Inspiration in Novels

I completely agree with Ron OJ Parson, director of Bourbon at the Border, in that Pearl Cleage has an overwhelming love of the written word. I would like to add, that she has a desire to send a positive message to the world. I find this to be the most apparent in her novels, particularly in her first two novels, What Looks like Crazy on an Ordinary Day and I Wish I had a Red Dress. Generally, in Cleage’s novels she shows her love and maternal instinct by addressing challenges modern African American women face. In these two particular novels Joyce (a recurring character) has established “The Sewing Circus” a group which enables young girls to find the truth and learn how to be “an independent woman”. Joyce helps these young girls learn that they do not need to succumb to society’s low expectations of them but can rise above and find a life of their own. After reading about Joyce and “The Sewing Circus” I would encourage anyone looking for some inspiration to read her novels. After finishing each Cleage novel I have read I have felt a renewed faith in humans upon exiting her world.