Synopses & Reviews
Lucy Fooshee is a fish out of water. Living in a small Midwestern town where behavior is prescribed and expectations limited, this local beauty queen had pinned her hopes on marriage, only to be disappointed.
The arrival of an outsider triggers events that force the town to reveal its bigotry while at the same time teaching Lucy the meaning of real beauty.
Pretty Is As Pretty Does is an understated black comedy with an unlikely heroine. Bright, funny, mean, egocentric, and self-deceiving Lucy understands that beneath her town's culture of politeness there is a willingness to do whatever is necessary to maintain the status quo.
Review
"Funny...imaginative and high-spirited." The Denver Post
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"Clement's wildly entertaining first novel presents a complex character who quenches the thirst for straightforwardness despite her many shortcomings and ignites the pages with lusty passages spewed from a volcano of pent-up desire." Elsa Gaztambide, Booklist
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"Clement writes with ease and inherent humor." Houston Chronicle
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"A thoroughly original story and voice." Publishers Weekly
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"Lucy Fooshee is one of the funniest, most exasperating characters to come along in years. You'll love her, you'll hate her, you may want to slap her, but you won't be able to look away." Jennifer Weiner,
Author of Good In Bed and In Her Shoes
Review
"Clement's narrative, while earthy, is never crude; and for at least half of the novel we find ourselves laughing page after page. The humor doesn't stop at that point, but the raw impact of chaos starts striking us. It's in that density that Clement shows herself as having a promising future as a novelist. Her narrative thrust is strong." James Hoggard, Denver Post
Review
"[A] charming, surprising romance....Lucy's realization that her perfect life is boring is the chief plot development, but she's a fresh, spunky heroine who lights up this first novel." Library Journal
Review
"Lucy Fooshee is one of the funniest, most exasperating characters to come along in years. You'll love her, you'll hate her, you may want to slap her, but you won't be able to look away." Jennifer Weiner, author of Good in Bed and In Her Shoes
Review
"Pretty Is As Pretty Does is addictive. At turns lilting and jabbing, often hilarious, this beauty queen narrative describes the stranglehold of family, how it pits obligation against desire. Alison Clement doesn't pull any punches in this compellingly complex novel that proves to be tender, passionate and unruly." Julianna Baggott, author of Girl Talk and The Miss America Family
About the Author
Alison Clement is a former waitress and bartender who now lives the quiet life of an elementary school librarian. Raised in the South, Alison was fifteen when she moved to a small Midwestern town much like the fictional Palmyra. She now lives in western Oregon with her partner, and their two children. Her writing has appeared in The Sun, High Country News, and The Alaska Quarterly Review. This is her first novel.