For Want of Some Minutes
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
NOTE: Stage directions appear in a different color ink in the text of the play. I have indicated where they appear in this preview by placing them in parentheses.
Correction: This NOTE for stage directions should be removed.
Louise: Nothin' but bills, anyways she says to herself as she quickly opens the first letter in the stack.
Correction: Louise:Nothin’ but bills, anyways (she says to herself as she quickly opens the first letter in the stack).
Louise as she opens several more envelopes: Junk.
Correction: Louise, as she opens several more envelopes: Junk.
(Louise sorts through a few more pieces of mail, shaking her head and sighing as she does. Then, as she nears the end of the letters and other “junk” that was the most dated, something catches her eye.)
Correction: Louise sorts through a few more pieces of mail, shaking her head as she does. Then, as she nears the end of the letters and other ”junk,” that was the most dated, something catches her eye.
Louise: It's something from the Cook County Child Protective Services. What do they want? Hmmm … almost a week old.
No correction needed for this one.
(Bibi stiffens; she is motionless.)
Correction: Louise stiffens; she is motionless.
Then she gasps as she reads:
This is your last notice!
Louise reads more: The CCCPS … notifying Ms Louise M. Washington … we are still waiting for … your reply … to … first notice …
I never got no first notice!!.
Correction: Then she gasps as she reads:
This is your last notice!
Louise reads more: The CCCPS … notifying Ms Louise M. Washington … we are still waiting for … your reply … to … first notice….
I never got no first notice!!
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Book Details
About the Book
A black, single, grandmother living on Chicago’s South Side, Louise “Bibi” Washington struggles to raise three grandsons and keep them safe and away from the gang life. But a seemingly insignificant cell phone issue drastically changes the trajectory of her life as she faces the persistent drag of poverty.
For Want of Some Minutes, a play written by author Steve Bannow, calls attention to the challenges of poverty, racism, and the staggering weight of ineffective governmental bureaucracy for many of America’s citizens.
About the Author
Steve Bannow is a retired US Navy attorney, college administrator, and instructor who is committed to living an active, healthy life. He is a world traveler who remains involved with academics, the arts, volunteering, writing, fitness, and social activism. Bannow and his life partner, Barbara, live in Ann Arbor, Michigan.