Sunday, January 16, 2011

Happy Birthday: Ernessa T. Carter

Everyone at Color Online is still on a hiatus. Just dropping in quickly to wish Ernessa T. Carter author of 32 Candles a happy birthday. Today is her birthday at least that's what she said.

Our gift to the author is a look at a few of the great things people have said about 32 Candles

The Eclectic Book Lover
Perhaps what I love most, though, about this novel is its voice. Carter touches on things common to the black experience in such a universal way that anyone can understand and enjoy it. It's not a book that will only truly resonate with black people. The narrative is engaging, witty and intelligent and the dialogue manages to be in the appropriate vernaculars for the right characters. There's no overdone colloquialisms and no caricaturing of Southern dialects.

While this novel could be simply classified as "chick lit", it's so much more than that. Davie's story isn't just cute and romantic, but grandly triumphant and I loved every word of it

Reads4Pleasure
When was the last time you stayed up late to read a book? 32 Candles is so good that I started reading it at a bowling alley, ignored Twitter and the TV when I got home and stayed up until I was done with it. Yes, it's that good

My love for Davidia Jones

Its the 80's Davidia loves John Hughes films. Like Celie from the Color Purple, Davidia may be poor, black, she may even be ugly but she still dreams of a Molly Ringwald ending. Sixteen Candles is Davidia's favorite Ringwald film. She thinks she's found her very own Jake Ryan in James Farrell

I've shown a lot of restraint waiting this long to say I loved 32 Candles. Its ridiculously good. Its my favorite fiction debut of the year. I cared about and loved Davidia from the beginning. Her voice is original and realistic. In the first half of the Davidia Jones is the victim. In the second half, Davie Jones begins to take charge. 32 Candles is sad, funny, smart and entertaining, basically everything a great book should be.

Ernessa - Happy Birthday. Thanks so much for such an original debut.

2 comments:

rhapsodyinbooks said...

This book has gotten great reviews! Happy birthday to Ernessa!

MissA said...

Happy birthday Ernessa!! Thank you so much for giving us all the gift of 32 Candles =D I only wish we could give you a gift that rivals the awesomeness of 32 Candles.