SIMA'S UNDERGARMENTS FOR WOMEN

Vanessa Hart's tawny voice embodies the surprisingly sensual story of Sima, the frumpy 60-year-old proprietor of a lingerie shop in the basement of her Brooklyn brownstone, and Temna, a beautiful, free-spirited Israeli who comes to work for her as a seamstress. Through long conversations they become entwined in each other's lives, and, though their temperaments often collide, they work to serve the vivid cast of characters from the Orthodox Jewish community who frequent the shop. The pacing falters, however, when Hart fails to pause between present day events and flashbacks, and when her voice drops at the ends of sentences, forcing the listener to spend time rewinding and adjusting the volume to catch the whole story. E.V.B. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine [Published: JUNE 2009]