Rating: 3 stars

On her 19th birthday, Zora Adams looks on as her mother gets ready for a date. Dressed like her favorite celebrity, Judy Garland, her mother’s promise to be home in time to cut the cake falls on deaf ears—mainly because Mama’s already slurring and there is no cake.

Zora realizes that life hasn’t always been easy for her mother—having a baby at 14 has a way of complicating things—but things aren’t easy for Zora either and she isn’t sure how much longer she can put up with her mother’s drunken antics.

When Mama returns at 3 A.M. with a random guy named Bob on her arm, Zora has pretty much reached her limit. When Bob offers a birthday three-some—it’s the last straw.

Zora decides to take a beauty school scholarship in the small coastal town of Davenport; where, by special arrangement, she can live rent-free in exchange for cooking dinner for the gorgeous, but emotionally-damaged Winston Sawyer.

As Zora tries desperately to live her own life, she can’t help but watch Winston drown his sorrows in alcohol; convincing herself that she can save him and finally have the true love she has only dreamed about.

What Zora doesn’t realize is that the only person she can ever change is herself, and sometimes true love finds us in the most unexpected ways.

Infused with just the right amount of southern charm, The Wisdom of Hair is an engaging story of friendship, family and the quest for love.

Kim Boykin’s debut offering is wise, witty and poignant. Fans of Karen White and Wendy Wax will immediately gravitate towards Boykin’s gentle voice and vivaciously endearing characters.
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Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Berkley Trade (March 5, 2013)
ISBN-13: 978-0425261057