Single Mom

September 28, 1998
Endearing earnestness and a promising setup can't save Tyree's latest (after A Do Right Man) from a terminal case of the blahs. After 10 years of raising Walter and Little Jay, her sons fathered out of wedlock by two different men, self-made businesswoman Denise Stewart finds herself increasingly, though platonically, involved with their fathers, each of whom has suddenly taken an interest in his offspring--just as Denise is embarking on a new, serious romance with a third man, a truck-driver named Brock. A more imaginative writer would have made comedy or light drama of the improbable premise, but Tyree plows ahead, straightfaced, through soporific domestic minutiae: endless Thanksgiving dinners, sports analyses, Christmas shopping sprees and discussions of the virtues of hardwood floors. The fathers (one a failed basketball player, now a laborer, the other an upwardly mobile banker who learns to value family over money) buckle under the heavy sociological weight Tyree asks them to carry. Although there's never any doubt that Denise will marry the goodhearted, doltish Brock, Tyree never quite explains why she wants to cast her lot with him. In one way or another, each of the figures is a mouthpiece for responsible fatherhood or the difficulties of single motherhood. At nearly 400 pages, the novel will wear out its welcome even with Tyree's many loyal fans.

September 15, 1998
Black and single, Denise Stewart escaped the ghetto of her childhood for the largely white suburbs of Chicago through determination, hard work, and education. Now, after being on her own for a decade and raising two sons fathered by different men, Denise falls in love with Brock, a truck driver who seems willing to make her sons a part of the life he and Denise will share. In addition, the fathers of her sons decide that they want to take more responsibility for their children. J.D., Jimmy's ex-con father, realizes that if he wants his talented son to get a college basketball scholarship, he has to make sure Jimmy avoids the mistakes he himself made as a teenager. After attending the Million Man March in Washington, wealthy Walter believes that Walter Jr. should live with him and his wife. Perhaps because he is writing about a major issue in the black community--the responsibility black men take for the lives of their children--this second novel from Tyree (Flyy Girl, LJ 9/15/96) reads mostly like an impassioned essay or sociology textbook. His message is loud and clear, but his didactic writing and one-dimensional characters doom this novel.--Nancy Pearl, Washington Ctr. for the Book, Seattle

October 1, 1998
Tyree's stories have become increasingly complex and thought-provoking. This one centers on Denise Stewart, an African American thirtysomething, successful businesswoman and single mother of two teenage boys by two different men. Her sons, Jimmy and Walter, have knowledge of their fathers; yet, each father has chosen to remain distant. The action begins when the fathers, Jimmy and Walter, try to reestablish meaningful relationships with the sons. In addition to all of her family responsibilities and volunteer involvement, Denise is dating a truck driver--Dennis Brockenborough, affectionately called Brock. Because of Denise, or in spite of her, the three men recognize their own shortcomings and value their strengths as they interact with the teenagers. The men finally accept that the greatest legacy they can leave is a self-sufficient and well-adjusted child. This novel's warm and fuzzy ending will make you feel hopeful that the struggles people encounter as parents, partners, and friends can be less burdensome when people face issues rather than run from them. ((Reviewed October 1, 1998))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 1998, American Library Association.)