Bombshells

by T. Elliott Brown

Three women and two girls face political, racial and personal bombshells during the tension-filled days of the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962.Flossie Johnson is a housekeeper who wants to sit in the front of the bus instead of the back on the way to her new job at the Adams house. Six-year-old Birdie Adams wants to run away and join the circus but guesses she’ll have to go to the first grade and hang around with her new baby brother instead. Maybe her big sister needs a little help, too. The circus will have to wait.Twelve-year-old Melanie Adams wants her friend to stop bugging her to get her first kiss. Melanie’s already had her first kiss, but won’t spoil the special secret by talking about it. Norah Adams is a good mother and wife who wants to keep her family safe and happy, but tucking the order form for dogtags in her daughters’ lunch boxes is a big change from the everyday bologna sandwiches.Lola Carter wants the life her sister, Norah, has. Instead she has a factory job, an alcohol and prescription drug addiction, and an abusive boyfriend. Even if President Kennedy prevents World War III, these women’s lives will be changed forever.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Chick Lit, Contemporary

333 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Teresa Elliott Brown studied poetry and creative writing at the University of Central Florida. She reads too much, write's women's fiction, loves to cook, play tennis and travel in our RV.

Reviews

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

An extremely enjoyable story told alternately through the eyes of Norah, Mellie, Birdie, Flossie and Lola, showing people trying to get on with their daily lives in the shadow of the Cuban Missile Crisis. The story is set in Florida and the family lives very close to a military base and has friends in the armed forces, so the threat is all too real and although, on the whole, the story has a light hearted tone it really demonstrates the escalating fear that hangs over them with daily real life dramas taking a back seat every day when the TV news comes on and people gather around the TV set.

Norah has her daughters, husband and a new baby to care for; Mellie is 12 years old and just entering puberty and high school; Birdie is six and just starting school; Flossie is their housekeeper who battles prejudice on a daily basis; Lola is Norah's sister who has a carefree lifestyle but it doesn't make her happy. We see all their daily dramas unfold in a nice flowing way throughout the book which immediately grips you and keeps you turning the page to see what is going to happen next.

[Dina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish the book was longer, I would love to revisit these characters.

Mellie - My favorite character - 12 year old girl coming of age during this turbulent time. She is a thoughtful sweet girl, dealing with starting Junior High, starting her period, helping her mom with a new baby. Starting to find out how disillusioning life can be.

Flossie - The African American woman that comes and works as a maid for Mellie's Mom - I LOVED her - my 2nd favorite character. In some ways she reminded me of the lead from the Help, the way she thought about the ladies she worked for. She is very wise and I love how her relationship develops with the family.

Norah - The mother dealing with a pre teen and pregnancy along with a 6 year old, and how to keep everyone safe. I really felt for her as she struggled to find control where there was none, and then to watch her deal with depression after the baby the just wasn't diagnosed back then.

Birdie - The six year old sister and seeing these events through her eyes was disarming and interesting.

Lola - Norah's sister, and a very sad character.

I loved the book,the only down side I saw was it felt like it could have gone on for longer, I understand why it did not, but it did not quite feel complete, and that is why I gave it four instead of five stars. I just was left with a feeling that everything was wrapped up.

This book was a good slice of seeing what a few months in this families life was from a variety of angles. There is some tough subject matter that I thought was tastefully handled and not overly graphic, on an attempted rape and coerced sex scene. You know it happened and there are some details but it is not lurid.

Would definitely read this book!

[Editing Services by Cynthia Shepp]

I read this book awhile back but it made an impression on me. Couldn’t put it down. I would and will recommend it to moms and teenage girls everywhere. I loved the depth and the reality in this book. The characters were wonderful and the story line tugged the heartstrings. I related to the women in this book from the little girl to the grown women. It is a story that everyone needs to read. The situations in the book are heartbreaking but the courage the girls and the women show about their situations makes you feel like women really can roar =) I would highly recommend reading this book! If you do buy and read the book please leave the author a review where you bought it. Every review helps. Hope you enjoy this book as much as I did.

For more reviews of great books go to:
http://cynthiashepp.wordpress.com/

[Cindy Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This isn't generally my kind of book, but it was well-written. Without giving things away, I disagree with some of the commenters. The book has two concurrent plotlines, the Cuban middle crisis and the events in the main character's life. I'm not sure the author could have found a better place to tie up Mellie's plotline had it continued on longer than it did.
This book also deals with some pretty heavy topics (racism, and while some people might debate whether tape actually occcurs, it's a little too close to it for me) that keep it from being the escapist literature that I usually go for.

[Letitia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Based on the description, it's not normally something I would have chosen. But seeing as it was a free kindle book, I figured why not. It took awhile to get used to the format... each chapter is written from a different character's perspective. It got a bit confusing at times, especially since a lot of the characters' voices were not unique. Not as political as I thought it would be - and that's a good thing in my opinion. Overall, not bad.

[Kelley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hmmm...Was not expecting this one to have such a high Goodreads review. My review is really 2.5 stars. The book started out great and then it kind of in my opinion went off on a tangent. It was not a waste of time. I did enjoy most of it. Just thought end was a bit abrupt. Got it free on Kindle though so no worries!

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting coming of age book set in the 1960's around the Cuban Missle Crisis. It brings in a lot of issues as it takes the lives of three women and two girls in Florida though this tense time in American history.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed all the characters in the book. It was a quick easy read. I probably would have rated this book a 4 if the author had tied more of the loose ends up. I felt the book ended quickly and left me wondering what would happen to some of the characters.

[Paulette · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was 6 art the time when this story takes place. While reading the story I thought back at how save I felt at that age while outside of my safe world my parents and others were worrying about what was happening in the world.r

[Cheryl Norman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very engagine, nostalgic story told from the viewpoint of five people during the Cuban Missile Crisis 1962.

[Jennifer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Stopped reading this one because of lots of taking God's name in vain and other dirty language.

[Stacy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an endearing coming of age story about a family during the Cuban missile crisis. I really enjoyed the characters.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a bad book. It was easy to read but close to the end it kind of went off direction and the end felt like a half attempt to get back on track.

[Karen Valerio · Rating 3 out of 5]

About a kid in the 1950's. Good read!

[Theresa C · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved the voices of the different characters. Loved the real look at adolescence and it's hardships. Great read.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great historical fiction. This novel ties together the stresses of the Cuban Missile Crisis with a family.