Welcome to the World, Baby Girl!

Anybody who has happy memories of fried green tomatoes and the Whistle Stop Cafe will want to follow Fannie Flagg to Elmwood Springs, Missouri. This old-fashioned town, reminiscent of Jan Karon's Mitford, becomes the emotional lodestone for a dazzling TV celebrity named Dena Nordstrom, whose mysterious past is threatening to destroy her. As the plot weaves back and forth in time, Kate Reading captures the highly individual voices of each of the many people who have haunted Dena's troubled life. Listening to Reading is a treat; her voice is almost like that of a beloved aunt telling stories on the front porch. Especially memorable: her interpretation of "Neighbor Dorothy" broadcasting on radio from her living room back in the '40's. J.C. (c) AudioFile, Portland, Maine


Fannie Flagg brings a real down-home quality to her reading of her own novel. The colloquialisms of Alabama and the sounds of Southern voices give a touching and lighthearted aura to the story of a TV anchorwoman's struggle to rise to the top of network news. The juxtaposition of fame, corporate TV machinations and small-town sensibilities are covered well in this abridgment, and Fannie Flagg makes listening to her intriguing novel rewarding entertainment. J.P. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine