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28th out of 296 books
—
620 voters
Mama Makes Up Her Mind and Other Dangers of Southern Living
by
Bailey White
In this national bestseller, Bailey Whitewhose accounts of Southern eccentricity have enchanted millions of listeners to National Public Radiooffers a humorous, touching, story-filled memoir of her home in south Georgia.
Trade Paperback, 229 pages
Published
April 12th 1994
by Vintage
(first published 1993)
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Aug 18, 2007
Belinda
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Fellow Southerners, so we can laugh at ourselves, and Yankees, to let them in on the joke.
I had forgotten about this one until Sheryl put it up on her "to-read" shelf. I'm going to have to pull it down and read it again. It was passed along to me by a good friend with whom I share a very Southern sense of humor, and so was a huge hit.
It's no secret that I adore Southern fiction and non-fiction, and prefer it to any other genre of literature. This charming little book is a prime example of the appeal for me. While this book is not "great literature" by any means, it's very real. Here...more
It's no secret that I adore Southern fiction and non-fiction, and prefer it to any other genre of literature. This charming little book is a prime example of the appeal for me. While this book is not "great literature" by any means, it's very real. Here...more
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3 1/2 stars
Fun little 2-6 page pieces about her life in Georgia. Great book to have around for nights of insomnia when you need something light and not too taxing. Most of the funniest pieces are the ones about her mom, early in the book. "Porsche" and "Birth of the Blues" made me laugh out loud. "An Interesting Life" gave me chills. What an experience to look back on! "Mortality," about her old car, cracked me up. All of the stories were enjoyable, and full of colorful individuals who might mak...more
Fun little 2-6 page pieces about her life in Georgia. Great book to have around for nights of insomnia when you need something light and not too taxing. Most of the funniest pieces are the ones about her mom, early in the book. "Porsche" and "Birth of the Blues" made me laugh out loud. "An Interesting Life" gave me chills. What an experience to look back on! "Mortality," about her old car, cracked me up. All of the stories were enjoyable, and full of colorful individuals who might mak...more
As a general rule, collections of short stories drive me nuts. This was a book full of 2-3 page vignettes that had no connection to each other besides the fact that the author's mother was in each story and each story happened in the South. It was a bunch of anecdotes told in the way a mother would tell stories of her childhood to her children - which would have been fine if there was a logical flow, or the stories built on each other, but they didn't. I could tell within twenty pages that this...more
"Patchwork Crazy Quilt of Southern Hospitality"
Mama deserves her own sitcom! Her eccentric no-nonsense brand of maternal philosophy, how she handles neighbors and man-handles strangers provide riotous reading—no matter what corner of the country you hail from. The cover of the Vintage Books 1994 edition offers a broad hint into the zany nostalgia inside: a red Porsche and a claw foot bathtub share front porch honors at Mama’s homestead, shameless mementoes of Mama’s past, permanently ensconced...more
Mama deserves her own sitcom! Her eccentric no-nonsense brand of maternal philosophy, how she handles neighbors and man-handles strangers provide riotous reading—no matter what corner of the country you hail from. The cover of the Vintage Books 1994 edition offers a broad hint into the zany nostalgia inside: a red Porsche and a claw foot bathtub share front porch honors at Mama’s homestead, shameless mementoes of Mama’s past, permanently ensconced...more
Whether written (in books such as this) or spoken (in her oral essays on NPR), I love Bailey White's voice. It is honest, original, entertaining and yet carries insight that can be quite biting at times. Better still, it is oh so southern. She is a master storyteller who manages to fit whole stories into the space of a short essay. Aspiring writers should study her opening lines and paragraphs to see how a great writer draws a reader in. How about these for opening sentences? "We should have kno...more
7 likes · like · see review
This had lots of fun stories about growing up in the south. I really enjoyed the one about her watching scary movies and then being afraid to do anything at home. I can relate to that!
My favorite was when she was talking about her first grade class, and how they couldn't go on a field trip to the reptile center because of budget cuts. So she gets a snake from her house and brings it to school. In the process, they have to ice the snake to calm him down, he gets loose in the room, and it bites he...more
My favorite was when she was talking about her first grade class, and how they couldn't go on a field trip to the reptile center because of budget cuts. So she gets a snake from her house and brings it to school. In the process, they have to ice the snake to calm him down, he gets loose in the room, and it bites he...more
Bailey White is a southern treasure. I first heard her on NPR, when she used to read her essays during "Morning Edition". With her raspy voice, I thought she was about 90. Then one day I heard she was doing a book signing here in town. I raced to see her (nearly got a ticket on the way- the only reason I didn't was that the nice police officer liked Bailey White too and could understand my hurry.) Got there and there is Bailey White, closer in age to me than to my grandmother ( or to my mother f...more
Comparing this author to Fannie Flagg is a discredit to the fantastic works of Flagg. Bailey White has a lot of potential to become a great author, but she hasn't reached it yet. I do not understand the great heaps of praise that this book has received. The characters are flat and unexplored beyond the tiny little stories they are featured in, and the stories have no connection between them other than that they were all experienced by the same person, and that Mama is involved someway in almost...more
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Re-reading at the laundromat, while recovering from the dishwasher disaster. I was actually inspired to re-read by a passage from another of her books, Sleeping at the Starlite Motel. My disaster story pales compared to hers:
MY AUNT ELEANOR WAS TAKING A SHOWER THE other day when the whole bathroom fell right through the floor and landed in the dust under the house. Dripping wet and all lathered up, picking soap and tile grout out of her ears, Aunt Eleanor crawled out of the debris and through t...more
MY AUNT ELEANOR WAS TAKING A SHOWER THE other day when the whole bathroom fell right through the floor and landed in the dust under the house. Dripping wet and all lathered up, picking soap and tile grout out of her ears, Aunt Eleanor crawled out of the debris and through t...more
This is a moderately fictionalized collection of short stories about the author’s life. Her writing, and stories, reminded me a great deal of my wife and so it’s no surprise I found myself liking the author as a person. The author has a talent for taking a story about a mundane moment in life and making it interesting. Throughout the stories she is gently self-depreciating which injects much humor. There are plenty of laughs. It’s a fast easy read and as each story is three to seven pages which...more
Dec 03, 2009
JG (The Introverted Reader)
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Shelves:
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biography_memoir,
humor,
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reviewed,
setting_us,
anthology,
titles_i_like
You should see my copy of this book. One of my co-workers, who, for various reasons, has only recently seen how much I read, saw all the neon post-it flags sticking out of the side of my book and asked me what on earth I was doing. I blushed and tried to explain how the people in Bailey White's humorous little reflection on life in the South kept reminding me of people I know, so I was just marking the pages. She said that she'd never heard of anyone doing that, looked at me like I was weird, an...more
Written as a series of short essays, this book is perfect to pick up when you have only a few minutes to read and you want to be entertained. The author's eccentric Mama, for whom the book is titled, is a fearless, nature-loving woman whose life is never boring. Whether she is facing down an alligator or snoring through a hurricane, her gusto for living shines through. Often humorous, sometimes poignant, the author does a fine job of making you feel at home in her world. She intersperses essays...more
I'd heard of Bailey White, but this is the first book of hers that I've read. It won't be the last. Next to cat cozies, Southern eccentricities are my kind of light, enjoyable reading, and White delivers her eccentrics in a lyrical way that delights. The chapter headings, while accurate to a fault, don't clue the reader in to what awaits, and what awaits is always quirky, humorous and sometimes hilarious, a smorgasbord of life in the South. White takes us along with the main character from incid...more
229 pages. Donated 2010 May.
Welcome to the unique world of Bailey White. Her aunt Belle may take you to see the alligator she's taught to bellow on command. Her uncle Jimbuddy may appall you with his knack for losing pieces of himself. Most of all, you may succumb utterly to the charms of Bailey's mama - who may take you to Rosey's, a North Florida juke joint so raunchy it scared Ernest Hemingway, and then tuck you into an antique bed that has the disconcerting habit of folding up on people whil...more
Welcome to the unique world of Bailey White. Her aunt Belle may take you to see the alligator she's taught to bellow on command. Her uncle Jimbuddy may appall you with his knack for losing pieces of himself. Most of all, you may succumb utterly to the charms of Bailey's mama - who may take you to Rosey's, a North Florida juke joint so raunchy it scared Ernest Hemingway, and then tuck you into an antique bed that has the disconcerting habit of folding up on people whil...more
Nov 10, 2012
Garima
added it
Collection of short stories(very short), sweet, tender, neat Mark Twain style of humour which is thoroughly enjoyable. Not a serious read or "OMG the book touched me so much" bt that doesnt undermines the brilliant web of words spun, the quaint messages delivered at the end in a weird humorous way.
A quintessential way of story telling, usage of words, the slangs of south, the color of those times and stories so simple that make you realize that there are a lot of anecdotes, daily rumblings, hap...more
A quintessential way of story telling, usage of words, the slangs of south, the color of those times and stories so simple that make you realize that there are a lot of anecdotes, daily rumblings, hap...more
Dec 06, 2011
Diann Blakely
added it
A collection of essays that first became familiar to many through her readings on NPR, MAMA MAKES UP HER MIND is a trip back to Flannery O’Connor territory, with perhaps a side route to Capote-land. White’s world is far darker than her spinster schoolteacher facade might indicate–snakes lost in first-grade classrooms, rotting tomatoes that refuse to become “sun-dried”–though, again like O’Connor in “A Late Encounter with the Enemy,” the overlay of pure hilarity has earned her many unwary fans.
Ku...more
Ku...more
One of those books that makes you wonder: is everyone in the south full of quirks? Bailey White's mama sure is, and Bailey does an amazing job of writing about them. And her own quirks, frankly, which probably come from being raised by her strong-willed, intelligent, and just a tad off-beat mama. My personal favorite is Bailey wearing a maternity dress and wedding ring to deterr strange men when she travels alone. Then she's baffled when the man next to her on the bus keeps trying to help her wi...more
This was a funny book full of stories about the author's family; mostly her eccentric mother. She talked about the small town she lived in and the characters you might come across. These were stories that warmed my heart, because the people reminded me of people I know. At the very end of the book, she talked about being a first grade teacher and some funny happenings. One was where she brought in a snake for her reptile lesson, because the school district could not afford to send the class to a...more
Bailey White can do more in two pages than some other writers can do in two hundred. In this book of essays about her life (and her Mama) in Southern Georgia, she sheds light on the subtle absurdities, the small kindnesses, the beautiful moments and the sad facts of everyday life.
The essays are usually very funny, but they also touch a part of your soul so that even when you're done laughing, you're still thinking. Imagine finding that magical key that makes the first graders you're teaching *w...more
The essays are usually very funny, but they also touch a part of your soul so that even when you're done laughing, you're still thinking. Imagine finding that magical key that makes the first graders you're teaching *w...more
This is a great book and is best read aloud with a friend. Anyone who has ever had a kooky elderly relative, (don't we all?)lived in the South, or just wants to have a heart warming laugh will love this book.
My daughter and I have read "the Mama book" as we fondly call it to each other several times. We laugh at Mama's antics every time as if we had never heard the stories contained within this charming book. We sometimes form an "o" with our thumbs and index fingers to peek at each other thro...more
My daughter and I have read "the Mama book" as we fondly call it to each other several times. We laugh at Mama's antics every time as if we had never heard the stories contained within this charming book. We sometimes form an "o" with our thumbs and index fingers to peek at each other thro...more
The jacket of this book mentions that Bailey White is a former first grade teacher. I was very lucky to be in her class the last year she taught. My mother was worried about the class because her room had no decorations in it, which made my mother assume she was not very creative. Within a week or two, my mother visited the room again to find it was filled with many different art projects that Miss White had led her students in making.
Like my first grade classroom, this collection of stories (a...more
Like my first grade classroom, this collection of stories (a...more
3 likes · like · see review
Loved Bailey White's obvious Southern background when she was a commentator for NPR on Friday afternoon. White pries open the parlor door and gives us a peak at real life in rural Georgia. Through her wit and eccentricity she shows the wit and eccentricities of her Southern town, her neighbors, and mostly, her Mama. Anyone who's lived in the rural South will instantly recognize both the voice and the characters who fill the pages of this book. Well worth putting on your reading glasses for.
I first became aware of Bailey White when I heard her reading brief stories on NPR. She was irresistible - reciting droll tales about simple but fascinating episodes in her life, delivered in a charming Southern accent. This book is a collection of such stories, many revolving around her wonderful mama - a stubborn, eccentric, botanically brilliant, and unforgettable character. Very highly recommended. (I don't know how she does it, but I swear she writes with a Southern accent as well).
OMG! A friend of mine gave this book to me and said that the 'Mama' in the book reminded her of my mother so I should read it. I read it, then gave it to my mother to read without telling her what my friend had said. My mother read it, called me up and said, "That Bailey White, she reminds me of YOU!" Lordy, it was like looking in the mirror! Bailey White is a delight. I later got the audio version and it is even better to listen to the author's raspy southern accent. Read it!
A fun book of shorts about the author's life in rural Georgia. I liked most of the stories, and Bailey White seems to ba a very interesting person.
My favorites were growing the wild plant garden, teaching first graders to read using the story of the Titanic and her adventures as a firefighter.
The most poignat story for me wis when she tells about using the story of Joan of Arc to rteach her children, and then realizes how much it glorifies war.
My favorites were growing the wild plant garden, teaching first graders to read using the story of the Titanic and her adventures as a firefighter.
The most poignat story for me wis when she tells about using the story of Joan of Arc to rteach her children, and then realizes how much it glorifies war.
Just as good the second time around. This time I read it aloud for a senior citizen literature class. It is easy to read aloud and everyone found it just as amusing as I did. Life with her mother is funny and inspiring. Her essays about teaching first grade are wonderful. I read "Maritime Disasters" at every teacher workshop I teach and it never fails to give me the big inspirational ending I'm looking for.
Fast, easy read and funny stories from the South. It reminded me a little bit of Celia Rivenbark's stories, but these were more embellished, I THINK.
Mama was a character, and nothing held Mama down. She liked to read UFO magazines. I found that to be a hoot!
I laughed out loud about Mama and the heavy breather on the telephone.
New word (for me) lickerish - adj. greedy or eager esp. to eat or taste.
Mama was a character, and nothing held Mama down. She liked to read UFO magazines. I found that to be a hoot!
I laughed out loud about Mama and the heavy breather on the telephone.
New word (for me) lickerish - adj. greedy or eager esp. to eat or taste.
I remember listening to Bailey White on NPR and picked this gem up on the Borders clearance racks. Great compliation of short stories that make me wish I had a southern grandma and a whole bunch of weird relatives (well maybe I have some of those - but they're not southern). Very short vignettes, charming. Bailey White didn't start writing til she was 40 so maybe I still have a chance.
Usually the books that I read about children growing up in the south involve some faulty parenting. Mama Makes up her Mind was very refreshing, it was a love letter from a daughter to her mother. Mama had her own way of doing things and no matter how strange these things were they had a way of working out. I loved most of the book, but toward the end it centered more on the author than on her mother and I liked those anecdotes a bit less.
Dec 03, 2008
Terry
added it
What can you say about Bailey White? Every thing I read by her I hear her wonderfully raspy, very Southern voice, reading it to me. It helps that the stories are deeper than they seem, and yet full of a whimsy that somehow only seems to show up in Southern writers. If you have a decent Dixie accent, you should read it aloud. If not, shut up and read it to yourself.
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Bailey White was born in 1950 in Thomasville, Ga. She still lives in the same house in which she grew up, on one of the large tracts of virgin longleaf pine woods. Her father, Robb White, was a fiction writer and later a television and movie script writer. Her mother, Rosalie White, was a farmer, and worked for many years as the executive director of the local Red Cross Chapter. She has one brothe...more
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“I'm tired of being set upon by crazed Christians one minute and unbridled libertines the next. Girls, I'm going camping.”
—
12 people liked it
“When Mama starts to move across a room, people pay attention. You can never be sure she's not going to grab you by the top of the head to steady herself. And she's pretty free with that walking stick, too.”
—
5 people liked it
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