The Dressmaker's Dummy Author:Beth Fowler The Dressmaker's Dummy, a mainstream/contemporary novel of about 88,000 words, traces an American woman's journey of self-discovery with humor, perceptiveness and no holds barred. Fearing that an aspect of her personality that she calls Smart Ass will blurt out what she's really thinking, Rose can't express herself freely and genuinely. She's st... more »ifled. Verbally constipated. She is drawn to an enigmatic transient, Sonny, who doesn't tolerate her evasive verbal tactics and double-speak. After falling for and then losing Sonny and alienating her best friend, Rose seeks refuge in alcohol and one night stands. Her depression deepens. Bitter, alone, jobless and hung over, Rose thinks relief will come from humiliating her parents. The story unsentimentally examines the forces that assail and aid Rose's sense of self. Spinning in an eddy of emotional distress, will she ever gain the confidence, grace and humor to speak freely and easily? In the end, readers will cheer for Rose as she makes a life-changing discovery just in time to prevent her from harming herself further and destroying the lives of the people who are most important to her.« less