September 13, 2025 BIG BROTHER

Just finished a book that made me consider something pretty scary--  McCarthyism 2025

1) Using fear to erode civil rights and freedoms

2) Using the media to help engineer and spread misinformation

3) Firing and using  public employees and government officials as scapegoats when they are not loyal

4) Labeling goverments officals and others as corrupt to erode public trust

5) Making outrageous claims against people deemed enemies

The book I'm referring to is called The Briarwood Club by Kate Quinn and it's historical fiction at its best. Grace March is a widow and the newest resident of Briarwood House, a boarding house strictly for women in Washington D. C. in the early 1950's. As the story unfolds, there has been a murder at Briarwood House and every resident is a suspect. The chapters then alternate between the women living in the house and their relationship with Grace in the months leading up to the murder. The housemates include Bea, a former women's softball champ, Fliss, a young mother from England, Reka, a refugee from Russia, Nora and Arlene. Although the women seemingly have nothing in common, Grace's weekly supper parties spark many friendships,  debates, and a sisterhood for women trying to make a living in an ever changingworld that includes McCarthyism, classism, racism and the red scare. I really enjoyed this novel and had a hard time putting it down. It is well written, with great character development and its a story that will stick with me for a long time. 

August 26, 2025 HE'S GONE

 

He's gone. Yup--the baby left for college. It's the FIRST time in 31 years that we DON'T have kids at home.  It's troublingly quiet and very neat. Shoes aren't left astray in the kitchen--smelly uniforms no longer stink up the laundry room AND no one is calling from practice begging for dinner. Who would have thought I'd miss these daily rituals-- BUT I DO. Back in the day-I couldn't wait for the kids to grow up and get out so that we could have our lives back BUT the reality is that our KIDS became our life and now that they're gone we will have to reinvent ourselves to some extent. It's all good. No worries. Ali will be home this weekend to celebrate her birthday and SHE WILL leave her shoes in the kitchen and her laundry and her suitcase and coffee mug and the house will be a disaster again. Can't wait! Finished a lovely novel the other day called Small Pleasures by Claire Chambers. The main character of the story is Jean Swinney, a middle aged journalist who lives in London in the 1950's. She has a rather lonely life as she is tasked with taking care of her overdemanding mother when she is not at work. One day while at the office, a woman named Gretchen Tilbury writes a letter to the paper claiming that her 10 year old daughter, Margaret, is the result of a virgin birth. Being the only woman at the paper, Jean is tasked with investigating the matter. As Jean investigates and gets to know the Tilbury family, which also includes Gretchen's husband Howard, she feels drawn to the family and realizes how lonely her life has become. Don't want to say much more than that you will have to read this amazing story for yourself to find out if Gretchen's claim is true and realize that things are not always as they appear. Interestingly enough, this book is based on an actual claim of a woman in the 1950's who said she had a virgin birth which is called a parthenogenesis and other historical events in the book are true. I really enjoyed this book and had trouble putting it down. Let me know what you think. Enjoy. 

August 17, 2025 EVERYBODY HURTS

Priceless. A deep tissue massage. Who knew?? Yup-hurt my back a while back and tried nursing it back to health--stretching, pain killers, pain patches, creams. UGH.  What a waste of time....I know a massage is expensive BUT I should have bit the bullet 3 weeks ago. It was an incredible experience--one I need to partake in more often. Felt like a new person after my massage--so I decided to drive to Boston to see my daughter. BIG mistake. Traffic was ridiculous and the extended sitting reinjured my periformis. I am so sick of being injured. Is this really part of getting older??  Guess this calls for another visit to the spa. Only wish insurance covered the bill. Gonna have to get a better paying job at this rate. While resting my back this week, I read Fredrik Backman's novel Anxious People. Set in a small town near Stockholm, Sweden, a bank robber, desperate to keep custody of her children, attempts to rob a bank. After the robbery goes bad, the bank robber flees and tries to hide at an open house BUT ends up holding the potential buyers hostage. The hostages are quite a cast of characters with very different anxieties: Zara, is a bank mangager with a tragic past, Lennart is an actor desperate for a job, Estelle is a widow and my favorite --Roger and Anna-Lena, retirees who flip apartments in a desperate attempt to keep their marraige from getting stale. This story is a little bit of everything--funny, empathetic, insightful even though I thought it was a bit contrived as everyone seems connected by the end of the story. Find out what happens to all involved when you read this quirky book for yourself. Enjoy. 

August 6, 2025 YOU CAN'T CHANGE THAT

Bromance-- since first grade. Joined at the hip--until tomorrow. Yup-Tim's first BFF is leaving for college. Weren't they just playing Monopoly in the family room?? Where did the time go???  It's a bittersweet time for sure. On the one hand--the excitement of College--BUT there's also the FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN--AND CHANGE. Tim's been so lucky with friends. He's literally had the same core group since first grade-A BAND OF BROTHERS. They'll have to say SO LONG for now--until Christmas--BUT the Bromance will continue because of their connection and  shared memories of the last thirteen years. Enjoy your first semester--can't wait to hear all about it. The main character, Hai,  in Ocean Vuong's new book The Emperor of Gladness isn't so lucky. As the novel unfolds, Hai, is a nineteen year old Vietnamese American living in East Gladness, Connecticut, debating his fate as he stands on a bridge ready to jump.  Luckily, an elderly woman named, Grazina, talks him down. Grazina takes Hai to her dilapitated house to discuss his near suicide and then Hai reluctantly becomes her caretaker.  Hai also starts working at Home Market, a casual restaurant, where he meets a cast of characters including the manager BJ-who wants to be a professional wrestler, Wayne, Russia, Maureen, and his cousin Sony. They form a camaraderie as they share many struggles while working at this dead end job. Hai and Grazina also form a bond that ultimately changes both of their lives. This is a quirky story about friendship, loneliness and addiction where the reader decides the fate of the characters. I enjoyed this book--especially the characters in the restaurant as I felt like I was back at Papa Ginos. 

July 28, 2025. ISLAND GIRL

 Just spent a lovely weekend on Block Island with the bookclub. Can't believe its been 20 years. When the bookclub started out,  we were just a random group of neighbors who got together every month to discuss books and make a little merry.  Heck--some of us didn't even know each other. Over the years, we've formed a bond that has helped each of us overcome lifes many challenges. It really does take a village.  I'm very thankful to these women-- together we are stronger--strong enough to weather any storm. Thanks for the memories and the support--when I needed it most--looking forward to the next 20 years. Finished Wally Lamb's new book The River is Waiting right before the trip so here's my reivew. As this tragic novel unfolds, Corby and Emily Ledbetter live in a fictional town in Connecticut with their two year old twins, Maisie and Niko. Emily is an elementary school teacher and Corby is a stay-at-home dad as he has been laid off from work. One morning the unthinkable happens--and their world is forever changed. Corby is later arrested and sentenced to time at Yates Correctional Center. Corby's struggles in prison are frightening. He witnesses unbearable acts from not only prisoners but also from the correctional officers assigned to keep them safe. The only thing that keeps him from insanity is the hope that Emily can forgive him. Find out why Corby is in prison and if Emily can forgive him when you read this heartbreaking novel for yourself. This is Wally Lamb at his best--even if it is tragic --and leaves me thinking--it's sad that "we" unintentionally hurt the ones we love them most. 

July 18, 2025 CARELESS WHISPER

Who remembers the Seinfeld episode The Puffy Shirt? It's a classic. Kramer has a friend who is a LOW TALKER-- she is a designer who asks Seinfeld  to wear her puffy shirt on a televsion show. Seinfeld says yes BUT HAS NO IDEA WHAT HE IS AGREEING TO BECAUSE HE CAN'T HEAR HER. Well that's exactly how I felt last month while dining at a local restaurant. The waitress was a VERY LOW TALKER and we couldn't hear a word she said. At first I thought we were on an episode of Candid Camera--I 'm really showing my age here if you remember that show. Anyways--because we couldn't hear a word she said we had to hope for the best and try not to LAUGH-- BECAUSE IT WAS TOO FUNNY-- it too could have been a Seinfeld espisode. Truly miss that show. Back to the books. Just finished Alice Feeney's new book Beautiful Ugly. As this phychological thriller begins, Grady Green is an author who has finally made the best seller list, unfortunately, this happens on the same day his wife, Abbey, disappears. Overcome by grief and unable to start another book, Grady agrees (his editor has a cabin there)  to temporarily  move to a remote Scottish Island called Amity to get his life together and start a new book as per his contract. Once Grady gets to the island, he realizes some strange behaviors, coincidences and even thinks he see's his wife--or a woman who looks just like her. Find out what Amity Island is really all about and if the woman on the island is really Grady's wife when you read this mystery for yourself. I enjoyed this story and had a hard time putting it down. Let me know what you think. 

July 6, 2025. WHEN DOVES CRY

 Where are the hummingbirds?? Haven't seen ANY this summer. I'm so bummed. I love watching them flitter around the flowers and feeders. Wondering if it has anything to do with climate change? Hope it's just a nesting thing or a migration problem and they'll be back next year. In other bird news--we have had our first ever Bobwhites. They are funny quail-like looking birds who sort of whistle and call out the word--bobwhite--hence their name. Another first this year--we have chipmunks. Talk about cute little critters. Not sure where they came from but they seem to get along with the squirrels so its all good. While I sit on my patio and ponder the fate of the hummingbirds, I might as well review a mystery that I finished last week called The Night We Lost Him by Laura Dave. As this thriller unfolds, Liam Noone is a hugely successful hotelier who dies after falling from a cliff at his home. Although it has been deemed an accident, his son, Sam, isn't so sure. He convinces his estranged sister, Nora, that the death is suspicious and the two start their own investigation where they learn more than they bargain for. The story shifts between the investigation and Liam's past where the siblings uncover secrets, lies and a family history that forces them to rethink their whole lives. Find out what the siblings uncover and if Liam fell or was pushed off the cliff when you read this thriller for yourself. I totally enjoyed it and had a hard time putting it down. AND I did not guess the ending or the other twists and turns either. Happy Reading.