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Book Review By Sandra Calhoune
The Interruption of Everything by Terry McMillan

Marilyn Grimes is a 44 year old African American wife and mother who works part time at a crafts store. Marilyn has dedicated most of her life to taking care of her husband, Leon, her three grown children (Sabrina, Simeon and Spencer), her mother-in-law Arthurine, her drug addicted adopted sister, Joy, and her own mother, Lovey. Marilyn has reached a turning point in her life when she feels unfilled by marriage to Leon and dissatisfied with her lot in life. Marilyn regrets never having pursued her love of art. When Marilyn begins to suffer bloating and weight gain, her two best friends, Bunny and Pauline, convince her that she is going through menopause. After a consultation with her physician, Marilyn is shocked to discover that she is pregnant. Meanwhile, Marilyn's husband Leon is going through a serious midlife crisis. He has resorted to dying his hair darker, wearing stinky cologne, going on a fitness kick and buying a motorcyle. When Marilyn delivers her pregnancy bombshell, Leon is quite disturbed by the news. Leon does not offer Marilyn any support system or a shoulder to lean on. Increasingly, Leon has been MIA around home and Marilyn is beginning to suspect that he is having an affair. At the same time, Marilyn's daughter Sabrina delivers the news that she and her husband are expecting a baby and moving to London. Marilyn's life truly begins spiraling out of control when she miscarries the baby, Arthurine elopes with a senior citizen named Prezelle, Lovey begins showing the classic symptoms of Alzheimers, Joy's drug abuse escalates and Leon becomes a shadow of the man she married. As chaos erupts within Marilyn's family, it is up to Marilyn to piece together the fragments of her shattered family.


Plot & Themes
Tone of book? - thoughtful
Time/era of story - 2000+ (Present Day)
Internal struggle/realization? Yes
Struggle over
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Pregnancy/Child rearing Yes
Major part of story:

Main Character
Gender - Female
Profession/status:
Age: - 40's-50's
Ethnicity/Nationality

Main Adversary
Identity: - none

Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings? - 3 ()
United States Yes
The US: - California

Writing Style
Sex in book? Yes
What kind of sex: - vague references only
Amount of dialog - significantly more descript than dialog
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