Dollbaby (McNeal)

Dollbaby  9780143127499
Laura Lane McNeal, 2014
Penguin Books
352 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780143127499


Summary
It’s the summer of 1964 and eleven-year-old Ibby has just lost her father in a freak bicycle accident. Undone by the whole ordeal, Ibby’s mother Vidrine unceremoniously dumps Ibby, along with an urn of her father’s ashes, at the New Orleans home of Ibby’s paternal grandmother, Fannie.

The big old house with its boarded-up bedrooms, Victorian embellishments and strange food are odd enough to a little girl who’s grown up in the state of Washington. Then there’s the grandmother she never knew she had: Fannie is a volatile woman who runs a betting ring on her back porch, has a history of asylum stays, and a mysterious past that Ibby has been forbidden to question.

But soon, Fannie’s black cook Queenie, and her daughter Dollbaby, help Ibby orient herself to her new surroundings, welcoming her into the fold with delicious Creole meals, handmade clothes, and plenty of seasoned advice about dealing with her unpredictable grandmother. Fannie, for her part, quickly takes to her new role as a grandmother, pampering Ibby with her very own perfume, a birthday lunch at historic Antoine’s, and a sense of family legacies.

Though at first Ibby bristles at Fannie’s old-fashioned ideas like party dresses and gloves, she eventually warms to Fannie and realizes that beneath her eccentric and impulsive manner,, Fannie has a real heart. As Fannie’s tragic personal history comes to light, Ibby begins to see her own family history more clearly, finding new appreciation for Fannie’s role in her life. What was supposed to be only a temporary stay evolves into a more permanent, although tentative, arrangement as both Fanny and Ibby discover the ties that bind them together.

Meanwhile, the Civil Rights movement is stirring up New Orleans. Everyone seems to be taking sides, and not even Dollbaby and Queenie agree on the direction the country is headed under President Lyndon Johnson’s new law. If that’s not enough, Ibby’s growing friendship with Dollbaby’s daughter, Birdelia, makes Ibby a target for racist neighbors.

Still, there’s an ache in her heart for all she’s lost—her beloved father, and a mother who left her for a visit, then disappeared without a trace. As she wonders whether her mother will ever come back for her, Ibby must decide if chasing the past will give her what’s she looking for, or if this new crazy quilt of a family is where her heart truly belongs.

Laura Lane McNeal’s vividly drawn characters, caught in the vortex of cultural change, are as bold and charming as New Orleans itself. (From the publisher.)

Author Bio
• Birth—ca. 1954-55 (?)
• Where—New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
• Education—B.F.A., B.B.A., Southern Methodist University; M.B.A., Tulane.
• Currently—lives in New Orleans, Louisiana


Laura Lane McNeal grew up In New Orleans where people laugh a lot, talk with their hands, love good music, good food, and will make up any excuse for a party.

After receiving two undergraduate degrees from Southern Methodist University (a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a Bachelor of Business Administration), she went on to earn an MBA from Tulane University.

She spent most of her career in advertising, working for firms in New York and Dallas, before returning to New Orleans where she started her own marketing consulting firm and became a free-lance writer as well as a decorative artist. In 2005, when the devastation of Hurricane Katrina left her with having to rebuild her life, Laura seized the opportunity to fulfill her lifetime dream of becoming a writer. She hasn't stopped since.

Laura resides in New Orleans and is married with two sons. Dollbaby is her first published novel; she is presently working on a second. (From the author's website.)

Book Reviews
Don't be surprised if you see McNeal's book in a lot of beach totes along the Gulf Coast this summer.
New Orleans Times Picayune
 

When someone asks you for a great book to read, usually you pause and think about genre and authors and then give a few options. But every now and then there’s a book you tell everyone to read, because it is that good. Dollbaby by Laura Lane McNeal is that book.
Durham Herald-Sun


(Starred review.) Ibby Bell is dumped by her mother on her grandmother's doorstep, holding an urn with the ashes of her recently deceased father.... Bursting with believable conflict and lovable characters, along with a lush and evocative portrait of the Crescent City during the civil rights era, this debut novel marks the arrival of an original and assured writer. —Julia M. Reffner, Fairport, NY
Library Journalb


A touching coming-of-age story that is sincere and poignant.
Booklist


[A] touching coming-of-age tale brings to life Civil Rights–era New Orleans.... McNeal’s portrait of a time and place is rich enough to mitigate the flaws. Slowly, a picture of Fannie’s past emerges...final secrets are revealed—truths that will tug a tear from the hardest of hearts. Rich characterization makes McNeal’s debut a lovely summer read.
Kirkus Reviews

Discussion Questions
1. Ibby’s arrival to Fannie’s home is the catalyst for change. How does Ibby transform the household?

2. Ibby is warned early on not to ask Fannie about her past. Why is she given this advice?

3. Why does Vidrine leave Ibby with Fannie? Later, after four years, why does Vidrine suddenly come back and what does she wish to achieve from the visit?

4. As Ibby lives in Fannie’s house, she begins to uncover its hidden truths, both physically and emotionally. What secrets does the house hide, and what do they mean to her?

5. In some ways Fannie is very old-fashioned, yet in other ways she seems quite progressive for someone of her era. How would you characterize her, and why?

6. Dollbaby wants to participate in the civil rights protests but Queenie tries to discourage her. What is the difference between their views on the issue and why do you think they differ?

7. As the era unfolds, what are its political effects on Fannie’s household? How do the realities of race and class trickle down to affect the characters’ lives?

8. Fannie tells Ibby that she must be “willing to live the life that is waiting for you.” What does she mean by this, and how does the advice relate to both of their lives?

9. Through this novel McNeal seems to suggest that family is what we make it. How does Ibby’s adopted family influence the person she ultimately becomes?
(Questions issued by the publisher.)

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