First off, before I begin this review of Perfectly Plum, edited by Leah Wilson, the latest entry in the Smart Pop series of books published by BenBella Books, I must confess. I’ve never read Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series of crime novels. But Perfectly Plum made me want to start. The nineteen essays are testament to the power of well-done characterization to spark our imagination, engage our hearts, and make real a character in a novel. Stephanie Plum is so well loved by Evanovich’s readers that like the Velveteen Rabbit, she becomes REAL.
The book is divided into 3 sections: Life; Loves; and Other Disasters. The essays chronicle aspects of Stephanie Plum’s bounty hunting life under each of these major headings. My one nitpick, “FTA” is not defined in any of the essays. Not having read any of the books, I had no idea what the acronym stood for. It distracted me every time I ran across it. What’s a FTA?
The Life section opens with Bev Katz Rosenbaum’s Destiny: Disaster!, an engaging exploration why Stephanie Plum proves Murphy’s Law time and again. Devon Ellington’s, The Myth of the Jersey Girl gives us the lowdown on the Jersey girl, explodes the stereotypical view and underscores the point: the Jersey girl has unplumbed depths. (No pun intended.) Really. Janet Evanovich, as Ellington points out, redeems the cliche. Being a fan of noir movies, I enjoyed Amy Garvey’s The “N” in New Jersey Stands For Noir. She gives a deft portrayal of why the Plumverse fits the noir paradigm.
The essential questions in the Love essays focus on the two irresistible men in her life, who will Stephanie Plum finally choose? Which man is best for her? Morelli or Ranger? Rhonda Eudaly proposes a perfect solution in her tongue-in-cheek essay The Fast and the Furry-ous wherein Stephanie Plum’s pet hamster ruminates on these questions.
Among the essays in the third section, Other Disasters, Brenda Scott Royce, in The Gun in the Cookie Jar proves that the intrepid and tenacious Stephanie Plum is not as inept at her job as a bond enforcement officer as she seems. There’s method in the chaos of her professional bounty hunting life.
I thoroughly enjoyed the book. Each essay is written with verve, humor and affection for Stephanie Plum. Readers of the Plum novels will love these essays about their favorite heroine and even if you’re not a reader (like me), Perfectly Plum is a delightful introduction.
I gave it 5 stars at Amazon.
