Selah's Bed

by Jenoyne Adams

Book Overview

Selah Wells and her husband Parker seem to have the perfect love story - they started a heady relationship at college and got married soon afterwards. But when their only child dies, their marriage is put to the test as Parker abandons his sexual passion and immerses himself in religion. Selah soon comes to resent Parker, the ailing grandparents who raised her and God, and seeks solace in her photography of nude black men - and her dangerously escalating...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0671787845
• ISBN13: 9780671787844
• Release Date: February 2004
• Publisher: Free Press
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.58 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.6" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

Beautifully Written

I enjoyed this book. Even though I didn't have the exact experiences as the main character, I could relate in that when not putting to rest past, painful experiences, how they can haunt you and drive in you an unsavorable way until you deal with it. Bottled up emotions will only fester and spill out and can cause you to take actions that, in your right mind, you know will hurt you or have adverse effects. The writers ability to show these in the main character through beautifully written prose is phenomenal.

Beautiful, sensual read...

Selah's Bed is a sensual story about a tormented young photographer who uses sex as a weapon against her torrid past. Selah is a photographer of nude black men, a profession that awakens her darkest, most devious desires. Even though she is married to the love of her life, who also happens to be a minister, she is unable to relinquish her sexual impulses. Her feelings about her mother, grandparents and the pain of abandonment still haunt her. Will she be able to come to terms with her past and live a normal life?I disagree with the reviewers that say that this novel is disjointed. Jenoyne Adams writes with beautiful, lyrical prose. She describes Selah's torment with insight and darkness. Selah's life is a complex puzzle that is put together as the novel progresses. I absolutely love this novel and I cannot recommend it enough...

A Sensual Read

This was a very deep dynamic book. The writer allowed you to go into the inner soul of Selah. The way she intertwined the past with the present was an added touch.A very moving story. Thumbs up to the author what a beautifully written book. This would make a great movie!

A Job Well Done!

At a very high level Jenoyne Adams's latest novel can be described as a moving story of Selah and her struggle with love, acceptance, and forgiveness; however there are so many more facets and dimensions to Selah's Bed that this review cannot express because doing so would spoil the reading experience. In the novel, Selah is an artist who photographs nude men and is always looking for the "perfect shot" that will convey the true essence of her subjects. On the same vibe, Adams wields her pen to convey the essence of Selah's troubled spirit. As a child, Selah is abandoned by her teenaged, prostitute mother which causes a lingering ache to emerge in her heart. As an adult, Selah loses a child and the ache becomes more intense, entrenching itself so deeply that Selah begins to withdraw into dark, private places to find solace with destructive results. Selah is a complex character and the author is very effective in layering the stress, pain, and regrets on Selah against a familiar backdrop. She is reared in the projects by her pill-popping grandmother (Mama Gene) and alcoholic grandfather. She never knew her father. It has been said that imitation is the highest form of flattery and we soon see a young Selah desperately trying to connect with her absentee mother by emulating her whorish ways. We see her wrestle with her relationship (or lack thereof) with God, her husband, and eventually her lover only to find some semblance of peace by writing letters to her long lost daughter, Michelle. Throughout the novel, we see her slowly embrace a bohemian lifestyle and rescind into deep internal places eventually distancing herself from everyone who is dear to her. We see her crumble when her "other mother," Mama Gene, falls victim to mental abandonment via Alzheimer's disease leaving Selah again motherless twice in a lifetime. Through a series of events, Selah's emotional well overflows and it is then when her epiphany occurs. Adam's style of writing is lyrical, sharp, and refreshing. The plot is a revitalizing departure from the popular "contemporary dramas" of late. The characters are full-bodied and marvelously broken. She expertly conveys the psychological and emotional aspects of a deprived child who evolves into a heavily burdened woman. Selah is a complicated, passionate character and the author skillfully reveals the fragility of Selah's damaged psyche from past transgressions. She masterfully unfolds the driving forces that spawn Selah's decadent behavior by showing us her world from childhood to adulthood. Although a work of fiction, I loved the manner in which the author cleverly exposes a number of social issues and universal themes throughout the novel. One example is the maternal bonding/love/protection theme; it is an underlying driving force for Selah because she yearns to receive it as a child and desires to provide it as an adult to her long lost child. This is my first reading of this author's work and I was wonderfull

Beautifully Written

Selah Wells has proven herself to be a successufl photograph and loving wife. However, Selah is haunted by her childhood. She has adopted her mother's promiscuous behavior and watched her grandmother, who raised her, grow addicted to pain medications. Adams tells a poetic story of a young women that desparately loves her husband, Parker, but she is unable to give herself to him completely. Adams tells the story from Selah's past and present and she cleverly combines that pain that Selah experiences as a child with her adult experiences. It also helps her to accept and release the hurt she carried for her child.Adams writting is at times funny, thought provoking and heart breaking. I really enjoyed this story and would recommend it to all. Peace and Blesssings!!