Helpful Score: 3
Two women in the 1980's, grayheaded Mrs. Threadgoode telling her life story
to Evelyn, who is in the sad slump of middle age. The tale she tells is
also of two women-the irrepressibly daredevilish tomboy Idgie and her
friend Ruth, who back in the thirties ran a little place in Whistle Stop
Alabama, a Southern cafe offering good barbecue and good coffe and all kinds
of love and laughter, even an occasional murder.
to Evelyn, who is in the sad slump of middle age. The tale she tells is
also of two women-the irrepressibly daredevilish tomboy Idgie and her
friend Ruth, who back in the thirties ran a little place in Whistle Stop
Alabama, a Southern cafe offering good barbecue and good coffe and all kinds
of love and laughter, even an occasional murder.
Lisa D. (fluerdelis) -
Helpful Score: 3
The setting of this book makes you want to be there. It's a sweet story with human compassion scenes and wisdom laced in. An original format, jumping back and forth through time as the aging main character confuses the past with the present.
Angela S. (angie0322) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 9 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 3
Excellent book with a different and less ambiguous ending than the movie. If you want to know for sure what happened to Frank, read the book.
Helpful Score: 2
This book is so full of Southern hospitality, it even ends with eight pages of Sipsey's recipes from the Whistle Stop Cafe. I only hope that come summer, my fried green tomatoes actually taste as good as I imagine Sipsey's do. By the way, Sipsey is the cook.
Each character reminds me of folks I've known in some of the "whistle stop" places I've lived. I wish I had a best friend like Idgie. The Threadgoods live in just about every small town.
This is a good read filled with family, neighbor, and community love. There is humor along the way and a couple of real surprises. It is about Southern life both black and white; rich and poor. It is about friendship and the passing of time. I will go as far as saying, "It is about time you read this book." I wish I hadn't waited so long!
Each character reminds me of folks I've known in some of the "whistle stop" places I've lived. I wish I had a best friend like Idgie. The Threadgoods live in just about every small town.
This is a good read filled with family, neighbor, and community love. There is humor along the way and a couple of real surprises. It is about Southern life both black and white; rich and poor. It is about friendship and the passing of time. I will go as far as saying, "It is about time you read this book." I wish I hadn't waited so long!
Bonnie S. (Bonnie) -
Helpful Score: 2
A great Southern book by a terrific author. I loved it. Funny, though, I think I liked the movie better.
Helpful Score: 2
so much better than the movie
Jennifer N. (Jenji) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 72 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
better than the movie... fannie flagg is such a funny author and the dialogue is superbly realistic
Helpful Score: 2
This book is wonderful. The movie certainly did it justice too.
Kristine S. (NHBookLover) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 293 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
This is the first Fannie Flagg book that I read. I highly recommend this, or anything else she has written, for that matter.
Lissette H. (yolen) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 92 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
I absolutely love this book. If you like/love the movie "Fried Green Tomatoes", you really should read this book.
Alexis C. (ceeshouse) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 24 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Ususally I enjoy the book far more than the move, but in this case, I enjoyed them equally. Differnt yet satisfying!
Janet S. (JanetDammit) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 24 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Loved it. One of my all time favorite books.
Helpful Score: 1
Read it after seeing the movie, and it just made the story that much richer. You won't want to say goodbye to the characters.
Sue E. (Susanaque) -
Helpful Score: 1
A downright folky book. You almost want to sit down and talk with Mrs. Threadgood yourself.
Helpful Score: 1
Love this one!
Renee F. (1952purple) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 18 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Great Book!!!
Helpful Score: 1
Great book!!
Helpful Score: 1
good book good movie!
Helpful Score: 1
The movie holds pretty true to the book, but the book is so much more in depth and we learn much more about the black characters' lives, too. A very entertaining read.
Christine (luvmygem) -
Helpful Score: 1
Loved the movie, loved the book - the book is just different enough that even if you saw the movie first, there will be surprises as you read. Have re-read this one a few times and I enjoy it every time. I love the little side-stories, such as the saga of Opal's cat in the Weem's Weekly.
Helpful Score: 1
A funny, funny book.
Debbie R. (readingfool) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 63 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
The book that the movie was based on. Rich characters and a really nice story.
Heather H. (plantgirl848) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 73 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
A classic! Way better than the movie!
Helpful Score: 1
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book! It is witty and laugh-out-loud funny. The author builds up the story by going back and forth between newsletter/newspaper articles and life events. One feels a rapport with the characters as the story progresses. Also, I was surprised to realize that two of the lead characters are actually lesbians!
Diana T. (diana) - , reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 5 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Still an entertaining read years after it originally was published.
Helpful Score: 1
another fuuny book,read this one two times,hard to put down!
A fun read and so much better than the movie!
Helpful Score: 1
Better than the movie for lots of reasons, but mainly because there is more "back story" and characters that were left out of the movie. Those who saw the movie first might not like the book as well for the movie was very well done. I loved both and did see the movie first, BTW.
Helpful Score: 1
A great, quick read. The characters almost come alive.
Helpful Score: 1
This was a great book - even better than the movie. I loved it.
Helen K. (Billie-K) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 459 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Even more fun than the movie. Story of friendships, love, and life in the 1930's and the 1980's.
Kristina E. (tazzcat625) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 100 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Excellent! So much better than the movie!
Cecilia J. (MissC) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 100 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
I really enjoy Fannie's writing. It is humorous and folksy.
Victoria B. (Victoria) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 175 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
BRILLIANT AND LOTS OF FUN
Tami Jo L. (MKLadyTJ) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 53 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Loved this book!
Helpful Score: 1
Fun, entertaining book.
Bonnie P. (bonbon) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 104 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Endearing....southern fiction at its best.
Helpful Score: 1
I enjoyed this book. It was even better than the movie. ( I know) (I know).
I really enjoyed the witty personality of Fannie Flagg's characters. In this book there was love, friendships, hardships, murder, mystery. I was a little put off by the lesbian relationship, even though she made the characters beautiful - Not my thing.
Jennifer F. (mrscountryham) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 38 more book reviews
It is a good book BUT I was uncomfortable with the lesbian relationship, it is just not to my taste but aside from that it is a pretty good book.
Jamie A. (jamiesueaustin) -
I can not think of one women's issue that is not touched upon by this book. Funny, enlightening, heartwarming and a pleasure to read.
This is a delightful book with memorable people and the strength of family and friendship shining. It is a quick read and a book you want to wrap your arms around.
Genevieve G. (wisergen) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 12 more book reviews
This is a wonderful read. Ms. Flagg has created characters that are vibrant, and the three perspectives woven throughout the book keep the overall stories interesting.
Heather S. (sissy6878) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 5 more book reviews
I loved this book and could NOT put it down.
Evelyn Couch is forced to accompany her husband every week to visit his cranky mother at the Rose Terrace Nursing Home, which she dreads. But it is here that she one day meets old Ninny Threadgoode, who won't stop talking to her. Gradually the acquaintance blossoms into a genuine friendship as Evelyn gets caught up in Ninny's stories of her childhood growing up in Whistle Stop, Alabama, as well as the tales of Idgie Threadgoode and Ruth Jamison, proprietors of the Whistle Stop Cafe. Full of humor, drama, and fascinating characters, this is wonderful story sure to absorb any reader. Excellent and highly recommended.
Caitlin I. (caitlinireland) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 13 more book reviews
I cannot give this book the justice it so rightfully deserves. This is my third time reading it, and I cry every time. I also laugh loud enough to turn the heads of the people around me. Fried Green Tomatoes always makes me desperately wish I could have lived back in Whistle Stop and known all the characters, especially Idgie. Like I said, I cannot fully explain why this book is so wonderful and amazing and funny, but I can recommend it to EVERYONE. And trust me, I have; multiple times to everyone I know.
Aileen I. (isbellart) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 9 more book reviews
Liked the book and the movie You will like it too
Brittany S. (chix96) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 5 more book reviews
Good, fun book about friendship, but nothing terribly meaty to it.
Jill B. (jillmgtexas) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 73 more book reviews
I loved this book and the movie! Usually, the movie ruins the book but I think these were both well done. It is written with humor and love of the characters involved
Dana W. (SouthWestZippy) -
Set in the 80's Evelyn meets Mrs. Threadgoode while visiting her husband's Mother in a nursing home. Threadgoode tells stories form her past about herself, family and her friend and business partner Ruth. They ran the Whistle stop Café in the thirties where it was known for its barbecue and warm friendly people.
Great story line and wonderful characters. I laughed, I cried and I just did not want some of the stories to end. I love the movie so much I was apprehensive about reading the book. I am so happy I did. The movie did follow the book in many ways but some things were out of order or just redone all together in some stories lines. Does not matter it is that good.
Great story line and wonderful characters. I laughed, I cried and I just did not want some of the stories to end. I love the movie so much I was apprehensive about reading the book. I am so happy I did. The movie did follow the book in many ways but some things were out of order or just redone all together in some stories lines. Does not matter it is that good.
Connie A. (jazzysmom) -
If you have picked up this book--you have just taken on the best time in your life in the pages of entertainment. You can not help but love the author, the women who work the cafe, the customers, and the whole cafe setting itself. Your going to laugh--just won't be able not to, and your going to want to hurry and get back to "The Cafe" when you have to put the book down. But the worst thing i can say about this book--is that it ends, and you will be left wanting more. Absolute delight to read--If it is Fannie Flag, your money is well spent.
This is a story of "down home" people and a good read.
Leah G.
Leah G.
Sandra F. (matsmom) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 32 more book reviews
Fannie Flagg has a knack for descriptive and humorous storytelling. I really loved this book.
Tabatha B. (lylathewicked) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 48 more book reviews
I enjoyed reading this book and I read it in two days. Thats a record for me reading a book. I wanted so badly to finish reading it. Yes I'm a slow reader. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes a good southern story.
There were quite a few differences between the book and the movie but overall it was a good read.
New - Great condition. Classic story
Fara L. (farazon) -
Just wonderful listening to Fannie Flagg read her own book. Of course I had loved reading the book some time ago. And watched the movie, but nothing beats hearing this sweet story by the author herself encompassing the Great Depression and an ordinary woman in modern day this story flows easily from story teller to a woman in the funny depths of menopause. I want to invoke the courage of Towanda myself once in a while.
Set in a small Alabama train stop town in the 1930s, this gem of a book almost could have been shelved as just another light romantic comedy. Various women's voices tell anecdotes of Whistle Stop, as the chapters jump back and forth through time. We hear from Mrs. Threadgoode, reminiscing fondly from her nursing home in the 1980s, and the chatty Dot Weems, editor of the gossipy town newsletter (1929-1969), and then listen in on spirited dialogue set in the town of Whistle Stop itself. The storytellers never find use for the label "lesbian," nor do they see fit to take us behind closed doors, but this is nevertheless the irresistible story of a fierce and true love between two women, Idgie and Ruth. After Idgie saves Ruth from an abusive marriage, these two friends become partners in running the Whistle Stop Cafe, where no one, "not even hobos and colored," is turned away for inability to pay. Readers are set down in the corner booth to eavesdrop on the comings and goings of an array of eccentric, ragtag characters who drop in for buttermilk biscuits, Big George's barbecue, and, eventually, news about their own hometown murder mystery. Among revelations big and small, Fannie Flagg mixes direct and empowering confrontations with racism, sexism, and ageism with the colorful and endearing language of the depression-era South and the cafe's recipes for grits, collard greens, and, of course, fried green tomatoes.
A light, quick read.
Robin C. (NJbooklady) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 4 more book reviews
From the back of the book: "Flagg's new novel is the Lake Woebegone of the South. It is folksy and fresh, endearing and effecting, filled with humor and drama -- and has an ending that would fill with smiling tears the Whistle Stop Lake... if only they had a lake.
Frances R. (viking) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 14 more book reviews
This is a delightful Southern book which will make you laugh, cry and begin to say "Ya'll. You will want to rush out and buy some green tomatoes to fry.
Set in a small Alabama train stop town in the 1930s, this gem of a book almost could have been shelved as just another light romantic comedy. Various women's voices tell anecdotes of Whistle Stop, as the chapters jump back and forth through time. We hear from Mrs. Threadgoode, reminiscing fondly from her nursing home in the 1980s, and the chatty Dot Weems, editor of the gossipy town newsletter (1929-1969), and then listen in on spirited dialogue set in the town of Whistle Stop itself. The storytellers never find use for the label "lesbian," nor do they see fit to take us behind closed doors, but this is nevertheless the irresistible story of a fierce and true love between two women, Idgie and Ruth. After Idgie saves Ruth from an abusive marriage, these two friends become partners in running the Whistle Stop Cafe, where no one, "not even hobos and colored," is turned away for inability to pay. Readers are set down in the corner booth to eavesdrop on the comings and goings of an array of eccentric, ragtag characters who drop in for buttermilk biscuits, Big George's barbecue, and, eventually, news about their own hometown murder mystery. Among revelations big and small, Fannie Flagg mixes direct and empowering confrontations with racism, sexism, and ageism with the colorful and endearing language of the depression-era South and the cafe's recipes for grits, collard greens, and, of course, fried green tomatoes
Cheryl (boomerbooklover) -
Very entertaining tales of life in small town rural Alabama from the 1930's to the 80's. Includes recipes from the fictional cafe' of the title.
This is a wonderful story that takes place from the 1929 to 1988 with two stories running concurrently. The story of what happened in Whistle Stop many years ago is told by Ninny, in a rest home, to Evelyn, who befriends her. You also get Ninny's and Evelyn's story in the present time. You will get wrapped up in both stories. However, running silently between the lines are messages of the social and economic issues of the both times. In fact, most are still relevant in the 21st Century. I gave it 5 stars-I loved it. Not because I did, but because Fannie Flagg made me a part of the story. It is a depressing one, both on the surface and between the lines. I grew up in most of those times. Stories rate highest with me when I can personally feel what the characters feel. I internalized this story and characters too much. I felt hurt when they hurt and they hurt a lot. Every once in a while there was some happiness, but not often. Recommend.
A middleaged woman listens to a story about two friends, a barbecue and a murder.
Great book. An older copy but nice shape.
Karen U. (editorgrrl) reviewed Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe on + 255 more book reviews
Reader's guide available at Randomhouse.com. Read more (including recipes) at WhistleStopCafe.com. The 1991 movie starred Kathy Bates, Mary Stuart Masterson, Mary-Louise Parker, and Jessica Tandy.)
From 500 Great Books by Women
Set in a small Alabama train stop town in the 1930s, this gem of a book almost could have been shelved as just another light romantic comedy. Various women's voices tell anecdotes of Whistle Stop, as the chapters jump back and forth through time. We hear from Mrs. Threadgoode, reminiscing fondly from her nursing home in the 1980s, and the chatty Dot Weems, editor of the gossipy town newsletter (1929-1969), and then listen in on spirited dialogue set in the town of Whistle Stop itself. The storytellers never find use for the label "lesbian," nor do they see fit to take us behind closed doors, but this is nevertheless the irresistible story of a fierce and true love between two women, Idgie and Ruth. After Idgie saves Ruth from an abusive marriage, these two friends become partners in running the Whistle Stop Cafe, where no one, "not even hobos and colored," is turned away for inability to pay. Readers are set down in the corner booth to eavesdrop on the comings and goings of an array of eccentric, ragtag characters who drop in for buttermilk biscuits, Big George's barbecue, and, eventually, news about their own hometown murder mystery. Among revelations big and small, Fannie Flagg mixes direct and empowering confrontations with racism, sexism, and ageism with the colorful and endearing language of the depression-era South and the cafe's recipes for grits, collard greens, and, of course, fried green tomatoes.
From 500 Great Books by Women
Set in a small Alabama train stop town in the 1930s, this gem of a book almost could have been shelved as just another light romantic comedy. Various women's voices tell anecdotes of Whistle Stop, as the chapters jump back and forth through time. We hear from Mrs. Threadgoode, reminiscing fondly from her nursing home in the 1980s, and the chatty Dot Weems, editor of the gossipy town newsletter (1929-1969), and then listen in on spirited dialogue set in the town of Whistle Stop itself. The storytellers never find use for the label "lesbian," nor do they see fit to take us behind closed doors, but this is nevertheless the irresistible story of a fierce and true love between two women, Idgie and Ruth. After Idgie saves Ruth from an abusive marriage, these two friends become partners in running the Whistle Stop Cafe, where no one, "not even hobos and colored," is turned away for inability to pay. Readers are set down in the corner booth to eavesdrop on the comings and goings of an array of eccentric, ragtag characters who drop in for buttermilk biscuits, Big George's barbecue, and, eventually, news about their own hometown murder mystery. Among revelations big and small, Fannie Flagg mixes direct and empowering confrontations with racism, sexism, and ageism with the colorful and endearing language of the depression-era South and the cafe's recipes for grits, collard greens, and, of course, fried green tomatoes.
Haven't read the book, but saw the movie and loved it!! The book is in very good condition.
