3. WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING by Delia Owens (4/21/20) Fiction
This fictional story takes place in the impoverished swamplands of North Carolina, where we meet “Marsh Girl”, who at a young age is abandoned by her mother and siblings as they escape from a raging, abusive husband/father who eventually disappears himself. Marsh Girl is wild, uneducated, but resourceful as she strives to survive alone in her shack. Her fortitude to survive amidst the loneliness of her fragile life is heartbreaking, yet inspiring.
Even though this is fiction, the author must be extremely familiar with this swamy part of North Carolina since her description of that way of life is shockingly believable. I loved this book which, by the way, is much better than the movie, which cut out so many interesting parts.
5 Stars
5. THE DUTCH HOUSE by Ann Patchett (4/28/20) Fiction
When I saw that Tom Hanks was the narrator/performer of this audiobook, I was even more excited to read it. The narrator can make a big difference in the book and really bring it to life. The story is a little Cinderella-ish in that it involves a mean step-mother. This goes farther in depth about the bond between the two siblings who are thrown from wealth to poverty when their step-mother exiles them from their beloved home.
Hanks and Patchett bring this story to life. This is a moving portrayal of resentment, and survival when lives become changed in an instant.
I have to admit I am not too fond of self-help books but I found this one interesting and easy to read. It had many insights into life and love and it is worth the effort.
4 Stars
7. LITTLE FIRES EVERYWHERE by Celeste Ng (5/3/20) Fiction
When a highly structured town like Shaker Heights, Ohio has to come to terms with a nomadic, artistic mother and daughter, the town which thrives on structure and rules, is threatened by their lifestyle and behavior. This book set in 1998, is now a mini-series on Hulu starring Reese Witherspoon.
This book covers so many aspects of life, is tightly woven, and challenges our prejudices. It was a page turner.
I found this story beautifully written, bringing the threat of the Nazi invasion to life while humanizing both sides as all try to survive. We see the horror and humanity of this legendary time. This is a beautifully written Pulitzer Prize winning novel.
5 Stars
9. WHERE’D YOU GO BERNADETTE? by Maria Semple (5/11/20) Fiction
An intelligent and creative Middle School child persuades her parents to take her on a trip to the Antarctic to celebrate her perfect Middle School grades. Before the trip her mother, Bernadette, a brilliant architect on the verge of a breakdown, disappears. Her distraught daughter who cannot accept the concept that she would abandon her, decides to find her mother and goes on an exciting, unlikely adventure.
I loved this story filled with unusual, broken, but quirky characters and a plot truly unlike most others.
5 Stars
10. LEAVING TIME by Jodi Picoult ((5/16/20)-Fiction
For some strange reason I unknowingly chose another book about a mother’s disappearance and a young daughter in search of her. In this book Jenna’s mother, a reseacher of elephants mysteriously disappears after a tragic accident. Then we get into a “Nancy Drew” type mystery where Jenna elicits, through clues, the help of a psychic and a detective.
This is not one of Jodi’s best stories. It was pretty far-fetched, although her writing skills help pull it off.
4 Stars
11. THE GREAT ALONE by Kristin Hannah (5/16/20) Fiction
Ernt, a returning, mentally wounded POW, when his job and life don’t work for him at home, impulsively moves his family to a remote island cabin in Alaska which he had inherited from a fallen soldier buddy. Ill prepared to live off the grid they learn hard lessons of survival with dwindling resources.
This is a tough book to read at times because of all the bad choices the father’s mental illness causes him to make jeopardizing his family in the process. The dark loneliness of the Alaskan winters didn’t help my mental state, but then, we are dealing with a lot right now!
4 Stars
12. THE TESTAMENTS by Margaret Atwood (5/21/20) Fiction
This sequel to “The Handmaid’s Tale”, 15 years into the future, continues the dystopian tale of a depressing fictional time. Although this sequel might be a little less dire, although it has been years since I read “Handmaid’s”, I found few changes in the themes of the women of Gilead but gratelully the story takes a new direction and makes the book worth reading.
Because “Handmaid’s” was unique in it’s day, the tale was palliative. This tale dragged me down. I was glad when it was over….heavy.
5 Stars
16. AN AMERICAN MARRIAGE by Tayari Jones (5/29/20) Fiction
Newlyweds Roy and Celestial are torn apart when Roy is convicted for a 12 Year prison term for a crime he says he didn’t commit. Without hope for an early release Celestial questions if their love can stand the test of time. We watch a beautiful relationship crumble over time.
I found this story lacking in substance, and predictable. Others, though have loved and related to it.
2 Stars
17. SUCH A FUN AGE by Kiley Reid (5/30/20) Fiction
This story is about a young black woman who babysits for a white power couple. Late one evening the mom asks Emira to stay later with the baby but to take to take the baby out of the house and to the grocery store while she sees a client at home. The security guard suspects a kidnapping because of the irregularity of the situation as Emira wanders up and down the aisles to pass time.
The story deals with racism, white privilege, stereotyping and the lack of options for young people of color. Reid covered many pertinent issues but it is not a blockbuster.
3 Stars
18. NINE PERFECT STRANGERS by Liane Moriarty ((6/1/20) Fiction
Set in Australia, we find nine strangers who for various reasons want to take a luxury retreat which was reviewed to be either fantastic or hated with no in between. They must relinquish their cell phones and adhere to strict rules and the loss of their freedom and rights to their past lives. As they are guided through the therapy the experience becomes radical and bizarre.
This is soon to become a Hulu movie starring Nicole Kidman. It was an unusual theme, quite exciting, and worth reading.
4 Stars
19. REDHEAD BY THE SIDE OF THE ROAD by Anne Tyler-Fiction
A man is happily living a well-ordered life who is controlling it through routine and habit. When his girlfriend is evicted and a teenage boy shows up claiming to be his son his world is turned upside-down.
Human connections and second chances are themes of this novel. This seems different than most of Tyler’s books. This was just an “okay” read unless you are a big fan of Tyler.
3 Stars
21. CLOCK DANCE by Anne Tyler (6/8/20)-Fiction
Willa Drake has lived what she thinks of as a normal life, although not without it’s challenges. Later in life she yearns to be a grandmother, but doesn’t believe it will happen. She receives a startling phone call. She follows her instincts by flying across the country to Baltimore to look after a young woman and her nine year-old daughter she has never met. Her choice to leave caution to the wind transforms her life and adds new dimension.
This is a quirky woman and a quirky story which I grew fond of as I got into.
4 Stars
23. MINERVA by M.C. Beaton (6/11/20) Classic Fiction
This English period piece of one of the Six Sisters series. Although I have not read the others I’ll bet they also are about their quests to find an appropriate husband for the sisters. Minerva needs a wealthy husband to insure the wealth and stature of her family, but, poor thing, she doesn’t know the first thing about flirting.
This is no Jane Austin. Not great.
2 Stars
28. AMERICAN WIFE by Curtis Sittenfeld (6/22/20) Fiction
Alice is a gifted school librarian whose life had taken a tragic turn in her high school years which forced her to face a moral dilemma. She meets and marries a charismatic man from a big, loud, boisterous family. They encouraged her husband to enter politics and he eventually becomes President. She has to deal with the path her life has taken and how it tests her values.
I believe this novel is loosely based on the life of Laura Bush. Sittenfeld is a magnificent writer who has a knack of following the life of real characters but disguising them just enough to make you wonder who.
5 Stars
29. SANDITION by Jane Austin and Kate Riordan (6/25/20) Classic Fiction
Back to the classics. This unfinished story was written months before Austin’s death and Riordan tried to finish it in Austin’s famous style, with the familiar theme of a beautiful daughter trying to marry well for the sake of her less than wealthy family. Sandition is a seaside village being turned into resort by a lovable but impractical man. He invites the beautiful and interesting young woman to the resort in hopes of attracting wealthy visitors to his business venture.
As I read it I thought I it would be a perfect movie with the seaside location and YES! it was made as a series on PBS for Masterpiece. I may have to check that out, too!
3 Stars
30. AMERICAN DIRT by Jeanine Cummins (6/28/20) Fiction
Although an inappropriate name for a novel about Mexican cartels and carnage in Acapulco and beyond this beautifully written saga follows the tribulations of an upper middle class Mexican woman who flees her home with her eight year-old son after the cartel massacred her husband and fifteen family members at a family barbeque. We follow her journey to reach “American Dirt”.
The author is an excellent storyteller of a journey that is all too common in real life. I felt her desperation and anxiety to put both herself and her son in jeopardy in order to flee certain death while taking incredible risks of starvation, assault, and uncertain success. A sad, exciting, yet inspiring story.
5 Stars
31. CITY OF GIRLS by Elizabeth Gilbert (6/30/20) Fiction
Set in the 1940’s, Vivian finds Vassar and higher education boring and unexciting, drops out and moves to New York City to find her independence. She gets an opportunity to work within the theatre with her skills in sewing and becomes accepted by this crowd of gypsies, jazz, and sexual freedom. The first part of the book envelops us into the excitement of life in the fast lane with all the superficiality and mistakes which go along with that. The second part takes her into soul searching when she experiences the consequences of her behavior. Vivian tells her story as an older woman with few regrets about her unconventional lifestyle.
I was introduced to Elizabeth Gilbert with “Eat, Pray, Love” where a mature and successful woman goes through self-discovery by dropping out of her former life on a round-the-world journey to “find herself” (which today sounds so cliche) which I found moving at the time. I would have to re-read to see if that still would be the case. This book didn’t work as well because the journey was not as intriguing, relied heavily on sexual exploitations, and the ending felt forced.
3 Stars
32. NORMAL PEOPLE by Sally Rooney (7/2/20) Fiction
Set in Dublin, Ireland, Marianne and Connell are two opposites who become attracted to each other in high school. Coming from different social extremes, her from wealth, and him, a popular football player from working class, they secretly meet, explore sex from necessity rather than from romance. At Oxford they continue together privately partly because of privacy but also of awkwardness. They question their feelings for each other as they realize other opportunities are enticing.
Normal People explores a dilemma, many may have had, in that as they try to stay apart realizing the self-distructive nature of their relationship, it also makes them see how far they are willing to go to save the other. This was at times intense, compelling and extreme.
4 Stars
34. THE INFATUATIONS by Javier Marias (7/5/20) Fiction
This Spanish author immerses us into the mind of a lone woman who becomes infatuated by a couple she notices at an outdoor cafe. At about the same time everyday she joins them, from afar, to watch, mesmerized by their good looks, intense interest in each other and their enjoyment in each others’ company. When they failed to continue this routine, the woman, confused and worried, tries to find out the reason for their disappearance. She comes across a newspaper article which seems to solve the mystery of a crime of incredible circumstances.
This book takes many paths, from befriending the wife, to finding a lover, to solving mysteries. The book is filled with passion, jealousies and obsessions. An interesting read.
4 Stars
37. THE IDENTICALS by Elin Helderbrand (7/13/20) Fiction
The setting is Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard where we find that identical twins become separated each to live with their favorite parent who have different lifestyles. The twins become totally different because of the lives they lead but are reunited, after not having spoken to each other for a decade, at their father’s funeral. Family secrets, lies, and misunderstandings have splintered the family come forth as they try to overcome resentments.
This is a light summer read in a beautiful beach setting that I enjoyed. Family relationships can be difficult and many times, due to poor communications and other disagreements, can cause long term heartache.
4 Stars
39. MANHATTAN BEACH by Jennifer Egan (7/18/20) Fiction
Set in New York City in the middle of the Great Depression, twelve year-old Anna accompanies her father Eddie to Brooklyn’s Manhattan Beach to meet at a mansion owned by Dexter Styles, a former bootlegger and current nightclub owner, who wants Eddie to do a job for him. Unaware of the purpose of this meeting, this proves to be an event with consequences for all three.
Years later her father has disappeared, the country is at war and Anna choses to quit college and wants to work for the war effort at the Brooklyn Naval Yard. Eventually she becomes their first female diver, one of the most hazardous occupations, where she must dive to repair ships.
The story wanders back and forth from Anna, Eddie, and Dexter and how their lives mingle, and her quest to find out the reason for her father’s disappearance. Mystery, historical themes and exciting characters give this story great depth.
5 Stars
41. OLIVE, AGAIN by Elizabeth Strout (7/23/20) Fiction
I would suggest you read the first book, “Olive Kitteridge”, first, which won a Pulitzer Prize, before delving into this sequel, in which the cranky, outspoken, judgmental women has become a widow. Unbelievably, (to me), she meets a widower, who happens to be kind-hearted and finds her personality traits endearing. He knows how to handle her quirky side, sees the goodness in her, and his love softens her.
4 Stars
42. OLIVE KITTERIDGE by Elizabeth Strout (7/24/20) Fiction
Olive, a high school math teacher in the small town of Crosby, Maine, knows everybody or at least knows their children. She has opinions about everything. She detests changes to the town. She draws conclusions too eagerly and let’s others know exactly how she feels and is ruthlessly honest. Frances Mc Dormund is playing the main character on TV and I look forward to seeing her portrayal of this complex woman.
This is a beautifully written novel with believable characters with situations of great sadness. Olive’s character is so complex that at times I didn’t know if I loved her or hated her. Maybe that is what the Pulitzer judges thought spoke to truth. We all are complex and sometimes our weaknesses bring out strengths. The portrayal of the difficulty of aging as they hold on to long held beliefs with rigidity and sadness is honest and raw. Olive is a busybody who lacks patience and definitely subjects herself into other’s lives. As she delves deeper into the lives of some she has misjudged, she becomes sensitized. If you love character studies with greatly flawed traits, this is for you.
4 Stars
45. TRUST EXERCISE by Susan Choi (7/29/20) Fiction
In an American suburb in the early 1980’s students at a highly competitive school for the performing arts are led by a charismatic acting teacher. Although highly regarded in general, he uses his own technique, “trust exercise”, which tumbles students into extremes of friendship and loyalty while breaching adolescent boundaries.
When does the unconventional become abusive? With an escalating sequence of humiliations and exploitation, the creepiness of the experiment grows out of bounds. I found this book uncomfortable at times, believable, and intentionally meant as a challenge by the author.
4 Stars
51. EVERYTHING I NEVER TOLD YOU by Celeste Ng (8/14/20) Fiction
This debut novel is about a Chinese American family living in a small town in Ohio. Although happily married Marilyn wants her daughter Lydia to fulfill the dreams she lost after marrying and becoming a homemaker rather than a doctor. A tragedy occurs in the family leaving the parents distraught and the siblings bound to find the truth.
Ng does a beautiful job portraying a mixed-race family, living in a mostly white Midwest town in the 70’s. I found this story moving and heartbreaking and the writing superb. Also catch “Little Fires Everywhere”, # 7 on my list, also by Ng.
5 Stars
52. THE SAME SKY by Amanda Eyre Ward (8/19/20) Fiction
When Carla’s family dies leaving her and her younger brother behind she takes the illegal journey to escape the violence and poverty of Mexico and heads to the Texas border. She joins thousands of children in peril making the journey to America.
This is actually about the lives of two families on opposite sides of the border and is profound about the courage and struggles these children have in their desperation to find a place to belong.
5 Stars
53. NIGHT BOAT TO TANGIERS by Kevin Barry (8/18/20) Fiction
Two old Irish criminals (50ish but seemed older) are spending the night in a run-down Spanish ferry terminal waiting in the hopes that one man’s estranged daughter may be on a boat. Her father describes her as a “dreadlocked Rastafarian” and they interrogate other young travelers about seeing her. Being experts in intimidation from their criminal past, they scared them but got no leads. As they kill time they enjoy exchanging stories of their past crimes and sex lives.
This was narrated by a man with a big, slummy, Irish brogue, peppered with lots of slang I couldn’t decipher. Sometimes I would have to read a summary to figure what was going on. It is nice when we are reading about bad guys and get to see some “good” in them in the narrative. This story didn’t have much of that except some humor. They made bad choices most of their lives and wrote it off as “bad luck”. BUT, the saving grace is that the writing was excellent.
3 Stars
55. BEL CANTO, by Ann Patchett (8/23/20) Fiction
This interesting plot begins at a fabulous government party in South America where the government is trying to impress a Japanese firm to build in their country. To entice the “right” people they invite a famous opera superstar who is highly admired by the Japanese representative. The lights go out and and some idealistic terrorists capture the group, but hope to kidnap the president, who is supposed to be in attendance. Not finding the president the terrorist group, not knowing what to do next, take all the wealthy and important guests hostage. To break the boredom of a long siege they have the benefit of enjoying Roxane’s beautiful voice and they all settle into a routine.
The many characters become a community, enjoy fabulous cuisine, and are treated well. The end of the siege takes an unexpected turn but is not surprising. I found the characters in the book and the relationships they build over time to be the most interesting aspect of the book. Well worth reading as something different.
5 Stars
58. THE RED NOTEBOOK by Antoine Laurain (8/26/20) Fiction
A women is mugged on her way home from work and at first thinks she is okay. Her purse has been stolen and she wanders into a hotel where she asks them to let her stay for the night. The staff find her the next day in a pool of blood and in a coma and is taken to a hospital.
Meanwhile, Laurent, a bookstore owner, finds a purse in a garbage can. Knowing women’s habits he concludes the purse may be stolen. There is no wallet but lots of interesting things inside including a red notebook. Through the clues in the handbag he follows the mystery to find the owner who mesmerizes his imagination.
Set in Paris and written by a Parisian, with a strong sense of romantic obsession we have an delicious story to be enjoyed.
4 Stars
60. HIDEAWAY by Nora Roberts (8/31/20) Fiction
Set in Big Sur California, Caitlyn Sullivan, an offspring of Hollywood mogels and actors, grew up in the summers at the beautiful mansion hugging the shores of Big Sur. This retreat becomes the backdrop for an abduction, an escape, a romance, and a career change.
Thank heavens Nora loves to write about luscious places because without it the plot is pretty stereotypical. I’m not too in love with this one. Possibly a beach read.
2 Stars
63. WINTER STREET by Elin Hilderbrand (9/8/20) Fiction
Hilderbrand takes us to Nantucket at Christmas at the Winter Street Inn. Kelley, the owner of the Inn, calls his four grown children together to celebrate Christmas. All have unique personalities, and bring their problems and indiscretions to the Inn.
The book is a very light read which will please many of her followers, but had little depth for me.
2 Stars
66. THE ROUND HOUSE by Louise Erdrich (9/19/20) Fiction
The Round House is the story of 13 year-old Joe Coutts, who when his mother suffers a brutal attack and is too traumatized to talk about it or lead a normal life, decides he will investigate with his three friends. They are all members of the Ojibwe tribe and his father, a tribal judge, is more concerned with caring for his wife, physically and emotionally, than trying to solve the crime. Joe comes to believe his mother’s crime was at “The Round House” a tribal ceremonial building.
The Round House is a unique look at life on the reservation and the complicated legal system that often lets violent criminals slip through loopholes. The portrayal of Joe and his friends feels authentic in a time and place when children were able to run and roam together with a freedom we rarely see today.
4 Stars
68. A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN by Betty Smith (9/27/20) Fiction
Eleven year-old Francie Nolan and her brother are growing up in 1912 in the poorest part of Brooklyn in a series of tenement houses. Her parents, Katie and Johnny, originally hopeful and in love soon experience the depths of poverty and survival as children come into the picture. Johnny, a young, happy Irish man works as a singing waiter and soon becomes undependable as he becomes addicted to whisky. The burden falls to Katie to provide for the family by doing manual labor. The children at young ages collect junk for pennies to help to bring food home. Despite the hardship of poverty and hunger, Francie starts school but soon experiences bullying and cruelties by the teachers. One day Francie sees a beautiful school with grass and happy children. Her father finds a way to have Francie enroll in this school where rich children are not favored over the poor children. Here she is happy, makes friends and is encouraged to study and learn music.
The story continues as the family experiences more hardships and life get even worse for them. This story shows so many aspects of immigrant life in the early 20th century. Rarely did a child get through the eighth grade as they were needed to help provide for the family. But through this hardship we see a spirit of hope for their future in a time when it would have been easy to give up. This classic story is poignant rather than gloomy and rich with neighborhood friendships and family life.
5 Stars
69. THE IMMORTALISTS by Cloe Benjamin (9/28/20) Fiction
The 1969 four siblings hear of a gypsy who can predict the exact date a person will die. Although scared, the oldest convinces his siblings that they would be better knowing. We follow the lives of each sibling and how this knowledge effects the way they approach their lives by destiny or choice.
The book asks the question: if you knew exactly when you will die, how would you live your life? This is a well-crafted story-line and has interesting character studies.
4 Stars
70. THE BOOK OF TWO WAYS by Jodi Picoult (9/30/20) Fiction
Dawn, a graduate student in Egyptology, is called away from a promising dig of a tomb in Egypt when she hears her mother is dying. Her sense of duty calls her to give up on her dream, change her career to “death doula”, falls in love and has a child. When Dawn survives a plane crash she experiences two futures: home to her family or follow her dream in Egypt.
This is a study in choices we make in life and the outcomes of two scenarios. It is interesting in that we don’t always know which is reality in this book. I was interested in the Egyption archeology after having been there twice and found Picoult’s research and detail quite accurate. She covers death and afterlife in both of Dawn’s careers.
4 Stars
71. MAGGIE-NOW by Betty Smith (10/1/20) Fiction
After reading “A Tree Grows in Brooklyn”, I had to see more of Betty Smith’s writing. We are again in early 20th century Brooklyn, where Maggie-Now grows up in a deteriorating immigrant neighborhood. Life is slightly better for the family, as Maggie’s parents receive a house from her mother’s family. Maggie’s father is not happy being a street-sweeper, but he has job security as it is a government job. However, his formerly happy disposition changes as he sees no improvement in his future. Maggie must take on many responsibilities as a young girl and into her adulthood.
Betty Smith’s knows how to take a difficult story and write with color and distinction about the neighborhood, the attitudes and lifestyles of typical working-class people and gives the readers a reason to care about them as we see their lives go up and down.
5 Stars
74. THE BROKEN GIRLS by Simone St. James (10/10/20) Fiction
A young journalist cannot forget the murder of her sister twenty years ago and sets out to uncover more details even though a man was convicted of the crime. The setting is in Vermont at Idlewild Hall, an abandoned boarding school, who many think is haunted, and used to be a school for troubled and illegitimate girls in the 1950’s. It is also the place where her elder sister’s body was found.
As renovations to the school begin, Fiona uncovers secrets of the past and experiences supernatural events which push her to delve deeper to uncover their truths. Suspense, shocking discovery, and crimes keep this mystery moving to it’s climax.
4 Stars
75. FREE FOOD FOR MILLIONAIRES by Min Jin Lee (10/15/20) Fiction
After having enjoyed Pachinko (#13) I wanted to see if this talented author had written anything else and found that this book was her first entry into authorship. Quite unlike Pachinko, this book is not historical fiction, and is about a modern-day first-generation Korean American, Casey Han, making her way out of her parents’ immigrant challenges. She takes on American life with a flourish with a Princeton education, expensive tastes, a Caucasian boyfriend and serious student loans. Even with her own excellent grades she finds difficulty in getting a job and has to seek help from friends and family, owners of a dry cleaning business, and settle for a job in an exclusive retail store in Manhattan which only furthers her desire for the high end lifestyle and more debt.
Min Jin Lee knows how to tell an interesting story with nuanced characters and lots of storyline surprises. I hope she writes many more books.
5 Stars
84. THE SEA KEEPER’S DAUGHTERS by Lisa Wingate (11/12/20) Fiction
Whitney, a restauranteur in Michigan must travel to her hometown, Roanoke Island, where she finds her deceased mother’s elderly husband has gone downhill and is hospitalized. The decrepit, yet historical house, the Excelsior, brings back bad memories and her estranged step-father’s angst towards her puts her in a quandary. While looking for a few historical heirlooms to help pay her restaurant debts she comes across historical documents of value to their community. There is also a tenant with whom she becomes involved.
This book of Wingate’s does not have the depth nor poignancy of “The Book of Lost Friends”, # 101 on my Historical Fiction p.1 list, but it was an enjoyable read.
4 Stars
89. HOW TO STOP TIME by Matt Haig (11/23/20) Fiction
Tom Hazard is a young man starting a new job as a high school teacher. Due to an extremely rare condition where he ages so slowly that when people start to notice he changes his life and identity to avoid exposure to a condition he feels no one would accept or understand. He is part of a small community of people, the Albatross Society, with this condition with a leader who scares them into not revealing themselves to others, and supporting them when they establish new lives. Tom, afraid of the consequences obeys the rules of not forming close attachments, but, he feels lost and alone.
This journey through time features flashbacks of his earlier lives including relationships with Captain Cook, Shakespeare, and F. Scott Fitzgerald. But in Tom’s new teaching job he becomes attached to a female co-worker and longs for an ordinary life.
The premise of the book, though interesting with some compelling time travel aspects, made me, not a fan of science fiction, less than excited.
3 Stars
91. AND THEN SHE WAS GONE by Lisa Jewell (11/27/20) Fiction
At age fifteen Ellie Mack went missing. Her mother Laurel could not believe she was a runaway who would want to leave her boyfriend and family right before a summer vacation she had been looking forward to. Ten years later, with Ellie’s disappearance still a mystery, her marriage ended, and a life that had previously haunted her, Laurel begins to put her life together when she starts flirting with a complete stranger, Floyd. After meeting Floyd’s daughter’s she can’t get over how his youngest, Poppy, is so like her daughter Ellie.
From here the story tracts back to Ellie’s disappearance and how Floyd and Poppy become connected in Laurel’s life. Similar to “Gone Girl” the narrative takes the twists and turns of a good suspense novel and is definitely a solid story with an unusual ending.
4 Stars
92. EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE by Jonathan Safran Foer (12/3/20) Fiction
Oskar Schell’s father was lost in the terrorist attack of the World Trade Buildings on 9/11. Oskar is nine years old, smart as a whip, curious to a fault, inquisitive in a disarming way. But he is lost and has embarked on a mission to solve a mystery of what lock his father’s key will open. He has few clues but tries to overcome his superstitions by going on the hunt to all five boroughs of New York. This quest is hilarious, provocative, tender and enduring. There is a parallel story about his grandparents who were firebombed in Dresden, Germany in World War II and their son lost in 9/11.
The author has a magical way of bringing the perfect essence of this incredible boy to life on the page. I was in love with him and didn’t want to leave him. This is a great and heartwarming story. A MUST READ.
5 Stars
94. THE PARIS HOURS by Alex George (12/10/20) Fiction
Set in Paris, 1927, with all the flavor of post-war Paris teeming with famous artists, writers, and musicians amidst creative and provocative endeavors, sets the scene as we follow four unrelated people. Camille, maid to Marcel Proust, a famous novelist who directs Camille to destroy his journals, a deed she cannot imagine. There is Souren, an Armenian refugee and street puppeteer, with shows reflecting his dark past. A lovesick artist Guillaume, running from a debt he cannot repay who finds hope when Gertrude Stein wanders into his gallery. John-Paul, a French journalist tells the stories of others and whose own story is too painful to repeat.
Alex George paints the portrait of Parisian life during it’s strong emergence of creativity and beauty. We can hear the jazz, smell the flowers, taste the food and wine and experience a period of excitement when the lives of the four connect to find out what they are looking for. Beautiful, fascinating storytelling.
5 Stars
97. THE MIDNIGHT LIBRARY by Matt Haig (12/25/20) Fiction
Nora Seed feels like her life is worthless and she is filled with regret for things she had not pursued in her life. Feeling like her drab life is not worth living she finds herself in the “Midnight Library” with her school librarian, Mrs. Elm, one of the few people she felt had been kind to her. She tells her every life contains millions of decisions. This is like no other library. It contains an infinite number of books where she can see what her life would have been like had she followed that path.
Nora experiences alternate realities of other paths she could have taken such as glacierologist, Olympic swimmer, philosopher, singer, and, married with children. If Nora’s vision of a path is not what she hoped for she may go back to try another.
Haig takes “what could have been” travel to a reality of the meaning of “what can happen” as the stories she passes through shows choices and possibilities of life and what really matters. This thought provoking story has been rated Best Fiction 2020 by many reviewers and book clubs.
5 Stars
102. THE INVISIBLE LIFE OF ADDIE LA RUE by V.E. Schwab (1/9/21) Fiction
When an 18th Century Frenchwoman faces a forced marriage to a widower with three children, Addie La Rue runs to a meadow and prays for another life and finds she had made a pact with a green-eyed stranger/devil named Luc. In the new life she will have eternal life but at the cost that everyone who meets her forgets her the next time meet. Lasting relationships are impossible and Luc says if she tires of her life she must surrender her soul to him. He checks back with her yearly and she goes through the centuries surviving poor and difficult and sometimes exciting existences but refuses to yield to Luc.
Things change for her in the 21st Century, when she meets a young bookseller, Henry, who becomes the first person to remember her when she stole a book from his shop. This was possible because he also made a pact with Luc. Enough said.
This historical fiction, filled with fantasy and time travel, takes you to a place of darkness, romance and a journey of adventures that span history and art of three centuries. You either are a big fan of this kind of romantic fantasy or think it is contrived. I am perplexed because I appreciate the author’s imagination and writing skills but asked myself, “when will this adventure end?” It is a best-seller though and I am probably in the minority.
3 Stars
103. A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW by Amor Towles (1/24/21) Fiction
I have to confess that I have previously read this book along with Towles’ other, Rules of Civility. I decided to do the audio version to bring me up to snuff as the first choice of a book club my alma mater just started. Getting back to the life of Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov was like revisiting an old friend. Towles has deliciously developed a character with the Count that is so complete, so filled with nuances and idiosyncrasies, that I now remember how hard it was to say goodbye to this aristocratic man. An example is, “The Count reviewed the menu in reverse order as was his habit, having learned from experience that giving consideration to appetizers before entrees can only lead to regret.”
The story begins as the Count, part of the Royal aristocracy of the Russian Empire, is sentenced to life under house arrest for writing something politically incorrect to the minds of the Bolsheviks of the newly formed Soviet Union. Rather than being sent to prison the Count must serve his time in Moscow’s most elegant hotel, the Metropole Hotel. The elegance and clientele suits the Count but as the years pass the Count can only be a armchair observer to the events of thirty years in the outside world, which does not keep him from having unique adventures and relationships.
The book is pure poetry for those entralled with the “gentry” class. A must read.
5 Stars
105. THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE by Audrey Niffenegger (1/21/21) Fiction
I sometime think that the clue to writing a hit novel is to use “wife”, “daughter”, etc in in the title to capture the attention of the readers. They all seem to become “best sellers” as did this one. Time travel also hooks audiences. This book started well with the dilemma that Henry, through genetics or some phenomenon, started time traveling, never knowing how, when or where he would go or what age he would become. But wherever he went he landed naked with his clothes left behind and he had to use his ingenuity to get food, clothing and shelter. Along the way he falls in love with a young girl named Clare who accepts the concept of his time travel and eventually they marry and try to build a life together, confusing as it sounds.
That is the best part of the book, the initial love story. Then we witness countless trips of time travel and I got the feeling of boredom and repetition. The story is not so much about his wife as it is about Henry himself-a trick title, I think. I think that the concept, which was exciting at first, kind of petered out and didn’t have much more excitement to explore.
3 Stars
106. THE VANISHING HALF by Brit Bennett (1/24/2020) Fiction
This is the story of black identical twin sisters from Mallard, Louisiana, who at sixteen run away from home to New Orleans for an adventure and to begin their lives. Their skin color is so light that they can pass as white. Stella gets a job in an office working for a white man who is unaware of her race. Her sister, Desiree, falls for a black man, gets pregnant and returns to Mallard with a black child. Stella, passing as white, accepts her boss’s marriage proposal and she moves away with him. The sisters take different paths in life, lose touch and we see the contrast in their lives and in the lives of their daughters whose lives as adults intersect.
Bennett is a good solid writer who adds depth to her story by exploring many facets of life from how skin color variants affect acceptance, to the reality that life’s expectations aren’t always what we hope for.
3 Stars
110. THE ALCHEMIST by Paulo Coelho (1/28/21) Fiction
A young Andalusian shepherd boy, Santiago, enjoys the freedom of his quiet, simple nomadian life-style with his sheep, the night-time stars, and his travels. He seems content until he is challenged with finding his own “Personal Legend”, (dreams) and leaves his old life in Spain behind to seek his “treasure” at the Pyramids of Egypt. We follow his travels and experiences in this pursuit understanding that “the Universe” will help him achieve his quest.
The book reads like a mythical Old Testament-part symbolism, part poetry with references to “Soul of the World” and “Language of the World”. It is filled with “men’s” need to find themselves without references to women needs who are left behind to take care of business ie.children, gathering, and practical tasks of the day. To many critics this is a mysogynist tale far better left behind to historical times.
If you enjoy metaphysical wisdoms, such as, “When you want something, all the universe conspires you to achieve it”, and, “All things are one”, you will love this book. If you are of a more solid, practical nature, it may seem this “spiritual” journey is a fantasy of the imagination. I personally gather a little dust on both sides of that fence as I get older and explore that old cliche, “the meaning of life”.
4 Stars
112. PREP by Curtis Sittenfeld (2/3/21) Fiction
My last book blog was admitting I have a favorite author, Curtis Sittenfeld, and I looked for ward to reading more of her books. This book, Prep, is her debut novel. It is about a Lee, a 14-year-old Indiana girl who longs to leave her dull life and go to an exclusive prep school in the East. She is a smart girl who has bigger plans for herself and Ault Prep School almost assures an entry into an Ivy League College.
This book depicts challenges facing kids in most high school settings where fitting in is difficult, but how it becomes even more problematic when you are a “scholarship” student rather than part of the privileged class in a private college prep high school.
This book reads realistically and honestly and I do like that about her writing. What I had trouble with in this book was the protagonist, Lee, herself. She is a flawed character, which often is the case, but, she also is shallow, shy to the point of being unlikable, uncaring about her family and friends, and so quick to judgment that I wanted to scream when others tried to be friendly or helpful of which she either refused to be a part of, or lacked the cognitive reasoning to improve. I do not always have to like the main character, but I have to either see some part worthy of redemption or some kind of transformation towards betterment. That never happened for me. But I have to say one thing for the author, Sittenfeld, Lee was believable.
3 Stars
113. Eligible by Curtis Suttenfeld (2/8/21) Fiction
Publisher HarperCollins invited contemporary novelists to join the Austin Project, a challenge to recreate a Jane Austin book into their own story. This is Sittenfeld offering based on Pride and Predjudice. Set in modern time, in Cincinnati, we meet Liz Bennet, a magazine writer living in New York and Fitzwilliam Darcy, a handsome 40ish neurosurgeon. Liz is called home to Cincy to help care for her ill father even though her hapless sisters live there but do little to help the cause. Her mother is a worrisome matchmaker, longing to have her daughters married off. Sound familiar?
Although Sittenfeld is good at storytelling the project seems flawed from the beginning premise: How can we take societal customs such as, marrying off eligible daughters in order to save the family from financial ruin, adaptable and acceptable in today’s world? Austin is romantic literature from the Eighteenth Century, alive with the poetic dialogue and authentic situations of the day which capture that period time. It is almost unfair to follow the norms of an earlier time, drop them into a similar situation, although modernized, and expect it to flourish in the same way. The attempt was well-done but doomed to fail.
3 Stars
114. THE MEMORY KEEPER’S DAUGHTER by Kim Edwards (2/11/21) Fiction
Norah and her husband are expecting their first child in 1964. In the middle of a bad snowstorm Norah goes into labor. David, a doctor gets as far as his office in the storm where he can deliver the baby with the help of his nurse, Caroline. A healthy baby boy is successfully delivered under full anesthetic, and soon after, an unexpected surprise-twins. Happiness soon turns to panic when David realizes his baby daughter, Phoebe, has Downs Syndrome. Wanting to protect his wife from this tragedy, she is unaware,still under the anesthetic, David makes a rash decision to send the newborn to a home and asks Caroline to take her there for him.
As Norah awakes she is told she had twins, the boy lived, the girl died. Here begins the tragedy of loss, the division a secret brings, and how do you handle difficult circumstances. The book shows the worst-case scenario in the breakdown of Norah and David and how one impulsive decision can actually bring the opposite result. This is a well-written though sad book. It shows that Downs Syndrome children can have happy lives and loss can terminate relationships.
The beginning of the book was spellbinding. As we moved through David and Norah’s life, we find them languishing in loss and pity barely enjoying their son Peter, and it dragged me down. Phoebe’s story should have been more detailed to make the book more interesting.
3 Stars
115. PUSHING UP BLUEBONNETS by Leann Sweeney (2/14/21) Adolescent Fiction
This is a part of a series called Yellow Rose Mysteries, intended for an adolescent audience which I found charming in a nostalgic kind of way. I admit, I was a Nancy Drew kind of kid and thought I might like to see the difference. Abby Rose, an adult, is the privileged daughter of an rich software executive and is into solving mysteries after having solved one for herself when she was illegally adopted.
She is now a private detective and joins in solving a case of a woman, a car crash victim, in a coma, the only clue being Abby’s business card found at the scene of the accident.
I found this story intertaining and most likely appealing to young girls.
3 Stars
117. A LIFE WITHOUT WATER by Marci Bolden (2/20/21) Fiction
Carol and John cannot overcome the tragedy of losing their daughter and Carol moves on to a new husband and a new life. On the anniversary of what would be their daughter’s 30th birthday John shows up out of the blued to a now widowed, Carol. Her anger towards him has not diminished and she wants to part of him even though he is dying and wishes to take Carol and their daughter’s ashes on a journey they should have had, had she lived.
This story of love, mistakes, regret, and end of life issues reign through out the story in a poignant portrayal of lives lost and forgiveness found.
4 Stars
119. THE FAMILY UPSTAIRS by Lisa Jewell (2/28/21) Fiction
This is my third book by Lisa Jewell. I started with The Invisable Girl # 76, a dark story about a strange man, who can’t attract a woman because of his behavior, with lots of dark mystery and an unpredictable ending. 5 stars. My second Jewell was # 91, And Then She Was Gone, about a fifteen-year-old girl who went missing and her mother’s search for conclusions for the ten year mystery. 4 Stars. Now we are at Jewell’s jewel. The Family Upstairs is a good, if not, great mystery. This book is about siblings who have been separated for more than 20 years. Theirs parents are dead. The two oldest were presumed dead and the youngest, Libby, struggles for identity and the mystery surrounding the death of her parents. At the age of 25, she finds out she and her siblings, inherit a mansion in Chelsea. As she strives to find out her mysterious background, she finds out about suicides, a cult her parents got involved in, the whereabouts of her siblings, and the mystery of the family upstairs. This is fast-paced, exciting, and has all the elements of a good thriller.
5 Stars
122. MY ABSOLUTE DARLING by Gabriel Tallent (3/8/21) Fiction
Turtle, a fourteen-year-old girl, is being brought up by her single father with her grandfather nearby on the property in a trailer with a dog. The live remotely on a large property overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Sounds perfect, right? Wrong. Turtle’s father isolates purposefully enabling himself to act-out his deranged ideas and deeds. Guns and target practice holding coins are his favorite pastime, and he believes this is a part of Turtle’s education. As the story goes on he become more and more abusive and radical in his ideas. Turtle loves and admires her father but as she learns from a boy who becomes her friend, there are other ways to live. She realizes she would prefer some normalcy. As she tries to make changes her father becomes suspicious and tries to control her through abuse of all kinds.
This type of story, although well-written and perfect for a movie is absorbing though sad and troubling. As Turtle becomes more conflicted, the more violent her father becomes. This psychological drama is agonizing, mesmerizing, and unsettling-just what the author intended. It was well done but made me need a drink! Often! But I couldn’t put it down!
5 Stars
124. THE PUSH by Ashley Audrain (3/15/21) Fiction
This breakthrough novel is written in second-person narrative as Blythe Connor speaks her thoughts to her husband Fox, where she is able to say all the things she cannot say aloud. Abandoned by her mother at 11, and with a history of a psychologically deranged grandmother, Blythe did not feel she could succeed at or trust herself at parenting when her husband asked her to start a family. After pressuring her she consented but never believed it was the right thing to do. This page-turner goes into intimate detail of how a woman can feel when she knows she is not meant to carry a child and the trauma of postpartum anxiety when every thing she does seems to be the wrong. Never having the ability to connect emotionally with Violet, she starts seeing negative behaviors that cause her to question her daughter’s mental fitness. And this is just the beginning of this dark journey.
This was so well-written and believable that I found myself experiencing a great deal of nervous anxiety and distress while reading this unpleasant situation that many a parent experiences, hopefully, to a far lesser degree. Sometimes I felt overwhelmed enough to question why I was putting myself in such distress. But this is exactly what “thrillers” do. This book brought all my emotions to a head and for that reason I think the author is truly gifted.
5 Stars
131. IN FIVE YEARS by Rebecca Serle (4/8/21) Fiction
Dannie Kohan a young and upcoming lawyer has a premonition that this day will be one of the best in her life. She is having a job interview at a top law firm and will finish the day with her boyfriend at a romantic restaurant where she feels he will propose. It happens as planned and it all seems perfect when she goes to bed. But when she awakes she finds herself in a different apartment with a different ring on her finger and with a different man. It is 2025, five years in the future and she realizes that she is living with another man. By the way Dannie had perfect sex with the strange and handsome man of the future. In one hour she awoke in her own home and bed and back in the year 2020. She was back in her real life but realized that she had found love and had feelings she had never experienced before and she couldn’t get him out of her mind. Skip forward 4 1/2 years and she sees him again. The problem is that he is the man her best friend is dating and has fallen in love with.
This is a look into your future, a future that was not in the five-year-plan. It is a story about friendship and questions the destiny you thought you wanted and needed. It is thoughtful, heartbreaking and unexpected. A good read.
5 Stars
132. THE DINNER LIST by Rebecca Serle (4/12/21) Fiction
Has anyone ever asked you what five persons you might like to invite to dinner-living or dead? On Sabrina”s 30th birthday she did just that. She invited her deceased idol, Audrey Hepburn, Conrad, her former philosophy professor, her estranged father, Robert, her best friend Jessica, and Tobias, her great love. Sabrina brings all of them together along with pasts she had with them, secrets, and interactions they have with one another. If you are a pragmatic type you might have trouble getting your mind around this fantasy, but it is interesting and tells a story. It also becomes a way for Sabrina to approach past hurts and future realities.
This is so unlike the previous book, In Five Years, with both books good in their own way, that I will have to try and read some other of her books.
4 Stars
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