I Still Dream About You

Reviewed by Susan Wolfe

I never tire of Fannie Flagg. She has a wonderful sense of humor that looks at the quirky side of life. Her books are full of southern wisdom and laugh-out-loud humor. My first memories of her were on the “Candid Camera” TV show. She started writing for TV at 19, in fact, wrote and directed her first play in the 5th grade. She is a born storyteller and a bestselling author.

In I Still Dream About You, Maggie Fortenberry decides to commit suicide, but keeps getting interrupted. First a friend wants her to go with her to see the Whirling Dervishes. Then other obligations and friends keep messing up her plans. A former Miss Alabama, now 60 and a realtor, she has 16 perfectly good reasons to commit suicide. Business has also gone from bad to worse. Her arch-rival, Babs Bingington, is an unscrupulous real estate agent determined to put Maggie out of business. Known as “The Beast of Birmingham”, Babs had a death hold on the best real estate locations and absolutely hates Maggie. When an enchanting property become available in “the perfect” location in Birmingham, they go head to head.

There is a colorful cast of characters such as Hazel Whisenknott, a 3 foot, 4 inch real estate dynamo and Betty Peoples, Maggie’s best friend with her out-of-left-field ideas and a handy emergency stash of chocolate. There are entertaining subplots – a friend runs a unique race for the mayor’s position. There is a murder mystery when a mysterious skeleton is found, along with a trunk full of letters locked away in the attic.

Maggie finds that everyone and everyplace have secrets, not just herself. Secrets that make life interesting and entertaining.

Fannie Flagg can handle weighty subjects with a light touch and wit that that keeps you smiling.