JUST LIKE A WOMAN

Newman knows her characters and lets them tell their stories in the matter-of-fact manner of ordinary folk unaware of the drama of their lives. A Jewish man who survived a concentration camp is surprised to find himself opening up to a young lesbian writing teacher. A daughter of lesbians tests her new friend by spilling her whole life out right at the start, including the details of her "turkey-baster conception." Such life-and-death issues as AIDS, breast cancer, and gay bashing are handled with poignant humor. Though the stories are occasionally didactic, self-consciously political, or a bit schmaltzy, they're also full of truth and warmth. Reading at brisk pace, Newman gives voice to those rarely heard from in mainstream literature. E.S. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: JUN/JUL 02]