Georgia Bottoms

Mark Childress' novel Georgia Bottoms was such a fun read. I was expecting to enjoy this novel, but didn't know how much I would laugh to myself while reading it. My memories of the only other book I have read by Childress, One Mississippi, led me to believe this book was going to be more serious. Instead, this book is laugh-out-loud funny, as Georgia Bottoms finds herself in one predicament after another.

If you only knew the facts about Georgia Bottoms you wouldn't like her. She makes her money entertaining gentlemen each night of the week. She also buys quilts made by poor African American women and sells them at a profit to herself. She gave up her mixed-race son, never seeing him until he showed up at her home at the age of twenty. While she attends church, she doesn't believe any of what she is hearing. There are few redeemable qualities that Georgia Bottoms has, and yet, I really did like her. Georgia is funny. She finds nothing wrong with her lifestyle. Instead, she feels as though she has helped preserve the marriages of the men she entertains each night. She is helping the group of women quilters by buying their quilts. And her confused mother and convict brother are also a lot to put up with.

Only when Georgia finally feels as though she has found the man of her dreams does she realize that the joke is on her.

Childress' novel is full of Southern charm and humor. I wasn't sure how Childress was going to leave this novel, and was delighted with the ending he created for Georgia. While it seems nothing good could come out of her lifestyle, Georgia always has something up her sleeve. Anyone looking for a nice, fun, funny read should try this title.