Patricia Reid and Gayle Saunders, the two African-American women who overcame personal and profession obstacles through hard work and enduring friendship in Tryin' to Sleep in the Bed You Made
(1997), return for a sequel guaranteed to tug at readers' heartstrings. Once homeless and now raising her daughter, Vanessa, alone, Gayle is the creative force behind the Ell Crawford phenomenon that began with children's books and is about to launch into toy merchandising. Gayle's best friend and business partner, Pat, brings savvy to their business, being the practical one since kindergarten, where they met. While Gayle deals with a rebellious teenager, self-doubt and bulimia, Pat turns to a sympathetic colleague for affection as husband Marcus is distracted by a manipulative 16-year-old named Tiffani Alexander, who claims to be the progeny of a long-ago fling. Meanwhile, Vanessa moves in with her troublesome boyfriend. Success and problems the friends (temporarily) can't bring themselves to talk about threaten to pull Gayle and Pat apart. The authors, themselves longtime friends, take on with gusto the pitfalls of modern life, friendships and entrepreneurship. Women especially will enjoy spending time with Pat and Gayle. (Jan.)
