TOMORROW, AND TOMORROW, AND TOMORROW by Gabrielle Zevin

August 26, 2022

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From the publisher:

A NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • A JIMMY FALLON BOOK CLUB PICK • In this exhilarating novel by the best-selling author of The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry two friends—often in love, but never lovers—come together as creative partners in the world of video game design, where success brings them fame, joy, tragedy, duplicity, and, ultimately, a kind of immortality.

On a bitter-cold day, in the December of his junior year at Harvard, Sam Masur exits a subway car and sees, amid the hordes of people waiting on the platform, Sadie Green. He calls her name. For a moment, she pretends she hasn’t heard him, but then, she turns, and a game begins: a legendary collaboration that will launch them to stardom. These friends, intimates since childhood, borrow money, beg favors, and, before even graduating college, they have created their first blockbuster, Ichigo. Overnight, the world is theirs. Not even twenty-five years old, Sam and Sadie are brilliant, successful, and rich, but these qualities won’t protect them from their own creative ambitions or the betrayals of their hearts.

Spanning thirty years, from Cambridge, Massachusetts, to Venice Beach, California, and lands in between and far beyond, Gabrielle Zevin’s Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow is a dazzling and intricately imagined novel that examines the multifarious nature of identity, disability, failure, the redemptive possibilities in play, and above all, our need to connect: to be loved and to love. Yes, it is a love story, but it is not one you have read before.

“Riveting… Zevin has written the book she was born to write, a love letter to every aspect of gaming…Zevin’s delight in her characters, their qualities, and their projects sprinkles a layer of fairy dust over the whole enterprise…Sure to enchant even those who have never played a video game in their lives, with instant cult status for those who have.” —Kirkus, starred

“Zevin creates beautifully flawed characters often caught between the real and gaming worlds, which are cleverly juxtaposed to highlight their similarities and differences. Both readers of love stories and gamers will enjoy. Highly recommended.” —Library Journal, starred

“Zevin… returns with an exhilarating epic of friendship, grief, and computer game development…. Zevin layers the narrative with her characters’ wrenching emotional wounds as their relationships wax and wane… Even more impressive are the visionary and transgressive games… This is a one-of-a-kind achievement.” —Publishers Weekly, starred

https://amzn.to/3cnF05v

Zevin’s book, The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry, was one of my favorite books, so I was happy to pick up this new one, even though it didn’t sound like something that would interest me. The book is about three friends who create video games. The closest I get to video games are Wordle, the NYT Spelling Bee & Crosswords, and Candy Crush. The video games serve as a backdrop to these characters, and at times, the games are front and center. Somehow I was drawn into their world and I didn’t want to leave.

This is a hard book to quantify; it probably is best slotted into the literary fiction genre (and boy, do they hate when literary fiction is called a genre!) All I can tell you is this is a tour de force and a mesmerizing read. I don’t want to give away anything, so if you like character-driven stories that are fast-paced and emotionally engaging, then this is your book. I loved it, and so did just about all the critics. Too much hype can sometimes backfire, but it is well deserved here.

8/2022 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

TOMORROW, AND TOMORROW, AND TOMORROW by Gabrielle Zevin. Knopf (July 5, 2022). ISBN:‎ 978-0593321201. 416p.

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THE CAVE DWELLERS by Christina McDowell

May 25, 2021
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From the publisher:

A compulsively readable novel in the vein of The Bonfire of the Vanities—by way of The Nest—about what Washington, DC’s high society members do away from the Capitol building and behind the closed doors of their stately homes.

They are the families considered worthy of a listing in the exclusive Green Book—a discriminative diary created by the niece of Edith Roosevelt’s social secretary. Their aristocratic bloodlines are woven into the very fabric of Washington—generation after generation. Their old money and manner lurk through the cobblestone streets of Georgetown, Kalorama, and Capitol Hill. They only socialize within their inner circle, turning a blind eye to those who come and go on the political merry-go-round. These parents and their children live in gilded existences of power and privilege.

But what they have failed to understand is that the world is changing. And when the family of one of their own is held hostage and brutally murdered, everything about their legacy is called into question.

They’re called The Cave Dwellers.

McDowell’s debut novel (after her memoir, After Perfect) is a brutal, satirical look at life in Washington, D.C., and the author knows whereof she speaks; she grew up there. The catalyst for the story is the torture and brutal murder of a wealthy, power-wielding family, including their teenage daughter. One of her classmates is determined to get to some sort of understanding of what happened and why, and she goes to the jail to visit the young Black man who was arrested for the crime. It turns out his father was an employee of the family that was killed, and motive is quickly established. The wives of the most powerful families in the nation’s capital are all perturbed, but so are their children, the teenagers and private school classmates of the murdered girl. These are among the most privileged families in the country, and the satire here is deeply wounding; racism, misogyny, and class hierarchy are all fair game, and the irony is inescapable and delicious.

Verdict: A fascinating, gossipy glimpse into the lives of the 1% (with footnotes) that should appeal to readers who enjoyed The Assistants by Camille Perri or Capital Girls by Ella Monroe.

©Library Journal, 2021

5/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE CAVE DWELLERS by Christina McDowell. Gallery/Scout Press (May 25, 2021). ISBN 978-1982132781. 352 pages.

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THE NINE LIVES OF ROSE NAPOLITANO by Donna Freitas

April 6, 2021
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From the publisher:

A deeply moving novel about a woman who thought she never wanted to be a mother–and the many ways that life can surprise us

In every woman there are many stories . . .

Rose Napolitano is fighting with her husband, Luke, about prenatal vitamins. She promised she’d take them, but didn’t. He promised before they got married that he’d never want children, but now he’s changed his mind. Their marriage has come to rest on this one question: Can Rose find it in herself to become a mother? Rose is a successful professor and academic. She’s never wanted to have a child. The fight ends, and with it their marriage.

But then, Rose has a fight with Luke about the vitamins–again. This time the fight goes slightly differently, and so does Rose’s future as she grapples with whether she can indeed give up the one thing she thought she knew about herself. Can she reimagine her life in a completely new way? That reimagining plays out again and again in each of Rose’s nine lives, just as it does for each of us as we grow into adulthood. What are the consequences of our biggest choices? How would life change if we let go of our preconceived ideas of ourselves and became someone completely new? Rose Napolitano’s experience of choosing and then choosing again shows us in an utterly compelling way what it means, literally, to reinvent a life and, sometimes, become a different kind of woman than we ever imagined.

A stunning novel about love, loss, betrayal, divorce, death, a woman’s career and her identity, The Nine Lives of Rose Napolitano is about finding one’s way into a future that wasn’t the future one planned, and the ways that fate intercedes when we least expect it.

After several young adult and nonfiction books (Consent: A Memoir of Unwanted Attention,) Freitas debuts an extraordinary, multi-faceted novel for adults. Rose Napolitano is a young woman on the precipice of a life-changing decision: whether to have a child. A staunch feminist professor of sociology, Rose has never wanted children. She was explicit about that while dating her husband, Luke, and he proclaimed that he was of the same mind. But a few years into their seemingly happy marriage, his parents start exerting their influence in hopes of getting a grandchild. Luke caves, and eventually Rose agrees to start taking prenatal vitamins, and that is where the story starts. And starts again. Because this is no ordinary story of a young couple moving on to the next stage of familyhood; instead we get a glimpse into all the different lives Rose could have. Nine different lives, some more fully realized than others. Starting one morning in 2006, Rose and Luke fight over the prenatal vitamins, and the outcome of that fight changes depending on the life Rose chooses, from having a baby or not, to affairs or not, to the breakup of the marriage or not, until it ends in 2025.

Verdict: This is a serious yet fantastical look at relationships, family, and feminism told in a unique voice, and book groups should take note. The closest readalikes are Life After Life by Kate Atkinson and Replay by Ken Grimwood.

I’ve seen this compared to the movie Sliding Doors, (available on Amazon Prime, IMDB TV, & Hoopla,) so I watched it. The movie is a shallow comparison. Once again, Pamela Dorman Books comes through for me. Don’t miss it.

©Library Journal, 2021

4/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE NINE LIVES OF ROSE NAPOLITANO by Donna Freitas. Pamela Dorman Books (April 6, 2021). ISBN 978-1984880598. 384 pages.

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THE ORCHARD by David Hopen

January 15, 2021
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From the publisher:

A Recommended Book From:
The New York Times * Good Morning America * Entertainment Weekly * Electric Literature * The New York Post * Alma * The Millions * Book Riot 

A commanding debut and a poignant coming-of-age story about a devout Jewish high school student whose plunge into the secularized world threatens everything he knows of himself

Ari Eden’s life has always been governed by strict rules. In ultra-Orthodox Brooklyn, his days are dedicated to intense study and religious rituals, and adolescence feels profoundly lonely. So when his family announces that they are moving to a glitzy Miami suburb, Ari seizes his unexpected chance for reinvention.

Enrolling in an opulent Jewish academy, Ari is stunned by his peers’ dizzying wealth, ambition, and shameless pursuit of life’s pleasures. When the academy’s golden boy, Noah, takes Ari under his wing, Ari finds himself entangled in the school’s most exclusive and wayward group. These friends are magnetic and defiant—especially Evan, the brooding genius of the bunch, still living in the shadow of his mother’s death.

Influenced by their charismatic rabbi, the group begins testing their religion in unconventional ways. Soon Ari and his friends are pushing moral boundaries and careening toward a perilous future—one in which the traditions of their faith are repurposed to mysterious, tragic ends.

Mesmerizing and playful, heartrending and darkly romantic, The Orchard probes the conflicting forces that determine who we become: the heady relationships of youth, the allure of greatness, the doctrines we inherit, and our concealed desires.

I really wanted to like this book. It’s a debut novel written by a very bright young man. It’s set in my backyard, Miami, and is about an Orthodox Jewish family who moves from an Orthodox neighborhood in Brooklyn to a much less religious neighborhood in Miami. All things I usually find interesting. 

It’s also a coming of age novel. The main character is Aryeh Eden, whose name quickly morphs to Ari in this new land. Ari’s mother was Jewish but not brought up religiously. She decided to become Orthodox, married, and had a son. Their Brooklyn neighborhood was filled with religious families like them. But Ari never really felt all that comfortable there. His mother, while acting frum (religiously observant) actually pushed Ari to read secular books, something that was frowned upon in their community. When his father, an accountant, loses his job in Brooklyn, he finds another job in Miami. Ari is happy to leave, even though he is in high school.

Their neighbors are more modern Orthodox, and Ari quickly makes friends in his new school. But he has never been around these types of students. They take secular classes, the school is co-ed, and they throw off their religious beliefs regularly, drinking, smoking, making out with girls. Yet as different as Ari feels, he also feels more like himself.

There is a lot of drama in this high school. I would think it too far-fetched but I suspect the author attended a similar type of school (write what you know?) There are a lot of firsts for Ari, and some of those firsts are quite disturbing. As a parent, I could not relate to his parents, who seemed fairly oblivious to what was going on around them. 

There were many, many pages of philosophical discussions among these high school students, which I had a hard time grappling with, or believing of this age group, and worse, I found difficult to read. I found myself skimming pages at a time. The book dragged for me until I was about 75% of the way through. The last part of the book finally moved a little quicker as the denouement was reached.

I love finding new authors, especially ones like Hopen, who has such a unique voice. He reminds me most of a modern-day Chaim Potok, which is very high praise, or Gary Shteyngart. I don’t think he quite has his storytelling skills honed yet, but I also think this book is a promising start to what could well be a rewarding writing career. The author is at Yale Law School, so whether he follows that path or this, I’m sure he will be successful.

1/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

THE ORCHARD by David Hopen. Ecco (November 17, 2020). ISBN 978-0062974747. 480 pages.

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THE NICKEL BOYS by Colson Whitehead

June 29, 2020

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From the publisher:

WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR
Time, Esquire, The Washington Post, The Guardian, Slate, NPR, Entertainment Weekly, Vox, Variety, Christian Science Monitor, The Minneapolis Star Tribune, The Dallas Morning News, Literary Hub, BuzzFeed, The New York Public Library

NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD FINALIST

ONE OF TIME MAGAZINE’S 10 BEST FICTION BOOKS OF THE DECADE

WINNER OF THE KIRKUS PRIZE

LONGLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD

LONGLISTED FOR THE ORWELL PRIZE FOR POLITICAL FICTION 2020

In this bravura follow-up to the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award-winning #1 New York Times bestseller The Underground Railroad, Colson Whitehead brilliantly dramatizes another strand of American history through the story of two boys sentenced to a hellish reform school in Jim Crow-era Florida.

When Elwood Curtis, a black boy growing up in 1960s Tallahassee, is unfairly sentenced to a juvenile reformatory called the Nickel Academy, he finds himself trapped in a grotesque chamber of horrors. Elwood’s only salvation is his friendship with fellow “delinquent” Turner, which deepens despite Turner’s conviction that Elwood is hopelessly naive, that the world is crooked, and that the only way to survive is to scheme and avoid trouble. As life at the Academy becomes ever more perilous, the tension between Elwood’s ideals and Turner’s skepticism leads to a decision whose repercussions will echo down the decades.

Based on the real story of a reform school that operated for 111 years and warped the lives of thousands of children, The Nickel Boys is a devastating, driven narrative that showcases a great American novelist writing at the height of his powers.

There is not a whole lot I can add to all the praises sung about this book because I totally agree. If you have not read Colson Whitehead, this is a fantastic place to start. This is a short book, only 224 pages, but they are powerful pages. There is not a wasted word.

I also loved The Underground Railroad, so if you like this book, definitely try that one. I would be remiss if I didn’t point out that Colson Whitehead has won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for both of these books. Lest you think that is no big deal, let me point out that this is a very, very big deal. Only three other authors have ever won two Pulitzers for fiction: Booth Tarkington, William Faulkner, and John Updike. So not Hemingway, not Faulkner, not Steinbeck. And although my Bachelor’s degree is in English Literature, I’ve never read Tarkington and I’m really not familiar with his work, although a film was made of his 1919 win for The Magnificent Ambersons. But I digress.

With everything going on in this country right now, it is the perfect moment to read The Nickel Boys. It is a powerful, moving story – devastating is truly the right word. It is a novel, but it is based on a true story. Whitehead includes several references at the end of the book and it is worthwhile looking at them.

Even though it is a very short book, I took my time reading it. Some of the passages in the story are just heartbreaking, and I wanted to give it the consideration I felt it deserved. It is an emotional read for sure, with a shocking twist at the end. How can I love a book that tells such an overwhelmingly disturbing story? Because Whitehead is a superb storyteller, and he’s written an unforgettable book. Don’t miss it.

6/2020 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE NICKEL BOYS by Colson Whitehead. Anchor; Reprint edition (June 30, 2020). ISBN 978-0345804341. 224 pages.

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ALL THIS COULD BE YOURS by Jami Attenberg

October 23, 2019

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Victor Tuchman is the family patriarch at the center of this swirling dervish of a novel. Victor is at the end of his life; the novel unfolds on the day he has his fatal heart attack.

The quandary here is that Victor was a criminal in his business life, and a tyrant in his personal life. His wife Barbra, pacing the hospital halls, is counting her steps and recounting their dysfunctional life together. Alex, his daughter, an attorney in Chicago, flies to New Orleans, not for her final goodbye, but to cajole her mother into spilling the beans about her father’s criminality. Gary, his son, is in Los Angeles and deliberately misses his flight, unwilling to say goodbye, understandable as he rehashes his life with the abusive man lying in that hospital bed. Gary’s wife, Twyla does visit, her mind wandering through her Southern upbringing and her disastrous, shocking affair.

Attenberg is a master of subtlety as she divulges everyone’s thoughts, including the one-off characters like the clerk at a CVS and the coroner. The unusual twist here is that the reader learns all their stories, while the characters do not.

Verdict: Contemporary family sagas don’t get much better than this, and should appeal to fans of The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen or Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan.

©Library Journal, 2019

10/19 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

ALL THIS COULD BE YOURS by Jami Attenberg. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (October 22, 2019). ISBN 978-0544824256. 304p.

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FLEISHMAN IS IN TROUBLE by Taffy Brodesser-Akner

October 5, 2019

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From the publisher:

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • NATIONAL BOOK AWARD LONGLIST • “A feminist jeremiad nested inside a brilliant comic novel—a book that makes you laugh so hard you don’t notice till later that your eyebrows have been singed off.”—Ron Charles, The Washington Post

“Funny, dirty, sly, irresistible.”—New York

A finely observed, timely exploration of marriage, divorce, and the bewildering dynamics of ambition from one of the most exciting writers working today

Toby Fleishman thought he knew what to expect when he and his wife of almost fifteen years separated: weekends and every other holiday with the kids, some residual bitterness, the occasional moment of tension in their co-parenting negotiations. He could not have predicted that one day, in the middle of his summer of sexual emancipation, Rachel would just drop their two children off at his place and simply not return. He had been working so hard to find equilibrium in his single life. The winds of his optimism, long dormant, had finally begun to pick up. Now this.

As Toby tries to figure out where Rachel went, all while juggling his patients at the hospital, his never-ending parental duties, and his new app-assisted sexual popularity, his tidy narrative of the spurned husband with the too-ambitious wife is his sole consolation. But if Toby ever wants to truly understand what happened to Rachel and what happened to his marriage, he is going to have to consider that he might not have seen things all that clearly in the first place.

A searing, utterly unvarnished debut, Fleishman Is in Trouble is an insightful, unsettling, often hilarious exploration of a culture trying to navigate the fault lines of an institution that has proven to be worthy of our great wariness and our great hope.

I had heard about this book from the publicist, and later a friend recommended it. Then I think Michelle Goldberg recommended it on her podcast, The Argument? I wouldn’t swear to that, but anyway, I read it. I did not remember that it was a first novel when I read it, and I was very surprised when I realized it after. It is a really interesting story, with complex characters and a lot of emotion, and I loved the writing.

Toby Fleishman is a recently divorced 40-something doctor in Manhattan, AKA catnip to women, and not only in New York. Many years ago my doctor lost his wife. They were young, had a couple of young children. I swear, less than a week later I overheard some women discussing ways to finagle dates with him. I overheard this on the playground at the Jewish Community Center, while they were ignoring their toddlers. So I get it. But things have changed since my kids were in pre-school.

Toby is short. He has a bit of a complex about it, like many men who are vertically challenged. But the doctor thing is now overriding the short thing, and he is shocked to find that women are practically throwing themselves at him. Actually, not practically, they are definitely throwing themselves at him. He is on a dating app where he is barraged with pictures of women. Not their faces so much, but everything he used to have to look for in porn. Now pictures are being delivered to his phone at all hours of the day and night. Along with invitations to meet. Not for dinner necessarily, but for sex. Toby is like a kid in a candy store. This new world order is working for him. Until his ex goes missing, and the party feels like it’s over.

Rachel is aspirational, and super successful. In fact, she thinks Toby the doctor is a loser. Her income and ambitions far eclipse his, which means she pays child support as he is the primary care giver for the kids. It was another interesting aspect of the book, and I really liked how that was explored. A lot of the stuff that happens is laugh out loud funny, and other parts are infuriating and sometimes sad.

This is a book that begs to be discussed. If you are in a book group, put it on your list, you won’t be sorry.

10/19 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

FLEISHMAN IS IN TROUBLE by Taffy Brodesser-Akner. Random House (June 18, 2019).  ISBN 978-0525510871. 384p.

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THIS TENDER LAND by William Kent Kruger

September 6, 2019

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From the publisher:

A magnificent novel about four orphans on a life-changing odyssey during the Great Depression, from the New York Times bestselling author of Ordinary Grace. 

1932, Minnesota—the Lincoln School is a pitiless place where hundreds of Native American children, forcibly separated from their parents, are sent to be educated. It is also home to an orphan named Odie O’Banion, a lively boy whose exploits earn him the superintendent’s wrath. Forced to flee, he and his brother Albert, their best friend Mose, and a brokenhearted little girl named Emmy steal away in a canoe, heading for the mighty Mississippi and a place to call their own.

Over the course of one unforgettable summer, these four orphans will journey into the unknown and cross paths with others who are adrift, from struggling farmers and traveling faith healers to displaced families and lost souls of all kinds. With the feel of a modern classic, This Tender Land is an en­thralling, big-hearted epic that shows how the magnificent American landscape connects us all, haunts our dreams, and makes us whole.

“If you liked Where the Crawdads Sing, you’ll love This Tender Land…This story is as big-hearted as they come.” —Parade 

Definitely.

While Kruger is best known for his Cork O’Connor mystery series, he probably received the most accolades (and gained a ton of new readers) with his extraordinary book, Ordinary Grace. This new book was pitched to me as another Ordinary Grace, so I wondered, can lightning strike twice? Apparently it can.

The writing is simply superb. The characters are unforgettable, and the setting is rich and evocative.  I have seen this book described as an updated Huckleberry Finn, and that is an apt comparison, as is its comparison to Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath and Homer’s Odyssey. These are some heady correlations, and Kruger’s book easily stands up to them.

Four kids run away from the school where they have been, for lack of a better word, horribly mistreated.They jump into a canoe and head out on the Gilead River. The Gilead feeds into the great Mississippi, and that’s where these children are headed, hoping to reach St. Louis and the possibility of family, where two of them, the brothers, are from.

There are crimes committed along the way, starting with the “kidnapping” of Emmy, a young orphaned girl who has been adopted by the heinous owners of the school. But is it kidnapping is she wants to leave? It is her choice to run away, but this is right on the heels of the Lindburgh baby kidnapping and no one is asking those questions. These children, like many during the depression, grow up way too fast.

There are some major themes at play here, starting with the grand adventure on the river. This is an epic odyssey, often chaotic, and at times, spiritual. But other themes are also important, like the deplorable mistreatment of Native Americans in this country, and much of the history revealed here was completely new to me. Another major theme is that of family, how that is defined, and what it means. It is also a coming of age story for these runaways, and the book is narrated by the adult Odie so it is told with some perspective.

It is a story that immediately grabs the reader and doesn’t let go until the last page is turned. There is resolution, and redemption. Book clubs will love it; there is a deep, rich reservoir worthy of discussion. It is an excellent read, sure to make my best books of the year list. Don’t miss it.

9/19 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

THIS TENDER LAND by William Kent Kruger. Atria Books (September 3, 2019). ISBN 978-1476749297. 464p.

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WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING by Delia Owens

December 14, 2018

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From the publisher:

#1 New York Times Bestseller
A Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club Pick

For years, rumors of the “Marsh Girl” have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life–until the unthinkable happens.

Perfect for fans of Barbara Kingsolver and Karen Russell, Where the Crawdads Sing is at once an exquisite ode to the natural world, a heartbreaking coming-of-age story, and a surprising tale of possible murder. Owens reminds us that we are forever shaped by the children we once were, and that we are all subject to the beautiful and violent secrets that nature keeps.

 

The publisher’s description doesn’t begin to do this book justice. It came out last summer and I missed it completely. I started hearing about it from my library patrons and was surprised to discover a very long waiting list for the book. I finally got it and read it in one night. It was unputdownable.

Kya is a most unusual character and we meet her when she is about five years old. Her coming of age is an astonishing story and beautifully told. The writing is simply superlative, the descriptions just bring this unusual setting, a marsh in rural North Carolina, to life.

The story is written in two timelines which are easily followed, and eventually meet. There is a mystery at the heart of this story and the ending was a shocker.

I haven’t taken Reese Witherspoon’s recommendations very seriously but I will now. Where the Crawdads Sing is perfect for book discussion and anyone who enjoys a good story, engaging characters and beautiful writing. I loved it.

11/18 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING by Delia Owens. G.P. Putnam’s Sons; First Edition, First Printing edition (August 14, 2018). ISBN 978-0735219090. 384p.

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YOU ME EVERYTHING by Catherine Isaac

May 25, 2018

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From the publisher:

Set in the French countryside on an idyllic summer vacation, a delicious, tender novel about finding joy and love even in the most unexpected places. 

Jess and her ten-year-old son William set off to spend the summer at Château de Roussignol, deep in the rich, sunlit hills of the Dordogne. There, Jess’s ex-boyfriend—and William’s father—Adam, runs a beautiful hotel in a restored castle. Lush gardens, a gorgeous pool, delectable French food, and a seemingly never-ending wine list—what’s not to like?  Jess is bowled over by what Adam has accomplished, but she’s in France for a much more urgent reason: to make Adam fall in love with his own son.

But Adam has other ideas, and another girlfriend—and he doesn’t seem inclined to change the habits of a lifetime just because Jess and William have appeared on the scene.   Jess isn’t surprised, but William—who has quickly come to idolize his father—wants nothing more than to spend time with him. But Jess can’t allow Adam to let their son down—because she is tormented by a secret of her own, one that nobody—especially William—must discover.

By turns heartwrenching and hopeful, You Me Everything is a novel about one woman’s fierce determination to grab hold of the family she has and never let go, and a romantic story as heady as a crisp Sancerre on a summer day.

 

Jess has raised William alone with a bi-annual visit from his father. They are not close, to say the least. But luckily, her parents have helped quite a bit, at least until her mother got sick. Her mother has Huntington’s Disease, which is pretty much your worst nightmare.

Jess takes William to spend the summer at the hotel his father owns and invites some friends to go along, too. What should be an lovely summer has plenty of ups and downs to keep things from being too perfect.

This book reminded me a bit of Me Before You by JoJo Moyes. It definitely gets maudlin near the end, but it takes an inordinate amount of time to get there. So little happens that the book felt overly long, which was surprising from Pamela Dorman. She is one of those editors that I look for and will generally read anything she puts out. This one was a tiny bit disappointing. I liked the romance, the French setting, the food, and the characters. Dorman books tend towards literary fiction, which is more character driven than plot driven, despite whatever genre they might fall into. I just wished there was more story to this story.

5/18 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

YOU ME EVERYTHING by Catherine Isaac. Pamela Dorman Books (May 1, 2018). ISBN 978-0735224537.  368p.

Kindle

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