Blessings

by Sheneska Jackson, Robin Miles (Narrator)

Pat is the owner and matriarch of the salon, and she presides over Blessings with a kind but commanding air-- preventing fiery arguments, smoothing over conflicts, and lending a sympathetic ear to those who need it. But she may never get a chance to be a mother of her own children. After discovering she is infertile, she embarks on a mission to adopt a child, but learns that the process is filled with more anguish than she expected. Zuma is Blessings' star stylist, and she knows it. This brash diva is a self-described superwoman committed to making her dream of being both a businesswoman and a mom come true. She's got so much confidence that she has vowed to get artificially inseminated if she doesn't find Mr. Right soon-- and she secretly hopes that this will eradicate the indescribable sorrow lingering from the abortion she had years ago. Faye, another stylist, can't quite forget the memory of her late husband. Lonely and overweight, she turns to food to dull the pain of raising her two children alone. Her daughter has grown up into an explosive young woman, and her little boy is learning the hard way how to survive in the world without a dad. But companionship and support will come along when she's least expecting it. Sandy, the manicurist, is still searching for her own fulfillment and can't be bothered with the needs of her two small kids. Though she makes no apologies for her highly neglectful mothering, she ultimately makes a mother's biggest sacrifice. Written with Jackson's trademark skill and sass, "Blessings" paints a deeply moving picture of female struggle and triumph. As Pat, Zuma, Faye, and Sandy laugh, weep, argue, and console each other, Jackson reveals the priceless, inextricable bond between motherhood and sisterhood, and shows why she's become a beloved chronicler of the hearts and minds of women.

Genres: Fiction, Romance, African American, Chick Lit

Audio CD

First published May 6, 1998

Reviews

[Stasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this story! All the characters felt so real - it's amazing how strange and unexpected life can turn out to be!

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Blessings is a novel that follows the lives of four friends who work at a beauty salon in Los Angeles, Pat, the owner of Blessings, Zuma, the star stylist, Faye, another stylist, and Sandy, the manicurist. The lives of these four women intertwine as they share their secrets with one another, help and support each other. Friendship is what binds them together. While they all work at the Salon, each makes choices that affect their lives and the lives of their families. The resulting consequences lead to joy on the one hand and tragedy on the other. Jackson tells a compelling story of these women as they deal with the struggles and triumphs of their lives

[Nakia · Rating 2 out of 5]

A few weeks ago, I looked over my 2017 reading resolutions and realized I hadn't done half of what I promised. This one fell under "Read 2 sista-girl books from the 90s". I'd been itching to revisit Sheneska's books since I remember enjoying this and "Lil' Mama's Rules" in either high school or college.

"Blessings" centers on a hair salon where four very different women consistently bump heads and grapple with extreme motherhood issues. Somewhat in the the vein of "Waiting to Exhale", but not as captivating and way too many unrealistic scenarios.

This one was a struggle because my taste in books has drastically changed in the nearly 20 years since this was published, but I'm glad I met my goal!

[Mari · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good read

[tre be · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorites, a classic! After so many years, This book still rattles me from just thinking about it! So many emotions, such a great read!! Time for a re-read!!

[lizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions..well written

[Tamara]

one of my favorite contemporary Black American fiction reads

[Megan Fritz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I hardly ever write reviews anymore. I'm in school full time, working part time, balancing weekend parenting... I'm lucky to get any pleasure reading done at this point in my life let alone writing about it. Even with all that, and being sick these last few days, I couldn't put this book down.

Jackson writes with so much compassion for her characters, even when they do truly terrible things. She recognizes their humanity: what they've been through and what has brought them to that point.

It was beautiful to see the way the women in this book were there for each other. It was more than support, they were holding each other up.

I am looking forward to reading Jackson's two other novels. It's a real shame that she hasn't had any more books published since Blessings. I have a feeling that is probably related to the systemic racism in the publishing industry. I sincerely hope that someone will give this woman a load of money for all the stories I am sure she still has to tell.

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Let's talk about Sandy. Phew. She was difficult to read because there were parts of her that I recognized in myself. That thing about having babies because it's expected of you, because you think someone will make a good father. The part about just wanting to be loved and pushing and pushing and pushing to see how far you can go before they abandon you just like you expected. She's easy to hate. And yet I didn't hate her, I empathized with her.

I don't think it's a coincidence that Sandy was the only white woman in the book and she was the one that I related with. I didn't relate with her *because* she was white...but I think it says something that her experience was relatable for me. I'm still thinking through that. Obviously her childhood and her decisions and behaviors could have happened to a Black woman, and obviously they don't happen to all white women...but I see her story arc as emblematic of how white women tend to deal with their issues. We project our shit onto others...those with much less power than us. And that is a reflection of our generational trauma which we do not acknowledge. Being the oppressor, being the descendents of oppressors....that is trauma that we continue to perpetuate onto our children.

[Livey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although the beauty shop in this book is called Blessings, the focus of the story was around a very short period of time in the lives of 4 women who each had a different view of motherhood and parenting. Any blessings granted to the ladies is not apparent as they struggle through this thing and time in their life. Pat, the shop owner is happily married to Mark but barren. They have tried so many different avenues to become parents but sadly have not done so. Faye, a widow who is still deeply mourning her deceased husband of 5 years has turned to food to manage her grief forgetting about her two children, a teen female and young boy who are also grieving. Zuma, appears to have it all, 30 years young, money in the bank, fantastic clientele and a selection of men she’s dating but in her past she made a decision that haunts her 10 years later. And lastly, there is Sandy a young white woman who used to be a professional dancer (stripper) but has two children, a young baby girl under a year old and a four or five-year-old boy. She’s a lousy parent, admits to hating children in general. She takes a job at the shop to help her forget her glory days as a dancer and doesn’t accept that she is a mother and only wants to focus on her man Cerwin, not being a good mother.

The climax of the story is heartrending for each of the women and in my opinion granted only 2 of the women a blessing

[Mahasin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Whew boy, if you are a person who has chosen to be childfree this book is not for you. Literally, the Salon is called Blessings but it's just a metaphor for children being blessings - and don't get me wrong, I'm not saying they aren't - but this book really pushes the rhetoric that if you aren't a mother you aren't a whole person and I'm just not down for that. Plus it kind of pushes the "every woman regrets her abortion" BS and it's 2020. That's just an outdated way of thinking.

[Paul Kowald · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book covers several issues that many people still struggle with today. The first issue is race. Even in the first few lines you see how blacks r treated even to this day. The second is family. Weather you're about to, or already have children, you can relate too all four charecters. Finally, it shows how friend come together, especially in times of Crisis

[Gina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This author sure does well with women and their conversation. This was a really good book, but there wasn't a lot of character development. Pat was the best of the ladies, and she did get what she wanted in the end. I thought there could have been more happiness in the story, but I also thought the book dealt with a lot of serious women's issues.

[Kefranks · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a very long book that describes the interconnected lives and back stories of four women characters. It is written in a very formulaic way and culminates in a predictable overly dramatic happily ever after type of ending. I think it would be an exciting read for young adults.

[Courtney Nicole Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this audiobook. The narrator was really good with the voices of the different characters. I could relate to all the women's struggles, even Sandy. I hope there is a sequel.

[Jennifer Spriggs · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a story. I loved the characters and could identify with them in many ways. I actually felt like I knew each one.

[Mikki · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn't understand why this was a classic...Think the author could have shorten a lot of the chapters to make the read so much better...Chapters 1-18 wr a struggle

[Priscilla Richardson Franklin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Slow start but after the 1st chapter I would not put it down

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book years ago and it’s one of those that I still think about. I cried over this one.

[Lashonta · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a little slow for me

[Meshika Townes · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good read

[Lila Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun read with a good story line.

[Jeanna Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

A story of four women all working in the same beauty salon and going through their own issues in their lives as well as helping each other cope with the problems that surround them.

[Shannan Harper]

I picked up this book from the library after hearing about her from some reader friends. I enjoyed reading this story, and was shocked by the ending. Not only does the story cover friendships, but also covers topics like infertility and adoption. overall a good read.