On the Same Page with Linda Bloodworth-Thomason

Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, creator of the television series Designing Women, brings her debut novel, Liberating Paris, to "On the Same Page". "Writing Liberating Paris was much akin to writing a love letter to the American South," Thomason said. "This book shouts out three especially important messages to every U.S. citizen: fight against the death of Main Street, don't dilute the lifeblood of America with trumped-up values and don't discount the South."

The novel tells the story of six friends, all on the verge of middle age, who must come to terms with the past in order to claim their futures. This episode is hosted by Tommy Sanders and is part of "AETN Presents," which features a variety of performances, arts and cultural subjects.

"I wanted to show rural Southerners who were sophisticated, cosmopolitan, well educated," Thomason said on The Today Show. "I wanted to show that these people in a small Southern town could embrace great social change and be capable of great tolerance."

Liberating Paris focuses on a town that has had its all-American heart cut out by losing its Main Street. The richly interwoven plot shows how these friends learn not only what there is about that street that is so worth keeping, but it also shows why they should fight to save it for future generations.

Sanders examined the book with Anne-Marie LeBlanc of Laman Public Library in North Little Rock; Gary Jones of Jones Productions, Inc. in Little Rock; and Janice Davis of the Well-Seasoned Book Club in Morrilton. Both the interview and panel discussion were taped at That Bookstore at Montebanq Place in Conway.

"Throughout her career as an award-winning and groundbreaking television producer and writer, Thomason has given the world some of TV's most memorable characters," Carol Haggas wrote in a Booklist review. "Now, she brings her trademark talent for combining humor with humility, intelligence with insouciance, to a sparkling debut novel that chronicles one exceptional year for a circle of longtime friends in Paris, Ark.

"Offering a touching and tender tribute to small-town Arkansas, Thomason excels at creating larger-than-life, yet down-to-earth, characters, endowing them with endearing flaws, enriching wisdom and ennobling courage."

The book, already in its third printing, has met with great success, and Thomason is currently negotiating with Michelle Pfeiffer, Kevin Costner and Billy Bob Thornton to play the leads in a film adaptation of Liberating Paris, which may begin filming in Arkansas in January.

"On the Same Page" has been called "Good television for people who love good books." Previously featured authors include: Crescent Dragonwagon, "Passionate Vegetarian;" Rick Bragg, "All Over but the Shouting;" Fannie Flagg, "Standing in the Rainbow;" Donna Tartt, "The Little Friend;" Sandra Cisneros, "The House on Mango Street;" and George Singleton, "Why Dogs Chase Cars." Visit the program homepage at www.aetn.org/otsp.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly The collapse of a marriage comes as a seismic shock to a group of six high school friends now on the verge of middle age in this splendid, often hilarious first novel by television writer and producer Bloodworth-Thomason (Designing Women, etc.). Five of the friends still live in unpretentious Paris, Ark.: Wood MacKelmore, the third-generation local doctor ("Wood was to the group what Frank Sinatra was to the Rat Pack"); Milan, Wood's gorgeous wife of 20 years who grew up dirt poor; Wood's close friend Earl Brundidge Jr., who runs the town liquor store and is a single father of two little girls; Mavis Pinkerton, Milan's best friend, an accomplished cook who owns a bakery; and Carl Jeter, a quadriplegic who was injured in a football game at 17 and is now a poet. The sixth member of the group is flamboyant rebel Duff, Wood's first love and Milan's nemesis. Duff moved away after high school, but when Milan's daughter, Elizabeth, comes home from college announcing plans to marry a classmate, Luke Childs, it isn't long before everyone realizes that Luke is Duff's son. Thrown together by their children's engagement, Wood and Duff rekindle their long-ago affair, jeopardizing not only Wood's marriage but also the relationships among their friends. A thicket of sideplotsincluding the unwelcome arrival of a chain discount megastore, Mavis's quest to find a sperm donor and Brundidge's long-distance romance with a New Yorkergive the novel a rich, layered feel. Poignant, welcoming and warmly funny, this is an irresistible page-turner. Copyright Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist Throughout her career as an award-winning and groundbreaking television producer and writer (M*A*S*H, Designing Women), Thomason has given the world some of TV's most memorable characters. Now she brings her trademark talent for combining humor with humility, intelligence with insouciance, to a sparkling debut novel that chronicles one exceptional year for a circle of longtime friends in Paris, Arkansas. Woodrow MacKelmore has led a charmed existence. The son of the town's beloved doctor, Wood is himself a respected physician married to his high-school sweetheart, Milan, and the father of a beautiful daughter who is about to marry the son of his other high-school sweetheart, Duff. But when the impending nuptials bring Duff and Wood together for the first time in decades, the rekindling of their youthful romance threatens everything Wood holds dear. As a national mega-retailer's new superstore similarly endangers Paris' charming mom-and-pop downtown, Wood and his friends confront the countless new beginnings and harsh endings that seem endemic to middle age. Offering a touching and tender tribute to small-town Arkansas, Thomason excels at creating larger-than-life yet down-to-earth characters, endowing them with endearing flaws, enriching wisdom, and ennobling courage. Carol Haggas Copyright American Lib