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JEAN BRASHEAR | The Power of Women
August 3, 2010
The longer I live, the more I believe in and appreciate the power of women to
transform lives, to nurture the future, to demonstrate that strength and
gentleness are not mutually exclusive. Not that I don't adore men. I absolutely do--not only do I treasure the ones in
my life and thank them for how they enrich it, but I just like the male sex in
general. Writing great heroes and falling in love with every one of them has
been one of the very best parts of being a romance writer. In my women's fiction debut, THE GODDESS OF FRIED OKRA, the roles women can play in the
lives of other women are a crucial element in the narrative. Eudora "Pea"
O'Brien desperately misses the sister who raised her and feels the need for
Sister's forgiveness. Because she so badly wants a do-over, she decides to
gamble on Sister's belief in reincarnation. In the hope of somehow finding the
new body in which Sister resides, Pea hits the road with everything she owns in
a beat-up sedan. Pea may miss Sister greatly, but that doesn't mean she's the type to sit around
and wallow in self-pity. No, she charges out in the world, coming to the aid of
other lost souls—a pregnant teenager, a starving kitten, a very sexy con man
trying to go straight.( Oh, and did I mention that Pea has spirit guides, voice
she hears in her head?) As they journey, Pea meets a gun dealer named Glory
(her shop is called Guns 'N' Glory?) who introduces her to the world of warrior
goddesses, most particularly a blood-thirsty sword-wielding character named Dark
Agnes. Glory herself is quite the swordswoman, and soon she's teaching Pea to
wield a sword, as well. When the band is stranded in a tiny Texas town, Pea also encounters
grandmotherly café owner, Lorena, who teaches Pea to cook—fried okra, of course,
first and foremost. More than either cooking or swordplay, however, Lorena and
Glory, in their very disparate styles, help Pea uncover the strengths in
herself. In the end, it is all these women—real and imagined—who help Pea find
her way home. I marvel at the ability of women to get each other through both the joys and the
agonies life in this world dishes out. I've had very important women in my life
who've forever changed me. Are there important women in yours?
Comments
29 comments posted.
Re: JEAN BRASHEAR | The Power of Women
I have always found the idea of reincarnation fascinating. Your story has me very intrigued.
(Fallon Hadley 8:37pm August 1, 2010)
I love stories with strong women in them, no whimps for me. Also the reincarnation idea is intriguing. Looking forward to reading this one and I adore the title.
Best Wishes.
(Chris Jones 4:37am August 2, 2010)
This sounds fascinating. I wish I could find my sister's reincarnation.
(Karen Gervasi 9:00am August 2, 2010)
I am fascinated by controversial subjects and enjoy reading about them.
(Betty Miles 12:09pm August 2, 2010)
Sounds interesting. Would love to win.
tarenn98[at]yahoo[dot]com
(April Renn 2:19pm August 2, 2010)
Wow, it's about time someone wrote about these subjects!
(Cathie Veres 11:21am August 3, 2010)
When I learned first about reincarnation was at a the public library. The lady who spoke insisted she was from Babylonian time and had the jewelry to prove it. I'm still a bit skeptical, but the solid evidence was pretty strong backed up by references to books on that time.
(Alyson Widen 11:28am August 3, 2010)
Some people think that deja vu is something we remember from a past life!
(Karin Tillotson 11:39am August 3, 2010)
I had a couple important influential women in my life--both happened to be my piano teachers at different times in my life. My mother was not good at talking through problems with me and these two ladies took their own personal time to help me think things through.
(Sue Farrell 11:40am August 3, 2010)
There are two women in my life that I hold especially dear to me. The first woman is my Aunt. At almost 93, she is more like a Best Friend than an Aunt, and has showed me how to be strong when I've needed to be. She's also been my source of inspiration. The other person in my life is my Best Friend, Lis. She is actually more like a sister, and has been there for me, through good times and bad. She has brought talents out in me that I never knew existed. As for my own sisters -- we won't go there!! lol Your book sounds interesting, and I can't wait to read it. I'm a firm believer in reincarnation, and I believe that people have come back to visit me in other life forms.
(Peggy Roberson 11:43am August 3, 2010)
All of my women friends (which includes my Roller Derby League!) are important to me. Having had some really bad times recently with a death in the family, they have all been there to help support me and give me the strength I needed to go on with life and begin to live again.
Later,
Lynn
(Lynn Rettig 12:26pm August 3, 2010)
This sounds like an intriguing story and I love the idea of reincarnation.
Valerie
[email protected]
in Germany
(Valerie Bongards 12:47pm August 3, 2010)
My grandmother was the most supportive and wonderful woman I had the pleasure of knowing...
(Colleen Conklin 1:39pm August 3, 2010)
I was raised by my family to believe that I could do anything. The power we have as women is humbling and strong. I give thanks for all my girlfriends. They encourage and support me as I do them.
(Maude Allen 3:07pm August 3, 2010)
My mother has always believed in me and has always known that I can do whatever I set my mind to and has always felt that I should do what makes me happy, not what makes someone else happy or avoid doing do something becuase it will make someone else unhappy. Like Maude, my family also raised me to believe I can do anything. I have an aunt who's really not my aunt, but she has always stood by me. So, I've been lucking in having strong women in my life.
(Kelli Jo Calvert 3:47pm August 3, 2010)
If women ruled all there would be no wars.
(Mary Preston 6:20pm August 3, 2010)
All the women in my family are strong women, one way or another. They had to be, given that they had to travel long distances, sometimes with children in tow.
(S Tieh 6:51pm August 3, 2010)
My last boss was a friend and a boss.
She hired me and let me develop
programs and spread my wings. It
was nice having someone believe in
me and let me put my ideas into
action. Not many are like that. When
she retired, I found out just how lucky
I had been.
(Patricia Barraclough 9:58pm August 3, 2010)
I do believe in reincarnation. I once was "read" and was told I had had several lives I don't remember. It was frightening, shocking but also unbelievable.
(Diane Sadler 10:20pm August 3, 2010)
I absolutely believe in reincarnation. Not sure if I am a reincarnation of someone else, would love to be read!
(Brenda Rupp 2:12am August 4, 2010)
Hmm, I'm not sure that I believe in reincarnation. I have a hard time, for instance, believing that, as my uncle insiseted, my cousin was an Egyptian princess who had a bad encounter with fish. That's why fish made her ill in her present life. Too many people were once royalty to let me believe that they were reincarnated as non-royal, pedestrian people.
As for strong women: I believe that my mother was one of them. She was the one who gave us more of our moral underpinning than anyone else. She taught us to love people regardless of race, creed, color, poverty or any other criteria. My father definitely agreed with her, but was never vocal about it. Two young African women, one in the Cameroons, and one here in Canada were names specifically for her to honor her for her kindness and love.
(Sigrun Schulz 6:02am August 4, 2010)
This sounds like an absolute fascinating read!
(Joanne Reynolds 8:46am August 4, 2010)
The book sounds wonderful and in my life I'm lucky to have a mother, sister and daughter.
(Maureen Emmons 11:29am August 4, 2010)
sounds like a great tale
(Debbi Shaw 12:12pm August 4, 2010)
I too appreciate the strengths of women and enjoyed reading your blog.
(Gladys Paradowski 12:53pm August 4, 2010)
I definitely believe in recycled souls.
My daughter has a gift for dance and
neither myself nor her father have a
bone in our bodies that can keep time
and "feel" the music. It turns out my
great grandfather use to be a master
dancer on Broadway!
(MaryAnne Banks 10:29pm August 4, 2010)
My grandmother reared me and my 4
sisters. She took us 5 girls in when she
was 55 years old. The oldest was 12
and the youngest was 5. She was a
saint, although I didn't feel that way
when I was in high school!
(Molly Wilsbacher 10:34pm August 4, 2010)
Living in Texas I can imagine what kind
of odd markers she would follow. There
can be some freaky stuff here!
(Linda Bolton 10:58pm August 4, 2010)
Sounds like a fascinating
read.Off to add it to my
wishlist.
(Lisa Richards 1:28am August 5, 2010)
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