveal to Nat about herself could not be anticipated by any stretch of the imagination.
The end of the story is composed of equal parts of anticipated events and totally unexpected outcomes. You can tell that her planned reunion is not going to be the joyous event that Nat anticipates, but the resolution is.unexpected.
This is not a sexually explicit novel, but it most assuredly a story about love - between individuals and, more importantly, for oneself. There are no great truths in this story (unless you count learning to trust your feelings), but there is plenty of entertainment. It is a pleasant, enjoyable excursion into the inner workings of fate. Enjoy the ride.
Reviewer: Mike Gleason