GIRLS MOST LIKELY

Author: Sheila Williams ISBN: 0345464761 8/2006 CONTEMPORARY Publisher: BALLANTINE

From the fifth grade to their fifth decade, Vaughn, Reenie, Susan, and Audrey share secrets and dreams–their lives connected like silk threads through rich fabric, pulling but never breaking at life’s unexpected twists and turns. Meet the girls most likely TO WRITE THE GREAT AMERICAN NOVEL: Vaughn has a flair for words that makes her the unofficial diplomat of the foursome. She’s great at keeping it together for everybody–but herself. TO MARRY A PRINCE: Sassy Reenie can break hearts as easily as she can take out a bully without breaking a nail. But her live-for-today attitude leads to a tragic mistake that will haunt the girls for years. TO BE FAMOUS: From the ashes of a ravaged home life, amid rumors and bad feelings, Susan rises to fame as a glamorous network anchorwoman, proving that success is the best revenge. But forgiveness is another matter. TO RUN THE WORLD: Audrey is the ultimate overachiever, but this takes a devastating toll on her health, her career, and her family. Perfection is a race where the finish line keeps moving. What will she sacrifice to win?

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Sheila Williams has scored a winner with GIRLS MOST LIKELY. A growing up tale of four African American girls who bond together during elementary school in the late 50's/early 60's and ends with their 30th class reunion in 2001, GIRLS MOST LIKELY is filled with warm humor, drama and plenty of nostalgia, especially for those of us who have traveled through those same eras in what seems a lifetime ago.

The story begins as seen through the eyes of Vaughn, the quartet's mediator and the least self assured of the four. Awkward, four-eyed, and scared of her own shadow, Vaughn meets up with the pretty, petite, but tougher than nails Reenie when she rescues Vaughn from the class bully. Into this mix comes Susan, neglected by her single alcoholic mother and tainted with the stigma of illegitimacy. Finally, to round out this unlikely quartet, enters Audrey, the tall and beautiful black Barbie doll, whose regimented home life instills in her an unnatural drive to strive for a perfection she will never attain.

Told in each girl's voice during various stages of their lives (with most of the younger years seen through Vaughn), Sheila Williams deftly illustrates how each girl's childhood leaves its mark on the woman they eventually become. Thick as thieves at the outset, their diverse personalities and differing interests begin to separate them as the years flow on. When a secret held by Reenie comes to light right before graduation and affects them all, it seems that their sisterhood will be lost forever. Yet, through the ups and downs, the good times and bad, their separations and misunderstandings, the strength of the bond they've formed as childhood friends looms forever in the background. A bond that's too strong to break, in the end, fences are mended, betrayals are forgiven and forgotten and their lifelong friendship comes once again to the forefront.

Definitely a trip down memory lane if you are a member of the baby-boom generation, the GIRLS MOST LIKELY to enjoy this book will be you. Told in an author's voice whose written word speaks to everyone, I highly recommend it.

Nancy Davis