What You Owe Me: Summary and book reviews of What You Owe Me by Bebe Moore Campbell, plus links to an excerpt from What You Owe Me and a biography of Bebe Moore Campbell.

Los Angeles, l945: When Hosanna Clark, newly arrived from the farm fields of Texas, befriends Holocaust survivor Gilda Rosenstein, she opens the door to a new life for them both. Using Gilda's knowledge of cosmetics and Hosanna's energy and determination, they begin producing a line of lipsticks and lotions for black women. The two are more than partners: They are dear friends. Then Gilda suddenly disappears, taking all the assets. Hosanna is doubly betrayed: financially ruined and emotionally bereft. When, years later, she passes away, her small cosmetics company dies with her. But Hosanna leaves behind a daughter steeped in her mother's pain: Matriece is as smart and driven as her mother and savvy enough to recognize that white firms are competing not only for black consumer dollars but for black professional talent as well. When Gilda's huge cosmetics conglomerate hires her to launch a line of black beauty products, Matriece takes on a mission to collect her mother's debt. What You Owe Me is a stunning account of the changes we have seen in white attitudes toward blacks, but it is also a sensitive look at what betrayal--of friendship, of love--does to us all. Ultimately, it is a moving book about healing. As Emerge magazine acknowledged, "Campbell's writings are a beacon of light, helping assuage the anger by tending our deepest wounds."

Media Reviews

Publishers Weekly Campbell's detailed treatment of each (sub plot) accounts for the book's length, but all are credibly tied to the central tale...reminiscent of Campbell's 1994 Brothers and Sisters and is positioned to perform just as strongly.

Recent Reader Reviews

Rated of 5 by Bibliophiend
Campbell should have the success of Terry McMillan. Her writing is much better and her characters are more well drawn. This book once again follows the lives of several families and generations, and she once again makes all the characters...   Read More

Rated of 5 by Debi
Well-written story that runs across generations and cultural boundaries.

Rated of 5 by GMack
I thought the book was pretty good.

Rated of 5 by Praise for 'What you Owe Me'
The book is absolutely wonderful! Bebe Moore Campbell is once again at her best. A prolific author who entangles readers into another world, and has them emerging with a sense of completeness and new knowledge of life's important lessons.
-M....   Read More

Rated of 5 by D. L. Raskin
This book is on my shelf next to Beach Music. The author is the best I have read in years. The lines that twisted and braided through the characters, their unique places in this life and on their ancestral chains create a beauty product for all,...   Read More

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