Amazon.com In Bingo and Six of One， Rita Mae Brown made a name for herself--and the unforgettable Hunsenmeir sisters--with her talented depictions of early 1940s life in a small southern town. Now， in Loose Lips， we follow the continuously strained relationship of the outrageous siblings， Julia (Juts) and Louise (Wheezie). Juts and Wheezie can't pass up a chance to push each other's buttons， and their joint ownership of a beauty salon in this latest installment creates many opportunities to do so. As Wheezie faces her 40th birthday with grim denial， Juts considers motherhood， and the rest of the town braces for their inevitable clashes. Brown's snappy dialogue and artful situations skillfully communicate the surprising complexity of small town life and sibling relationships. Between the moments of straight comedy (a panicked confusion between bombers and geese makes a great running joke)， the meatier issues of adoption， fidelity， piety， and， most importantly， loyalty， are considered， making Loose Lips both a hilarious and heartfelt read. --Nancy R.E. O'Brien From Library Journal They're back! The irrepressible Hunsenmeir sisters of Runnymede， the fictional town straddling the Maryland-Pennsylvania line， are literally in fighting form after a long hiatus. Louise and Julia (Juts)， both in their thirties in 1941， squabble at the town soda fountain and cause almost $400 (in 1941 dollars!) in damages in just the opening pages. In the 11 years spanned here， Hansford Hunsenmeir returns years after abandoning his wife and daughters， Louise copes with daughter Mary's first love and daughter Maizie's confusion， childless Juts and husband Chester adopt Nicole， and the sisters' Civil War Patrol duty provides endless town gossip after Louise mistakes a flock of geese for German Stukas and the alarm rouses Chester from his mistress's bed. This is neither prequel nor sequel to either Six of One (LJ 9/1/78)， which introduces Runnymede's residents， or its sequel Bingo (LJ 10/15/88) but basically a loving， laugh-provoking expansion of years covered in the former. Time has honed Brown's literary skills but not lessened her love for these characters， and she has a winner here.-AMichele Leber， Fairfax Cty. P.L.， Arlington， VA Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information， Inc. See all Editorial Reviews