Journal Entry 1 by mellion108 from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan USA on Sunday, June 15, 2003

Fannie Flagg's novels are always a breath of fresh air. Her characters are interesting, her writing flows well, and the stories are just captivating. I laugh my way through her books and always go away with a "warm, fuzzy" feeling.

I think this would make a great bookray.

Synopsis from Amazon.com:
With home-cooked, Southern literary flair, Fannie Flagg (Fried Green Tomatoes) returns with Welcome to the World, Baby Girl! "Baby Girl," as she is lovingly referred to by her sweet, country cousins, is Dena Nordstrom, a tall, blonde, corn-fed girl who makes it big in Manhattan. Ms. Nordstrom is now the top TV anchorwoman in the city, beating out veteran journalists and making ungodly amounts of money. Although her life seems charmed, Dena is frazzled and miserable. She drinks uncontrollably, is a borderline compulsive liar, and is forced to undergo therapy because of her stress-induced ulcer. Her psychiatrist, Dr. O'Malley, falls madly in love with her, of course, and sends the blonde bombshell to a close colleague, Dr. Diggers. Living up to her name, Diggers shovels up a mountain of dysfunction and forces Dena to face her mysterious past; all the while the good doctor reports back to brokenhearted O'Malley about her patient's progress.

Meanwhile, back at the station, Ms. Nordstrom has made friends and enemies in very high places. Her greatest ally is Howard Kingsley, the Cronkitesque reporter who wields power with more ease than most seasoned politicos: "He closed the door and handed the driver a ten-dollar bill. 'Take this young lady where she wants to go for me, will you? And be careful, she's valuable property.'" It's a good thing she has friends like that, because her boss, Ira Wallace, makes George Costanza from Seinfeld look like a scrupulous saint. When Wallace hires a nasty but effective mole by the name of Sidney Capello to dig up garbage on celebrities, Nordstrom has a head-on collision with his sense of ethics (or lack thereof) and gets Capello canned. Or so she thinks.

Welcome to the World, Baby Girl! is very much like its star, Dena Nordstrom: pretty, scattered, confused, and sometimes interesting. It's a long ride from the Whistle Stop Cafe, and readers who enjoy Jan Karon's Mitford Fall series will most likely be the biggest fans of Flagg's third novel. 

Journal Entry 2 by mellion108 from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan USA on Monday, June 23, 2003

This book is going to travel in a bookray!

Mailing order for the bookray is:

• Wandeca (Canada)
  
• Kayters (Georgia)
  
• kimsbooks03 (Pennsylvania)
  
• WarEagle78 (Alabama)
  
• spaceystacey (New Jersey)
  
• Starry-Starry (U.K.)
  
• Tintti (Finland)
  
• Virgulina (Portugal) (Added to peggysmum's ring for this)
  
• Lukutoukka (Finland)
  
• IrasCignavojo (Germany) Current reader!
  
• TramGirl (Australia) (Added to peggysmum's ring for this)
  
• Tamster33 (California) (Added to Kiki66's ring for this)

Journal Entry 3 by Wandeca from Kitchener, Ontario Canada on Monday, July 07, 2003

Just got the book from mellion108, the first stop of the bookray! I'll start the book this afternoon. Can't wait! I love Fannie Flagg..... 

Journal Entry 4 by Wandeca from Kitchener, Ontario Canada on Tuesday, July 08, 2003

Fannie Flagg tells us a story of a young ambitious woman, Dena Nordstorm, who is trying to make herself known in the world of television as a newscaster in New York. She has southern roots, which she doesn't care too much for, until her health is threatened. Recuperating in Elmwood Springs, her childhood comes back to haunt her and she finds herself in an agonizing emotional state.....

Fannie Flagg touches on difficult subjects such as racism, prejudice, greed and power.

The book was well written sophisticated, funny and suspensful which had me turning the pages until I got to the end. 

Journal Entry 5 by Wandeca from Kitchener, Ontario Canada on Monday, July 14, 2003

Off to the next stop....Planning on mailing the book to Kayters this week. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.  

Journal Entry 6 by kayters from Lawrenceville, Georgia USA on Friday, August 01, 2003

Oh no, oh no, oh no! Not ANOTHER book ring book! 

Journal Entry 7 by kayters from Lawrenceville, Georgia USA on Thursday, October 02, 2003

Did not get a chance to read - want to get it on its way again. :) 

Journal Entry 8 by kayters at mailed to fellow bookcrosser in San Francisco, California USA on Thursday, October 02, 2003

Released on Thursday, October 02, 2003 at mailed to fellow bookcrosser in San Francisco, California USA. 

Journal Entry 9 by Tamster33 from San Francisco, California USA on Saturday, October 11, 2003

Received today. I have a few bookrays in front of this one, but I'll read it ASAP and pass it on. Love Fannie Flagg! Thanks :) 

Journal Entry 10 by mellion108 from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan USA on Sunday, July 04, 2004

Rest in Peace
I am officially declaring this bookray dead. I can't locate the whereabouts of the book. I hope the other people on the list have a chance to read it someday.

Thanks for participating!
 

Journal Entry 11 by Tamster33 from San Francisco, California USA on Wednesday, July 07, 2004

Resurrection

I didn't realize that Mellion108 was trying to reach me about these books because I never got her PMs. I guess I've kept this bookway too long, but life gets in the way of my reading sometimes:(

I'm mailing this off to the next person in line. Hopefully I'll have a chance to read it at a future time. Thanks for the opportunity and sorry to have kept the book so long. 

Journal Entry 12 by Tamster33 at on Wednesday, July 07, 2004

Released on Wednesday, July 07, 2004 at Mailbox in San Francisco, California Controlled Releases.

Sent to Kimsbooks03 via Media Mail 

Journal Entry 13 by kimsbooks03 from Scranton, Pennsylvania USA on Tuesday, July 13, 2004

Received in the mail yesterday. I am in the middle of a book now, will read this next and get it to the next person on the list asap. 

Journal Entry 14 by kimsbooks03 from Scranton, Pennsylvania USA on Sunday, July 25, 2004

It took me approx. 100 pages to start to get into this book. After that I couldn't wait to find out what happened next. Througout this book I felt so bad for Dena and all she went through. I was glad in the end that she got all her questions answered and found what she longed for most.

This was the first book I read by Fannie Flagg and it certainly won't be the last.

I will be sending this out sometime this week to the next person on the list. 

Journal Entry 15 by mellion108 from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan USA on Sunday, July 25, 2004

Glad to see this book making the rounds! Thanks to all who have participated so far. :) 

Journal Entry 16 by kimsbooks03 at Post Office in Tunkhannock, PA in Bookray, Mailed to another bookcrosser -- Controlled Releases on Sunday, August 01, 2004

Released on Friday, July 30, 2004 at Post Office in Tunkhannock, PA in Bookray, Mailed to another bookcrosser Controlled Releases.

Sent to WarEagle78 in Alabama
 

Journal Entry 17 by WarEagle78 from Hoover, Alabama USA on Monday, August 02, 2004

Fanny Flagg is back home in Birmingham, Alabama -- or at least her book is. I'll journal again when it's been read and enjoyed! Thanks for sharing, mellion108!!. 

Journal Entry 18 by WarEagle78 from Hoover, Alabama USA on Saturday, September 11, 2004

I thoroughly enjoyed Welcome to the World, Baby Girl! just as I have all of Fannie Flagg's novels to date. Dena Nordstrom (Baby Girl to her kin) know her early years were unrooted and unexplained -- but they made her driven, successful and loved in her world of television.

So why is she a drunk? So why is her body fighting her so bad?

The story of Dena struggling to uncover the truth about her past is warm, loving and, yes, even amusing at times. I recommend this book highly.

The book went in the mail today to spaceystacey. I'm sorry to have kept it for so long -- I had trouble PMing ss, but persisted because I knew it was a PM problem rather than a lack of interest.

Thanks for sharing, mellion08! 

Journal Entry 19 by spaceystacey from Bridgeton, New Jersey USA on Sunday, September 19, 2004

Just received in the post on Friday. Will be reading shortly and journalling again.

Enjoyable read about an accomplished woman who is really not in touch with herself and her relationships. A very likable main character, Dena is scarred by what happened to her years ago. The matter does get resolution and the book ends happily.

7/05 Posted to portugal 7/25/05 surface mail. Enjoy. Thank you for allowing me to participate in your bookray mellion118!

Several readers that I contacted preferred to be skipped at this time. Enjoy the read. 

Journal Entry 20 by mellion108 from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan USA on Saturday, April 23, 2005

Peggysmum has graciously offered to pick up the remaining members of this ray! Her copy of the book is set to go for the remaining members of this ray.

I'm sorry that the book is stuck or lost, and I hope everyone gets a chance to read it! 

Journal Entry 21 by mellion108 from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan USA on Saturday, April 23, 2005

And I should add that this is through no fault of spaceystacey at all. You've had far more important things to worry about in your life, so please don't look at these messages as finger pointing at you. Best wishes to you and your family. 

Journal Entry 22 by Lukutoukka from Tampere, Pirkanmaa Finland on Monday, November 21, 2005

I received The Baby Girl today! Thanks! :) 

Journal Entry 23 by Lukutoukka from Tampere, Pirkanmaa Finland on Monday, December 05, 2005

I finished yesterday another book I was reading, so I could start to read this book. :) I'll write more when I finish The Baby Girl... 

Journal Entry 24 by Lukutoukka from Tampere, Pirkanmaa Finland on Sunday, December 11, 2005

I finished this book yesterday. It was a nice book, and the ending was quite surprising. Now I'll try and figure out to whom I'm to send this... :) 

Journal Entry 25 by Lukutoukka from Tampere, Pirkanmaa Finland on Thursday, December 15, 2005

Sent to IrasCignavojo. Happy reading! :) 

Journal Entry 26 by IrasCignavojo from Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg Germany on Tuesday, December 27, 2005

Safely arrived in the mail here in Tuebingen, Germany :-)

As someone who loved "Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe" both as a movie and later as book and DVD, I'm happy to add this near the top of my TBR. Feel free to kick me if you feel I keep it too long O:-)