I STILL DREAM ABOUT YOU

Death—or going to the Middle East to view the whirling dervishes? Suicide—or taking on her real estate archrival? It’s hard for Maggie Fortenberry to make decisions when she’s depressed, but suicide is on her mind. The 60-year-old former Alabama beauty queen wants to take control of her fading life and exit gracefully, but exciting events keep getting in the way. Fannie Flagg’s voice is a mix of weariness and an indefatigable life force, both vying for control and amusing listeners with the contrast. As Maggie, Flagg questions the various decisions of her past, scorches everything from unethical business practices to McMansions, and recounts the distractions that prevent her heroine from leaving this world. Flagg also enlivens colorful secondary characters such as Hazel Whizenknott, a 3’4” real estate mover-and-shaker. S.W. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine [Published: DECEMBER 2010]