Wonderfully written. Daugharty has a true "voice of the South". This story grabs you from the start and keeps you going.

Janice Daugharty is a fantastic storyteller. She creates original storylines and unforgettable characters. "Dark of the Moon" is sensuous and romantic, but life affirming as well. The central character, Merdie is unhappily married to an abusive man. When a stranger enters their closed world, she must decide whether to remain the dutiful wife and stay with her family or lose everything and leave with the man she has fallen in love with. Merdie's dilemma is enlightening and inspiring; sometimes you must follow your heart. I loved this book so much. Janice Daugharty is a remarkable writer and I am desperate to read any new book that she has written.

A wonderfully sensitive, closely detailed, and altogether excellent novel of an old-moonshine, new-marijuana family and the ATF agent who blows themn apart with love, set on the Florida-Georgia border in the early 1990s. Janice Daugharty is the latest great writer to wear the gorgeous Sounthern-gothic mantle, and she does it justice, as a worthy, witty heir to Flannery O'Connor. Her style sings with new Southernisms and timeless poetics, her characters come to full contradiuctory life in every crackling scene, and her imagination satisfies every last yearning a reader might have. This novel's a gem!

No wonder I haven't been getting royalties on this book! Well, it could be revived soon; Arena Stage Theater, in D.C. is in the process of adapting it for stage. So, there! Author, Janice Daugharty

It's a shame that writers as gifted as Janice Daugharty don't get more attention. While the big publishing Goliaths spend millions promoting name-brand authors who churn out formulaic clap-trap, someone in New York should have the courage to do what it takes to introduce this superb writer to a broader reading public. Each line of Pawpaw Patch is a well-placed stroke of the pen which paints a vivid, colorful portrait of the very human citizens of Cornerville, Georgia. No writer has come closer to the truth.

Janice Daugharty's book jacket photo shows a middle-aged woman seated in a white wicker chair, wearing a prim, sailor-collared dress. If one were to judge by appearances only, one might expect stories about quilting bees and square dancers. Well, there is dancing in "Pawpaw Patch," but it's clogging, not square-dancing. And there are beauty pageants, and "mothers in corn-smudged frocks" and folks trading pickles for legal advice. However quaint this may seem, there is nothing cute about Cornerville, where Chanell Foster's beauty shop is the center of social activity. This is a seemingly modern town where people dress in Ralph Lauren and watch "Knot's Landing," but continue to call blacks "Negroes." Chanell and her customers are just one step removed from separate drinking fountains. When one of her childhood friends starts a vicious, racist rumor, driving her business away, Chanell is forced to confront her own prejudices and, later, those of the townspeople who have turned against her. Daugharty tells this twist-filled tale in a voice that is as rich as mississippi mud pie. Every few paragraphs I found myself pausing to savor a particularly apt image - "cup handle ears," peacock tail feathers "sweeping the corn rows like the tulle train of a wedding gown." She also has a wonderful ear for dialogue and a genius for naming - to wit, Aunt Teat, Joy Beth and Linda Gay. Swanoochee County, the setting of Daugharty's two previous novels as well as this one, isn't paradise - not by a long shot - but it's a place readers will want to visit again and again

This is a thoroughly enjoyable book, and I often found Anne's pretend games of being poor hilarious, as this was something I did quite frequently when I was twelve. I have a few books which I make a point of reading each year, and this is one of them.

I'm the same age as the main character, and I'm so glad I read this book. It made me laugh and cry. The ending is what make this book worth reading.

I agree with the other reviews - this is a superb book. My husband is from that area of Georgia so I know firsthand that Ms. Daugharty truly writes what she knows [including the dialect]. The summary on the back makes it sound like it would be dark and depressing, but on the contrary. I finished it feeling very positive and glad I had read it.

EARL definitely deserves five stars, if for nothing but the cover. Hey, you never know! It could be another OH BROTHER, WHERE ART THOU! (?) Author, Janice Daugharty

Increadible novel! This book is an amazing work of southern fiction. Daugharty accurately reveals the life of the south in rural Georgia. Her writing style is fresh and truthful. This novel was one I found difficult to put down.

One of the best southern authors of our time! Janice Daugharty's WHISTLE will keep you in suspense until the end. Two families struggle with a tragedy that brings them together in a way they have never known before. Intertwined in this struggle are family secrets, paranoia and the desire to do the right thing. This is a poignant story of life in the South, well depicted by Ms. Daugharty and experienced by those of us who have lived here. Put this book at the top of your reading list. Also, if you ever get a chance to meet Ms. Daugharty at a book signing, GO! She is bright, charming, witty, a fine storyteller and has a deep appreciation for her fans.

It has been months--maybe years--since I found such unfettered satisfaction in reading a work of fiction. Daugharty's captivating depictions of south Georgia's people may not be as fully appreciated by those who have not lived and grown up there, but I, for one, know first-hand what a masterful job she has done. The dialogue of Roper, Louise, Bloop and Beanie, the descriptions of the quarters, the mannerisms, fears, and emotions of the blacks--all are brilliant and totally realistic portrayals of the way things were and are, and the character of Louise is one of the strongest, most vibrant women I've ever met in a novel. If Oprah and her staff would get on the ball and ferret out Whistle for one of her monthly selections, she would be performing an invaluable service for the reading public by bringing Janice Daugharty, a major talent in southern literature, to the limelight.

WHISTLE was such fun to write, I gave it five stars. Also, I wanted to boost its (it's?) status. Janice Daugharty

Sheehy provides an historical and psychological profile of candidates for election, prior to the election (Al Gore, George Bush, Bob Dole, Ronald Reagan, etc.). It was probably more fascinating to read while the election was still in progress - but I'm amazed that an author would spend a year writing a book that would have such a limited shelf life. I read it years after the election took place, so it was a bit like being in the Twilight Zone - I knew how the story would end, but Sheehy didn't. Now that George Bush Jr. is running for election, those who believe "like father, like son" may find the chapter on Bush to be revealing. And, of course, Al Gore is still around. Otherwise, don't bother with this book unless you're intensely interested in knowing the psyches of presidents and presidential candidates - and be prepared to have less confidence in their abilities or even their normalcy.