"Mildred Peacock is a young feisty mother of five, (Freda, Money, Bootsey, Doll, and Angel) living in the small minded town of Point Haven, Michigan. When she decides to leave her husband, Crook, of over ten years due to abuse and infidelity, her life of continuous struggle begins. Mildred is forced to find love and lust in unfulfilling relationships, taking low-wage jobs to support her family, alcohol mixed with " nerve pills" which all causes her to the brink of insanity. Mildred is struggling to raise her four girls and one boy in this town where all they do is gossip, all of the companies in Point Haven are laying off, and she is now at the mercy of the government for money. Mildred marries men after her divorce from Crook which ends in destitute.
Her children being the reason she wants to live, aren't the easiest to raise. Her eldest daughter, Freda, decides she wants to venture outside the corridors of Point Haven, and move to the big city of Los Angeles. Boostey wants to become an adult before her time; Money is in and out of jail; Doll and Angel are finding in affection in men.
After turning down a scholarship to a college, Freda moves to California, enrolls in college, works at a secretarial job. Freda, realizing what a great opportunity she has created for herself, invites her family to come live with her in California. Freda soon learns that she has inherited some of her mother traits from drinking to shiftless men. The rest of her of brothers and sisters tries to make their mark in life in new situations. The Peacock family struggles to overcome poverty and heartache in this great novel.
"
Selena Hamilton, Resident Scholar
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Review Analysis of Mama
Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- thoughtful
Time/era of story
- 1960's-1970's
Poverty, surviving
Yes
Kind of living:
- general poverty story
Family, struggle with
Yes
Struggle with:
- all of family
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- unemployed
Age:
- long lived adults
Eccentric/Mental
Yes
Eccentric:
- eccentric
- emotionally unstable
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Ethnicity/Nationality
- Black
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- society
Age:
- long-lived adults
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- throughout most of the book.
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 5 (an average amount)
City?
Yes
City:
- Los Angeles
Small town?
Yes
Small town people:
- sinister, like an X-Files Gomer Pyle
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- moderately detailed references to deaths
Sex in book?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- vague references
- descript of kissing
- touching of anatomy
- licking
- impregnation/reproduction
- rape/molest (yeech!)
Lot of foul language?
Yes
Unusual Style:
- a lot of flashback and forwards
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
