No One Is Coming to Save Us

A Novel

By: Stephanie Powell Watts

Narrated by: Janina Edwards

Length: 10 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

JJ Ferguson has returned home to Pinewood, North Carolina, to build his dream house and to pursue his high school sweetheart, Ava. But as he reenters his former world, where factories are in decline and the legacy of Jim Crow is still felt, he’s startled to find that the people he once knew and loved have changed just as much as he has. Ava is now married and desperate for a baby, though she can’t seem to carry one to term. Her husband, Henry, has grown distant, frustrated by the demise of the furniture industry, which has outsourced to China and stripped the area of jobs. Ava’s mother, Sylvia, caters to and meddles with the lives of those around her, trying to fill the void left by her absent son. And Don, Sylvia’s unworthy but charming husband, just won’t stop hanging around.

JJ’s return—and his plans to build a huge mansion overlooking Pinewood and woo Ava—not only unsettles their family, but stirs up the entire town. The ostentatious wealth that JJ has attained forces everyone to consider the cards they’ve been dealt, what more they want and deserve, and how they might go about getting it. Can they reorient their lives to align with their wishes rather than their current realities? Or are they all already resigned to the rhythms of the particular lives they lead?

No One Is Coming to Save Us is a revelatory debut from an insightful voice: with echoes of The Great Gatsby it is an arresting and powerful novel about an extended African American family and their colliding visions of the American Dream. In evocative prose, Stephanie Powell Watts has crafted a full and stunning portrait that combines a universally resonant story with an intimate glimpse into the hearts of one family.

©2017 Stephanie Powell Watts (P)2017 HarperCollins Publishers

Easy Read

Very simple story that is at times interesting enough to finish it to the end.

Wonderful Book!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would definitely recommend the book. The characters and their stories touched my heart on so many levels.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I loved Sylvia, a wise and wonderful woman who loved her children, endured trials and singular humiliations throughout her life, and yet went on, doing her best, encouraging the people around her.

What does Janina Edwards bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Ms Edwards' voice is pleasant and nice to listen to.

If you could rename No One Is Coming to Save Us, what would you call it?

I wouldn't change a thing.

Any additional comments?

The account of Sylvia's suffering as a young woman, dangerously overweight, pregnant, and "treated" by a nasty, critical doctor truly broke my heart. I wanted to go right into those pages, put my arms around her, and say, "Don't you cry, now, honey. You're somebody. You're good, and you're beautiful just the way you are." Then I would have tracked down that doctor and told him off. There's plenty of meanness in this world already, and we don't need more.

Beautifully written...

It was a joy listening to this book on Audible. The narration gave such meaning to each of the characters. I loved the story and the ways in which the characters' lives intertwined. Bravo!

I loved this book.

There were not many happy moments in this book..great storyline and multi-dimensional characters. I would read it again

Not Great Gatsby

I enjoyed the book and characters had to listen fkr English class, enjoyed it. The complex chatacters were quite engaging. I just do not understand why they compare it to Great Gatsby.

No Great Gatsby

Could have been a great small town story, but all of the characters were weak and sad, with the exception of Lana, who was the most likeable. Needed a happy ending.

Left me with unanswered questions

Although it moved really slow, it kept me interested because I became invested in the characters and their plights and I was waiting for something big to happen, which never came. I was left with a lot of unanswered questions, like what actually happened to Devon? I know something happened, but was never clear on what.

Audible does not match book

I usually have the book and the audible and read/listen together.
This audible actor does not read what is written. Sometimes whole paragraphs are left out, sometimes the words are just incorrect, margarine for butter, for example.
The story - I'm not done yet, but these characters are not interesting. They just keep making bad choices over and over again and never learning, in fact, inviting the same bad ass to interfere with their life again and again. I don't feel any emotion toward these people - just bored.

Kind of pointless and sad.

I kept wanting for something good to happen to the characters but nothing ever did.

Good

It was really well read by the voice actress. I wish I liked the story as much.