"Charming friendship story"

In the Brooklyn projects "prisoner" Carmen struggles to survive the mean streets. Her father is dead, her mother vanished, and her older brother has "raised" her by abusing her. Hew ticket out of the slums is Columbia University, but that means two jobs and non-stop studying.

In Franklin, New Jersey, upper middle class Regina lives the African-American equivalent to the Cleaver household though she is no Beaver. Her parents "Ward and June" have set life goals for her that so restrict her she is ready to revolt.

In Baldwin hills, California, teenage star Jewel cannot hide from the fact that she is recognizable as a star on the TV show "Daddy's Girl. However, Jewel has made some decisions about the direction of her life. She plans to go to school to obtain a real education and to achieve that she needs to escape from her stage mother.

In 1981, these three teens from totally different social classes meet in Morningside Heights and forge a friendship that survive drugs, secrets, illness, betrayal, and death. For each has found solace in the other two.

This sisterhood tale is a fine comparative look at three strong protagonists who form a friendship that helps each of them achieve a modicum of happenings in spite of setbacks. Each of the trio is a unique fully developed person so that readers understand what drives them. Fans of a strong character study inside a buddy tale will enjoy the apropos titled BETTER THAN I KNOW MYSELF for these pals surely do.

Harriet Klausner

Reviewed by Harriet Klausner
Posted June 12, 2004

Summary

The beloved #1 Essence bestselling authors of Tryin' to Sleep in the Bed You Made now deliver a novel in which you'll meet their most unforgettable characters yet. Carmen, Jewel, and Regina could not be more different. When they meet as freshmen at Columbia University, they're pretty confident that a friendship among them isn't in the cards. Jewel is Hollywood royalty: as the teenage star of the TV show "Daddy's Girl," her face is instantly recognizable all across America. Now, though, she wants two things-to get a serious education, and to leave her controlling stage mother behind. Regina is the definitive upper-middle-class African-American girl. Her picture-perfect parents are what she calls "black Ward and June Cleavers" and their goals for her are like a stranglehold. No one can see, though, how far Regina's rebellious side will take her (or how treacherous it will become). Carmen is just trying to get by. A child of the projects whose father is dead and whose mother has vanished, Carmen has been raised by her abusive brother. Columbia is the way for her to get a better life- if she can hold down two jobs and keep her GPA up. When the three of them meet, their lives are at a crossroad. And as the years progress, from the 1980s to the present day, they are challenged by drug addiction, fame, secrets from the past, sickness, betrayal, and the darkest things women can face. One of them won't survive. But what will be the lasting legacy of their friendship? Better Than I Know Myself is a novel of heartache, triumph, tears, and the unshakeable bonds among women.