Study Guide: The Chicken Sisters by K.J. Dell'Antonia (SuperSummary)

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Published Mar 16, 2024

51 pages

Average rating: 7

4 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

Barbara ~
Dec 11, 2024
8/10 stars
Romeo and Juliet, meet the Hatfield and McCoys. Once upon a time, way, way back when, two sisters, Frannie and MiMi had a thriving little eatery by the railroad. They fried chicken and all the workers and then some came around to eat. As they grew, they became successful. Frannie met a guy named Frank Pogociello. He wasn’t exactly adored by Mimi but it is what it is and Frannie went off and married him. She then wanted to open up her own chicken joint but 3 miles down on the opposite side of the railroad. Now, there are two chicken eateries but is the town ready for two chicken joints?

Bringing it up to the present day, Barbara now owns Mimi’s. She has two daughters: Mae (the older one) and Amanda (the youngest). She is also a grandmother to four kids and she is happy, right? No, she is bitter towards Amanda because she fell in love with Frank Jr. Frank Jr as in Frank Pogociello’s son. Talk about falling for the opposite family! Don’t worry, they are very, very distant relatives so don’t even think about in-breeding. Both Sr and Jr. unfortunately got into a car accident, leaving both Amanda and Nancy (Amanda’s Mother-in-law) widowed and the sole owners of Frannie’s. Frannies is now a modern chicken restaurant that serves up so much more than just friend chicken. They have a bar that serves up the best drinks, vegetarian options as well as their world famous Chicken.

Mae, the eldest daughter ran as fast as the wind could take her when she went off to college. She abhorred the living conditions Barbara subjected her daughters to, when she was growing up. Barbara, it turns out, was a hoarder. She couldn’t let go of anything and refused to clean anything up. Mae one time had Aunt Mary come over and clean up the entire place because Mae’s father came home with Frank Sr to try and obtain the restaurant and saw the living conditions of the girl’s home. Doug (Mae and Amanda’s father) simply took off and left them. When Mae saw the gleaming counters and how the house could actually look when it was clean, she craved it so much, it transformed her and she became the guru for how to have a clean home. She even co-hosted Sparkling until she was let go because she couldn’t connect with the audience without making them feel belittled. Let’s not even get onto what the sponsors felt about her.

Amanda still lives in her small home town, whereas Mae fled to NYC and made herself a star on TV, and on social media. Amanda still worked at Frannie’s with her mother-in-law, Nancy and one day, she applied for “Food Wars'' thinking $100,000 could really help Frannie’s get out of debt and expand. Now all she has to do is get her mother, Barbara to say “yes” but Barbara isn’t speaking to her, since the day Amanda got married to a Pogociello. Amanda was deemed a traitor to Barbara. Barbara was so angry, she never let Amanda back into the house nor restaurant, as far as she could spit. Widowed and bored, she applied and was shocked that Food Wars contacted her and said, “yes” they would love to film Frannie’s vs. Mimi’s to see who has the best fried chicken in the present day.

Barbara initially says no but she is open to it if Mimi tells her to say, “yes.” Andy, the newly hired cook is taking a shining to that idea but then again, he also is taking a shining to Amanda. Wait, is Amanda recipricating and taking a shining to Andy? She contacts Mae in NYC and asks her to please convince their mother to say “yes,” tell mom Mae’s coming over to help and then back out and let them do their thing. At first, Mae goes along with the idea but then when Mae gets let go from the TV show, Sparkling, she makes a last minute decision to say “yes” and mean it. Problem is, her husband, Jake wasn’t even consulted. He feels so out of the loop in his own wife’s life. Remember, in Mae’s world, everything is posted on social media. She is an image and a product. Yes, she has written a successful book but “when is enough, enough?” Mae tells Jake, she’s going and she’s taking the kids so that he can have “man time” and do his own thing for a while. That’s not what he wanted to hear and he is quite rightfully upset. “So you were going to just leave without telling me if I hadn’t gotten off work, tonight?” Looks like not everything is as perfect in her life as it is portrayed on her social media outlets such as FaceBook and InstaGram. Off to Kansas she, her two kids and the nanny, Jesse goes.

Enters Sabrina from Food Wars. She is sweet as honey and she can also make you spill your darkest secrets! Not long before the show even starts, gossip and old wounds start to show. Everybody has secrets. Tell me yours and let the games begin!

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