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The Improper Life of Bezellia Grove: A Novel Audiobook
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(3.58) - 24 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Bezellia Grove was born into the most prominent of Nashville families, but that didn't stop her from having an alcoholic mother and a distant, adulterous father. Her nanny, Maizelle, and Nathaniel, the handyman, are the people who have taken care of her since she can remember. She considers them family, but her parents just consider them servants because they are black. When Bezellia has a clandestine romance with Nathaniel's son, whites and blacks unite in fury at the young couple. In a world too neatly ordered by status, wealth, and skin color, Bezellia becomes a rebel who, while seeking the love her real family has not been able to provide, unearths and upends some secrets and assumptions that a lot of people would rather stay hidden.
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"Loved this book - page turner. Sad but makes you really think about others lives - past and present - what one person endures and you may never know about it. "
— Tonya (4 out of 5 stars)
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“A highly emotional story that vividly evokes a sense of place, the 1960s era, and the heady feelings of first love.”
— Booklist
The Improper Life of Bezellia Grove Listener Reviews
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" I enjoyed this book but I wanted it to be more about her and Nathaniel's son than her mother's drinking problem. Still a good read though. "
— Sarahz, 5/8/2011 -
" Really liked this book right up until the ending and then got so aggrevated I actually threw the book!! "
— Penny, 4/15/2011 -
" This book is a lot like "The Help." but there are some differences and it is good. "
— L-V, 4/7/2011 -
" Excellent book. The reader on the audible version really brings the book to life "
— Humphreydunn, 3/18/2011 -
" I enjoyed reading this book. Bezilla Grove matures from a young awkard girl into a woman right before your eyes. She sacrifices along the way for the benefit of others. The ending was not what I was expecting but a refreshing twist to what could be an unhappy ending. "
— K.T., 3/18/2011 -
" I'll write a proper review soon, but I really enjoyed this book and thank my goodreads group for directing me to this book...............really good. "
— Anita, 3/12/2011 -
" About half way through. Not enjoying it near as much as other book clubbers. Must be missing something. "
— Ruth, 3/12/2011 -
" Thanks to my friend Jennifer who always knows my taste in books. <br/>Really enjoyed this story. "
— Karen, 3/8/2011 -
" I liked the book, but didn't like the ending. Bezellia deserved better. "
— Megan, 3/6/2011 -
" I loved this story. Racism, coming of age, alcoholism, family disfunction - all addressed with a light touch. "
— Tara, 2/24/2011 -
" I liked this light hearted Southern story. "
— Lisa, 1/22/2011
About Susan Gregg Gilmore
Susan Gregg Gilmore is the author of the novels Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen and The Improper Life of Bezellia Grove. She has written for the Chattanooga Times Free Press, the Los Angeles Times, and the Christian Science Monitor. Born in Nashville, she lives in Tennessee with her husband and three daughters.
About Tavia Gilbert
Tavia Gilbert is an acclaimed narrator of more than four hundred full-cast and multivoice audiobooks for virtually every publisher in the industry. Named the 2018 Voice of Choice by Booklist magazine, she is also winner of the prestigious Audie Award for best narration. She has earned numerous Earphones Awards, a Voice Arts Award, and a Listen-Up Award. Audible.com has named her a Genre-Defining Narrator: Master of Memoir. In addition to voice acting, she is an accomplished producer, singer, and theater actor. She is also a producer, singer, photographer, and a writer, as well as the cofounder of a feminist publishing company, Animal Mineral.