THE SISTERHOOD OF BLACKBERRY CORNER

This appealing tale about a small African-American town in South Carolina begins innocently enough with the discovery of an abandoned child by the river. When more babies appear, two friends turn into an unofficial adoption agency. Twenty years later, the hapless pastime turns serious when an adopted child returns with questions that need answers. Lizan Mitchell always gives a wonderful performance, and her delivery of the narrative of this work is no exception. But the dialogue defeats Mitchell's best efforts, primarily because of the awkward use of dialogue attributions. The discordance they create ultimately makes for an unsatisfactory listening experience. P.R. 2009 Audies Finalist © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine [Published: NOVEMBER 2008]