It was hard to put this one down! I'd go to sleep so late, just so I could finish out a chapter. Historic references to American Bandstand on 46th and Market, Horn and Hardart - where my grandfather worked, etc were great to read about. I enjoyed that it was based in Philly - my hometown and current residence. Every part of these characters were described in so much detail that you created your own movie in your head. The characters in the book were so true to life - My favorite was Fannie and Noon. As soon as he said 'The Tumbling' I knew I've seen that on my bookshelf for years! I've finally gotten a chance to read it and enjoyed it immensely! As we talked, he mentioned his Aunt was an Author - I asked what has she written. My boyfriend and I took a trip to Florida and befriended a hotel staff member.

This book was assigned reading for my sister when she was in highschool. With striking lyricism, Diane McKinney-Whetstone keenly guides us through the world of community, family, and the human heart.Īn absolutely wonderful book. Tumbling is a beautifully rendered, poignant story about the ties that bind us and the secrets that keep us apart.

Unexpectedly, Noon rises up and takes the lead in the opposition, fighting for all she's worth to keep her family and community together. When a road planned by the city council threatens to break up this South Philadelphia neighborhood, the community must band together. While she seeks salvation in the church, Herbie gains sexual gratification in the arms of a bewitching jazz singer named Ethel, a woman who profoundly affects both Noon's and Herbie's lives when she leaves with them, first, a baby girl and then later, a five-year-old named Liz. Its central characters, Herbie and Noon, are a loving but unconventional couple whose marriage remains unconsummated for many years as Noon struggles to repossess her sexuality after a brutal attack in her past. Diane McKinney-Whetstone's lyrical first novel, Tumbling, vividly captures a tightly knit African-American neighborhood in South Philadelphia during the forties and fifties.

Tumbling by diane mckinney whetstone