Liberating Paris

by Linda Bloodworth Thomason

Book Overview

Woodrow McIlmore is leading the perfect life in Paris, Arkansas: married to his high school sweetheart, he has two wonderful children and a warm circle of family and friends. When Wood's daughter... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060596708
• ISBN13: 9780060596705
• Release Date: September 2004
• Publisher: William Morrow & Company
• Length: 341 Pages
• Weight: 1.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.4" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

Loved every minute of it!!

This was such a wonderful book! I fell in love with almost everyone from the sweet little town of Paris, Arkansas right away. Once I picked this book up I wasn't able to put it down. I became hooked pretty much from the get-go. The story centers around a group of 5 friends. Wood McIlmore, the town doctor, and his socially perfect wife Milan. Mavis...the owner of the local bake shop, Brundidge...who runs the liquor store and is always impeccably dressed...and Jeter, their quadriplegic (due to a football accident in high school) friend who resides at the nursing home. As Ms. Thomason takes us deeper and deeper into the lives of these 5 people, you actually begin to feel like you've know them all your life. The problems this group faces singularly, and as a whole grabs your attention and won't let go till you've finished the book. A lot of ground is covered in this story, infidelity, suicide, murder, interracial couples, homosexuality, the slow death of small town America, and the importance of friends in our lives. I definitely recommend this book. If you're looking for a satisfying read, you'll most certainly find it here. I can't wait for Ms. Thomason to come out with another novel. I loved Designing Women, I loved this book, and I have high hopes for the next tale she graces us with.

Thoroughly involving

I loved this book! I truly hated for it to end. When I saw the author's name, I thought I'd probably like the book because I enjoy Southern fiction. No one knows the South and fewer write better than Thompson. I won't bother with a summary; others have done that already. Truth is stranger than fiction, and some of the reviews that I read mentioned that some of the characters' actions didn't ring true. I work with young people and nothing surprises me now. I loved Thompson's tv series', and I look forward to whatever she writes next. She is wonderful, talented, and observant.

A witty, hilarious tale filled with pathos and hope

Linda Bloodworth Thomason shows the same creativity she used as a writer for such television programs as "M*A*S*H" and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" in LIBERATING PARIS. The book's title leads a reader to anticipate a story about World War II. However, Thomason's first novel is set in Paris, Arkansas. Six childhood friends mature and deal with evolutions in each of their lives that affect the others. In addition, the town's face has changed and the characters must deal with the manifestations of that development. Woodrow McIlmore the Third, "Wood" to his friends, is the epitome of success in his hometown of Paris, Arkansas. Married to the perfect wife, Milan, father of Charlie and Elizabeth, beloved town doctor Wood enters middle age with a generous lot of blessings. He reflects on his past and those souls whose influence has been the greatest in his life, at the funeral service for his father, Dr. Woodrow McIlmore, Jr. Five compatriots from childhood join with Wood in his grief. Earl Brundidge, Jr., Mavis Pinkerton and Carl Jeter, along with Milan, share memories that none will forget. The unmentioned sixth member of the friends' group has moved from Paris. Her name is rarely mentioned. Wood's mother Slim is a woman's libber before her time and encourages them in unconventional behavior (for the era). A complication in the form of one Sidney Garfinkel is apparent at the funeral. He offers consolation to Slim, and Wood resents him for interfering with his mother's grief. To intensify matters further, Elizabeth announces that she has fallen in love with and plans to marry the following summer Luke Childs, son of the maligned sixth member of Wood's friendship circle. As Mavis puts it to Milan, "Do you really think it would matter that much to Elizabeth if she knew that her daddy had a - an affair with her fiancée's mother?" Kathleen Duffer, "Duff," anticipates a joyful reunion with her former lover when their children decide to marry. But she's reluctant to renew a friendship with Milan, her rival for Wood's affection. Now divorced, her mid-life femininity renews with a vengeance. Wood finds himself once more the prize for the victor of the sexual battle. The group evolves in life changes, but their friendships stand time's tests. Mavis discovers sexual realities and makes life-altering decisions. Jeter's life as a paraplegic takes on new meaning when he joins her in those choices. Brundidge, divorced father of two little girls, discovers a new relationship that will ultimately change him. Thomason's witty dialogue and humorous metaphors make for a hilarious story, but one that is filled with pathos and hope as well. Underlying the problems faced, the six friends tackle feelings about the major event in Paris, a large discount Fed-Mart store. Small-town business will change forever. My initial reaction to LIBERATING PARIS, with its misleading title, was cautious. Initially I wasn't certain that I would discover its redeeming qualities, but I

Loving Liberty!

This is a great novel!! The characters are great, very believable and lovable. However, the most intriguing aspect of this novel is the relationships between not only the main characters in the book, but also the relationships between these 5 friends and most of the older people in the town of Liberty who basically helped raise them. I even cried(not just tears welling up wet eyes cried, but blow your nose seven times cried)while reading this novel, which is something I rarely ever do. I met Ms. Thomason at a book show last week and when she spoke she mentioned that she was already in talks for a movie, hopefully starring Kevin Costner as Wood, Michelle Pfiffer as Milan, Billy Bob Thorton as Brundidge, and Dwight Yoakum as Jeter. I can't wait to see this story come to life on screen. I would strongly recommended reading this novel(then see the movie) not just once but many times as I myself plan to do!!