{"product_id":"the-secret-lives-of-church-ladies-1","title":"The Secret Lives of Church Ladies","description":"\u003cbody\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eTitle: \u003c\/b\u003eThe Secret Lives of Church Ladies\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eArtist or Composer: \u003c\/b\u003eDeesha Philyaw\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eUPC: \u003c\/b\u003e9781949199734\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLabel: \u003c\/b\u003eWest Virginia University Press\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReleased: \u003c\/b\u003e2020\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat: \u003c\/b\u003ePaperback\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage: \u003c\/b\u003eEnglish\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eEdition: \u003c\/b\u003eFirst Edition\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eNumber of Pages: \u003c\/b\u003e189\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition: \u003c\/b\u003eUsed Copy\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher Description: \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"Tender, fierce, proudly black and beautiful, these stories will sneak inside you and take root.\"\u003cem\u003e --Kirkus Reviews \u003c\/em\u003e(starred review)\u003cbr\u003e \"Triumphant.\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e --Publishers Weekly\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cstrong\u003e\"Cheeky, insightful, and irresistible.\" --\u003cem\u003eMs. Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cstrong\u003e\"This collection marks the emergence of a bona fide literary treasure.\"\u003cem\u003e --Minneapolis Star Tribune\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \"Full of lived-in humanity, warmth, and compassion.\" --\u003cem\u003ePittsburgh Current\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cstrong\u003e\"These are stories about Black women that haven't been told with this level of depth, wit, or insight before, so it will not shock me if Oprah gets around to selecting it before the end of the year.\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e --Pittsburgh Post-Gazette\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Secret Lives of Church Ladies \u003c\/em\u003eexplores the raw and tender places where Black women and girls dare to follow their desires and pursue a momentary reprieve from being good. The nine stories in this collection feature four generations of characters grappling with who they want to be in the world, caught as they are between the church's double standards and their own needs and passions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThere is fourteen-year-old Jael, who has a crush on the preacher's wife. At forty-two, Lyra realizes that her discomfort with her own body stands between her and a new love. As Y2K looms, Caroletta's \"same time next year\" arrangement with her childhood best friend is tenuous. A serial mistress lays down the ground rules for her married lovers. In the dark shadows of a hospice parking lot, grieving strangers find comfort in each other.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWith their secret longings, new love, and forbidden affairs, these church ladies are as seductive as they want to be, as vulnerable as they need to be, as unfaithful and unrepentant as they care to be, and as free as they deserve to be.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/body\u003e","brand":"West Virginia University Press","offers":[{"title":"The Secret Lives of Church Ladies | Deesha Philyaw | Paperback | 9781949199734 | Used: Like New | Fiction 1619485","offer_id":48319822299288,"sku":"1619485","price":7.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"The Secret Lives of Church Ladies | Deesha Philyaw | Paperback | 9781949199734 | Used: Like New | Back Stacks H 1748494","offer_id":48856073109656,"sku":"1748494","price":10.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0492\/1609\/4360\/files\/810SMItx1cL_c1c3347a-4391-4ab8-b4f6-b14d12749f7a.jpg?v=1773174191","url":"https:\/\/roundaboutbookstore.com\/products\/the-secret-lives-of-church-ladies-1","provider":"Roundabout Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}