One Woman Short.

One Woman Short by Nelson George Simon & Schuster, June 2000 $12.00, ISBN 0-684-86461-4

George's new novel gives a bird's-eye view of single life from a male perspective. Rodney Hampton comes to grips with his bachelorhood when his best friend and road dog, Tim, gets married. Convinced that he's missing something valuable, Rodney makes a long list of the women he's dated over the years. With over 130 women on his list, Rodney attempts to figure out which one might have been "the one." Once he narrows the list down to his top candidates, he has to track them down.

As if he's not under enough self-inflicted pressure to find the woman he wants to settle down with, he feels the heat from his family, especially his sister Roberta, who discovers the list (which becomes a running joke among Rodney's friends and family). Rodney's mother is chasing her own demons. She too urges him to find someone to love soon.

George offers up a funny, entertaining read, that lets readers in on the fringes of the Hollywood high life. As a self-employed public relations man, Rodney works the ropes with budding actresses, gospel groups, restaurant owners, independent filmmakers and young rappers. George peppers his novel with feisty and flavorful characters, along with a fair share of name dropping, which adds to the fun. But the core of the book is Rodney's quest for real love, and he looks for it in all the wrong places. Half the fun of the book is watching what goes awry next, and the other half is finding out which woman finally wins Rodney's heart.