THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, May 15, 1996 TAG: 9605150041
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E9 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Book Review
SOURCE: BY STEPHANIE STOUGHTON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines
BY NOW, YOU probably know Terry McMillan as the writer who made women cheer and men cringe with ``Waiting to Exhale.'' She is an entertainer - one who uses earthy language to portray how women really think, no matter how embarassing.
She's still got it in ``How Stella Got Her Groove Back,'' but the simple, largely one-character plot is more Danielle Steel than true-grit McMillan. Amusing, but not what you're expecting.
Stella Payne does everything and has everything. She's a divorced 42-year-old investment analyst who has a personal trainer, a BMW and a big house in California. She also has an 11-year-old son, Quincy.
But she has lost her connection to life. With time off and her son away, she finds herself puttering around the house and heading for the nearby Home Depot.
She's ready to indulge.
Flash to Jamaica, where Stella meets a tender, innocent man who does this: ``He is gazing at me again with those dreamy eyes, and even though he isn't looking through my jogging top, it feels like I am sitting here completely naked. . . . ''
You get the picture.
You just go, girl.
No, back up. There's one problem. This man, Winston Shakespeare, may be the sweetest, to-die-for hunk of Jamaican man, but he is only 20 years old. That means he is only nine years older than her son and that he can't order a beer with dinner.
Stella is ashamed, but she can't help herself.
That's pretty much the plot. Older woman meets younger man. I love him, but I'm too old! No I'm not! Crisis! What should I do? Orgasm, sigh, happy ending!
The main problem with McMillan's latest novel is that there's way too much Stella. Stella gripes. Stella pines. Stella overanalyzes. Stella thinks way too much.
Sometimes you want to tell her to shut up. In fact, one of the other characters tells Stella, ``Girl, you're tripping too hard.''
But aside from Stella, you don't learn much about the characters, particularly her love Winston. He is a shadow in the book, with no apparent flaws.
McMillan, as always, can make you snort in laughter. Her voice is authentic, witty and, sometimes, downright dirty.
She's not even afraid to poke fun at herself.
In her hotel room, Stella picks up several books, including ``Waiting to Exhale.'' Stella says she doesn't ``know what all the hoopla is about,'' because McMillan's work is weak and too profane.
But even with McMillan's humor, it's difficult to get through some parts of her novel. For some reason, she likes to overwhelm you with long, stream-of-consciousness sentences.
At first, it's understandable because you crack up when you hear that Stella is getting all shook up over some 20-year-old man. But then you start to say oh-my-God does that woman ever stop goin' on about how she is ashamed of her nasty cravings for this young man and damn she is really buggin' the hell out of me making me want to drop this book but I can't because if I did you wouldn't be reading this right now. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Terry McMillan
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BOOK REVIEW
``How Stella Got Her Groove Back''
Author: Terry McMillan
Publisher: Viking. 368 pp.
Price: $23.95
by CNB